2003/06/30 by Michel Ferrero, Federico Becca, Frédéric Mila · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Condensed Matter Physics #Quantum many-body systems #Theoretical and Computational Physics #cond-mat.str-el
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevb.68.214431
published as Phys. Rev. B 68, 214431 (2003) · 12 pages, 13 figures
arxiv created 2003/06/30 · openalex publication_date 2003/12/31 · arxiv updated 2009/11/30 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01
We investigate the properties of an effective Hamiltonian with competing interactions involving spin and chirality variables, relevant for the description of the trimerized version of the spin-1/2 kagome antiferromagnet. Using classical Monte Carlo simulations, we show that remarkable behaviors develop at very low temperatures. Through an entropic selection mechanism, the low-energy states are characterized by a dynamical freezing of the chiralities, which decouples the lattice into ``dimers'' and ``triangles'' of antiferromagnetically coupled spins. Under the presence of an external magnetic field, the particular topology of the chiralities induces a very slow spin dynamics, reminiscent of what happens in ordinary spin glasses.