Magnetic order and spin fluctuations in the spin liquid Tb$_2$Sn$_2$O$_7$.
Résumé
We have studied the spin liquid Tb$_2$Sn$_2$O$_7$ by neutron diffraction and specific heat measurements. Below about 2 K, the magnetic correlations change from antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic. Magnetic order settles in two steps, with a smeared transition at 1.3(1) K then an abrupt transition at 0.87(2) K. A new magnetic structure is observed, not predicted by current models, with both ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic character. It suggests that the spin liquid degeneracy is lifted by dipolar interactions combined with a finite anisotropy along $<$111$>$ axes. In the ground state, the Tb$^{3+}$ ordered moment is reduced with respect to the free ion moment (9 $\mu_{\rm B}$). The moment value of 3.3(3) $\mu_{\rm B}$ deduced from the specific heat is much smaller than derived from neutron diffraction of 5.9(1) $\mu_{\rm B}$. This difference is interpreted by the persistence of slow collective magnetic fluctuations down to the lowest temperatures.
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