Synthesis of a Quantum Spin Liquid in the Thin-Film Form

Magnetically frustrated materials offer a playground for realizing exotic magnetic ground states such as quantum spin ices and spin liquids. Synthesizing such quantum magnets in thin-film form allows further tuning of the magnetic ground state with dimensionality and epitaxial strain as well as the possibility to integrate these states with other functional materials. Here we use reactive oxide molecular beam epitaxy to synthesize thin films of hexagonal TbInO₃. This material is isostructural to the well-studied multiferroic material YMnO₃. Due to a lattice distortion accompanied by an improper ferroelectric polarization at high temperatures, the Tb³⁺ sublattice exhibits a stuffed honeycomb geometry which hosts frustrated magnetism. We study the interplay of ferroelectricity and the frustrated magnetic order in the thin film geometry.