Unravelling Quantum Phases in The Shastry-Sutherland Lattice

The Shastry-Sutherland lattice consists of a two-dimensional orthogonal arrangement of spin dimers. By varying the ratio of intra-dimer and inter-dimer interactions, the rich phase diagram can emerge, encompassing various exotic quantum states. Single-ion and exchange magnetic anisotropies can further diversify the phased diagram and give rise to quantum states beyond the traditional antiferromagnetic Heisenberg Shastry-Sutherland lattice model. Neutron scattering is an important technique for characterizing magnetic states. Here, I will introduce our recent studies using neutron scattering to unravel the quantum states of spin dimers in the rare-earth (RE) Shastry-Sutherland lattice compound BaRE₂ZnS₅ (RE=Nd, Ce, and Pr).<br/><br/>The research was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Early Career Research Program Award KC0402020 and used resources at the High Flux Isotope Reactor, a DOE Office of Science User Facility operated by ORNL.