High-pressure study of topological semimetals XCd_(2)Sb_(2)(X=Eu and Yb)

Topological materials have aroused great interest in recent years,especially when magnetism is involved.Pressure can effectively tune the topological states and possibly induce superconductivity.Here we report the high-pressure study of topological semimetals XCd_(2)Sb_(2)(X=Eu and Yb),which have the same crystal structure.In antiferromagnetic(AFM)Weyl semimetal EuCd_(2)Sb_(2),the Néel temperature(TN)increases from 7.4 K at ambient pressure to 50.9 K at 14.9 GPa.When pressure is above 14.9 GPa,the AFM peak of resistance disappears,indicating a non-magnetic state.In paramagnetic Dirac semimetal candidate YbCd_(2)Sb_(2),pressure-induced superconductivity appears at 1.94 GPa,then Tc reaches to a maximum of 1.67 K at 5.22 GPa and drops to zero at about 30 GPa,displaying a dome-shaped temperature–pressure phase diagram.High-pressure x-ray diffraction measurement demonstrates that a crystalline-to-amorphous phase transition occurs at about 16 GPa in YbCd_(2)Sb_(2),revealing the robustness of pressure-induced superconductivity against structural instability.Similar structural phase transition may also occur in EuCd_(2)Sb_(2),causing the disappearance of magnetism.Our results show that XCd_(2)Sb_(2)(X=Eu and Yb)is a novel platform for exploring the interplay among magnetism,topology,and superconductivity.

Fluctuating magnetic droplets immersed in a sea of quantum spin liquid

The search of quantum spin liquid(QSL),an exotic magnetic state with strongly fluctuating and highly entangled spins down to zero temperature,is a main theme in current condensed matter physics.However,there is no smoking gun evidence for deconfined spinons in any QSL candidate so far.The disorders and competing exchange interactions may prevent the formation of an ideal QSL state on frustrated spin lattices.Here we report comprehensive and systematic measurements of the magnetic susceptibility,ultralow-temperature specific heat,muon spin relaxation(μSR),nuclear magnetic resonance(NMR),and thermal conductivity for NaYbSe2 single crystals,in which Yb3+ions with effective spin-1/2 form a perfect triangular lattice.All these complementary techniques find no evidence of long-range magnetic order down to their respective base temperatures.Instead,specific heat,μSR,and NMR measurements suggest the coexistence of quasi-static and dynamic spins in NaYbSe2.The scattering from these quasi-static spins may cause the absence of magnetic thermal conductivity.Thus,we propose a scenario of fluctuating ferrimagnetic droplets immersed in a sea of QSL.This may be quite common on the way pursuing an ideal QSL,and provides a brand new platform to study how a QSL state survives impurities and coexists with other magnetically ordered states.