Emergent low-energy thermodynamics and universal B/T scaling in α-RuCl_3

Abstract

Quantum spin liquids are exotic states of matter in which strongly interacting spins remain disordered down to zero temperature and host fractionalized excitations. This has motivated an extensive search for their realization in materials. Among candidate systems, α-RuCl₃ has drawn particular attention as a platform for the quantum spin liquid proposed by Kitaev, in which the low-energy excitations in applied magnetic fields are interpreted as itinerant Majorana fermions and local flux excitations. However, conflicting experimental signatures have cast doubt on whether a Kitaev quantum spin liquid-like state is really the right starting point to interpret the low-energy states in α-RuCl₃, motivating a closer look at the nature of these excitations. Here we report an extensive high field study of specific heat up to 35 T on α-RuCl₃. We find that the low-energy thermodynamics exhibit universal B/T scaling with a single effective energy scale proportional to the applied field as long as the magnetic field is not close to the c-axis. This behavior persists continuously from the antiferromagnetic phase boundary to the highest fields, suggesting that the perturbative Kitaev limit, with its Majorana and flux excitations, may not be an appropriate starting point for describing the low-energy thermodynamics of α-RuCl₃ for fields away from the c-axis.

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BibTeX RIS

BibTeX

@misc{khansili2026emergent,
  title = {{Emergent low-energy thermodynamics and universal $B/T$ scaling in $α$-RuCl$_3$}},
  author = {A. Khansili and B. J. Ramshaw and A. Bangura and H. -Y. Kee and R. D. McDonald and F. Assaad and A. Rydh and A. Shekhter and K. A. Modic},
  howpublished = {arXiv},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2610.16961},
  eprint = {2610.16961},
  archivePrefix = {arXiv},
  url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.16961},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}

RIS

TY  - UNPB
TI  - Emergent low-energy thermodynamics and universal B/T scaling in α-RuCl_3
AU  - A. Khansili
AU  - B. J. Ramshaw
AU  - A. Bangura
AU  - H. -Y. Kee
AU  - R. D. McDonald
AU  - F. Assaad
AU  - A. Rydh
AU  - A. Shekhter
AU  - K. A. Modic
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/12
PB  - arXiv
DO  - 10.48550/arxiv.2610.16961
UR  - https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.16961
AB  - Quantum spin liquids are exotic states of matter in which strongly interacting spins remain disordered down to zero temperature and host fractionalized excitations. This has motivated an extensive search for their realization in materials. Among candidate systems, α-RuCl_3 has drawn particular attention as a platform for the quantum spin liquid proposed by Kitaev, in which the low-energy excitations in applied magnetic fields are interpreted as itinerant Majorana fermions and local flux excitations. However, conflicting experimental signatures have cast doubt on whether a Kitaev quantum spin liquid-like state is really the right starting point to interpret the low-energy states in α-RuCl_3, motivating a closer look at the nature of these excitations. Here we report an extensive high field study of specific heat up to 35 T on α-RuCl_3. We find that the low-energy thermodynamics exhibit universal B/T scaling with a single effective energy scale proportional to the applied field as long as the magnetic field is not close to the c-axis. This behavior persists continuously from the antiferromagnetic phase boundary to the highest fields, suggesting that the perturbative Kitaev limit, with its Majorana and flux excitations, may not be an appropriate starting point for describing the low-energy thermodynamics of α-RuCl_3 for fields away from the c-axis.
ER  -

Emergent low-energy thermodynamics and universal B/T scaling in α-RuCl₃

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