Heat conduction in magnetic insulators via hybridization of acoustic phonons and spin-flip excitations
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: We present a comprehensive study on the longitudinal magnetothermal transport in a paramagnetic effective spin-1/2 magnetic insulator CsYbSe 2 , by introducing a minimal model requiring only Zeeman splitting and magnetoelastic coupling. We use it to argue that hybridized excitations—formed from acoustic phonons and localized spin-flip-excitations across the Zeeman gap of the crystal electric field ground doublet—are responsible for a nonmonotonic field dependence of longitudinal thermal conductivity. Beyond highlighting a starring role for phonons, our results raise the prospect of universal magnetothermal transport phenomena in paramagnetic insulators that originate from simple features shared across many systems.
Source: Physical Review Research
Language: English
Subfield: Condensed Matter Physics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,625
Funders: National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Office of Science, University of Colorado Boulder, Division of Materials Research, Basic Energy Sciences, High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, State of Florida
Awards: G1019936685, G1061797771, G1138554163, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory Renewal 2018-2022, INVESTIGATING NEW ROUTES TO QUANTUM DISORDERED STATES, G2579085161, G354028113, G3560959519, SYMMETRY IN CORRELATED QUANTUM MATTER, G410635398, G6010147111, G6068437893, G6370089211, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory Renewal 2023-2027, G7214215584, G742574937, G8152425740, G8618556185
OpenAlex ID: W4409218785