Nadir bir bileşik manyetik sıvı kristal gibi davranıyor

Rice University researchers have identified an unusual magnetic liquid-crystal state in ytterbium manganese dibismuthide, known as YbMnBi₂. When the material was heated beyond the point at which its normal magnetic order disappeared, its fluctuating spins did not become entirely random. Instead, they continued to favour particular directions. Neutron measurements also showed that the spins remained essentially aligned, ruling out an earlier explanation that depended on tilted spins and a Weyl state in the bulk material. To isolate ytterbium’s role, the team compared the compound with a similar material containing nonmagnetic calcium. The directional fluctuations vanished in the calcium version, indicating that ytterbium was essential. Further experiments and calculations suggest that magnetic moments on some ytterbium ions interact with fluctuating manganese spins under a magnetic field. This combined behaviour may push electrons sideways and help explain the compound’s unusually large anomalous Hall effect.