The search and detection of quantum spin liquid in new materials with geometrically frustrated lattice

Haidong Zhou, UT Physics and Astronomy

ABSTRACT: While the rise of quantum computers may one day help solve complex problems and deliver information with unhackable security, there is lack of a material platforms for scalable realization of quantum technologies. For instance, the most interesting magnetic property of the celebrated quantum spin liquids (QSLs) is the possibility of quantum mechanical encryption and transport of information, protected against environmental influences. Despite extensive studies on QSLs, they are still far away from applications. First obstacle is simply the shortage of real examples of QSL systems. Second obstacle is that most of the studied QSLs are insulators and electronically inert, which is incompatible with an electrical circuit that relies on moving charge carriers. The grand challenge is to find a way to convert the entanglement information into mobile charge signal by "metallizing" quantum magnets.

In this talk, I will introduce a unique approach by using strategical materials design focusing on geometrically frustrated magnets to address these two obstacles. I will also introduce the crystal growth techniques used to synthesize these systems since the materials growth is the starting point of materials research and the high quality samples are essential to learn their intrinsic properties.