Speaker

Professor Henrik M. Rønnow / Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne

Title

Neutron studies of SrCu₂(BO₃)₂ under extreme conditions – a fruit fly for quantum many body physics

Abstract

Neutron spectroscopy offer a unique insight into the emergent quantum phases and entangled dynamics in quantum materials. A textbook example is offered by the compound SrCu2(BO3)2 realizing the Shastry-Sutherland model, which reveal a plethora of intriguing phenomena including: bosonic flat bands; a zoo of entangled bound states; correlated decay of magnons; valence bond solid of plaquette singlets; a quantum equivalent to the critical point of water; a putative deconfined quantum critical point; fractional magnetization plateaus and bosonic BEC of triplet bound states. Exploring this rich physics illustrates the challenges and rewards of technological advancements in neutron instrumentation and pushing the capabilities of extreme condition sample environments.

References

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5. E. Fogh et al, Phys. Rev. Lett. 133, 246702 (2024)
6. E. Fogh et al, Rev Sci Inst. 96, 043902 (2025)

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