Frustrated Magnetism in Fluoride and Chalcogenide Pyrochlore Lattice Materials

Abstract

Pyrochlore lattices, which are found in two important classes of materials -the A2B2X7 pyrochlore family and the AB2X4 spinel family -are the quintessential 3-dimensional frustrated lattice architecture. While historically oxides (X = O) have played the starring role in this field, the past decade has seen material's synthesis breakthroughs that have lead to the emergence of fluoride (X = F) and chalcogenide (X = S, Se) pyrochlore lattice materials. In this Research Update, we summarize recent progress in understanding the magnetically frustrated ground states in three families of non-oxide pyrochlore lattice materials: (i) 3d-transition metal fluoride pyrochlores, (ii) rare earth chalcogenide spinels, and (iii) chromium chalcogenide spinels with a breathing pyrochlore lattice. We highlight how the change of anion may modify the single ion spin anisotropy due to crystal electric field effects, stabilize new magnetic atom combinations, or dramatically alter the exchange pathways and thereby lead to new magnetic ground states. We also consider a slate of future directions -materials with the potential to define the next decade of research in frustrated magnetism.