arXiv subjects

K. Uhlířová

Publications and source records attributed to K. Uhlířová.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Influence of the Néel vector on the bulk electronic structure of MnTe measured from the $(1 \bar1 00)$ surface

Altermagnetism gives rise to momentum-dependent spin splitting without net magnetization. Here, we use angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) to investigate bulk $α$-MnTe single crystals cleaved along the $(1\bar{1}00)$ plane - an orientation that preserves the compensated magnetic symmetry at the surface and substantially reduces surface effects and $k_z$ broadening. We resolve the three-dimensional bulk band structure with markedly enhanced spectral clarity. The $d$-wave band splitting, driven by the altermagnetic order and spin-orbit coupling in the $\mathbfΓ-\mathbf{K}-\mathbf{M}$ nodal plane, shows a perfect match to theoretical predictions. We further establish that the valence-band maximum occurs near the $\mathbf{A}$ point, identifying the corresponding hole pockets as the states governing the transport properties. Spatially resolved measurements reveal systematic variations of the band dispersion along $\mathbfΓ-\mathbf{K}$ and $\mathbf{A}-\mathbf{L}$, associated with different pinning of the Néel vector at the surface. Our results establish a surface-sensitive route to resolving the bulk altermagnetic electronic structure of MnTe and provide direct spectroscopic evidence for Néel-vector-dependent band splitting.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2025

Antiferromagnetic resonance in $α$-MnTe

Antiferromagnetic resonance in a bulk $α$-MnTe crystal is investigated using both frequency-domain and time-domain THz spectroscopy techniques. At low temperatures, an excitation at the photon energy of $(3.5\pm 0.1)$~meV is observed and identified as a magnon mode through its distinctive dependence on temperature and magnetic field. This behavior is reproduced using a simplified model for antiferromagnetic resonance in an easy-plane antiferromagnet. The results of our experiments, when compared to exchange constants established in the literature, allow us to extract the out-of-plane component of the single-ion magnetic anisotropy reaching $(40\pm10)$~$μ$eV.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2023

Altermagnetic lifting of Kramers spin degeneracy

Lifted Kramers spin-degeneracy has been among the central topics of condensed-matter physics since the dawn of the band theory of solids. It underpins established practical applications as well as current frontier research, ranging from magnetic-memory technology to topological quantum matter. Traditionally, lifted Kramers spin-degeneracy has been considered to originate from two possible internal symmetry-breaking mechanisms. The first one refers to time-reversal symmetry breaking by magnetization of ferromagnets, and tends to be strong due to the non-relativistic exchange-coupling origin. The second mechanism applies to crystals with broken inversion symmetry, and tends to be comparatively weaker as it originates from the relativistic spin-orbit coupling. A recent theory work based on spin-symmetry classification has identified an unconventional magnetic phase, dubbed altermagnetic, that allows for lifting the Kramers spin degeneracy without net magnetization and inversion-symmetry breaking. Here we provide the confirmation using photoemission spectroscopy and ab initio calculations. We identify two distinct unconventional mechanisms of lifted Kramers spin degeneracy generated by the altermagnetic phase of centrosymmetric MnTe with vanishing net magnetization. Our observation of the altermagnetic lifting of the Kramers spin degeneracy can have broad consequences in magnetism. It motivates exploration and exploitation of the unconventional nature of this magnetic phase in an extended family of materials, ranging from insulators and semiconductors to metals and superconductors, that have been either identified recently or perceived for many decades as conventional antiferromagnets.

physics.app-ph↗

arXiv2021

Electric Quadrupolar Contributions in the Magnetic Phases of UNi$_4$B

We present acoustic signatures of the electric quadrupolar degrees of freedom in the honeycomb-layer compound UNi$_4$B. The transverse ultrasonic mode $C_{66}$ shows softening below 30 K both in the paramagnetic phase and antiferromagnetic phases down to $\sim0.33$ K. Furthermore, we traced magnetic field-temperature phase diagrams up to 30 T and observed a highly anisotropic elastic response within the honeycomb layer. These observations strongly suggest that $Γ_6$(E$_{\rm 2g}$) electric quadrupolar degrees of freedom in localized $5f^2$ ($J = 4$) states are playing an important role in the magnetic toroidal dipole order and magnetic-field-induced phases of UNi$_4$B, and evidence some of the U ions remain in the paramagnetic state even if the system undergoes magnetic toroidal ordering.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2021

The surface degradation and its impact on the magnetic properties of bulk VI_3

Despite belonging to a well-studied family of transition metal trihalides, VI_3 has received significant attention only recently. As a hard ferromagnetic van der Waals compound with a large coercivity, it attracted much attention because of its potential use in atomically thin spintronic and optoelectronic devices. However, practical exploration of VI_3 is challenging due to its instability under ambient conditions. Here, we present a comprehensive set of optical, x-ray diffraction, magnetization, and ellipsometric measurements of VI3 and demonstrate that, similarly to the related van der Waals ferromagnet CrI_3, the degradation process is accelerated by the presence of moisture. The VI_3 surface was covered by selected media commonly used in physical measurements to test its stability and lower the degradation rate three times or higher, providing practical information for experimentalists interested. The decomposition study at ambient conditions shows that the VI_3 single crystal can be used for most of the bulk, magnetization, and optical measurements without any noticeable change of physical properties, as the significant degradation appears first after ~ 2 hours of exposition as illustrated, e.g., by the evolution of the ferromagnetic T_1 and T_2 transitions. The ellipsometric measurement demonstrates that even the surface remains optically stable for at least 5 minutes.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2020

Pressure-induced huge increase of Curie temperature of the van der Waals ferromagnet VI3

Evolution of magnetism in single crystals of the van der Waals compound VI3 in external pressure up to 7.3 GPa studied by measuring magnetization and ac magnetic susceptibility is reported. Four magnetic phase transitions, at T1 = 54.5 K, T2 = 53 K, TC = 49.5 K, and TFM = 26 K, respectively have been observed at ambient pressure. The first two have been attributed to the onset of ferromagnetism in specific crystal-surface layers. The bulk ferromagnetism is characterized by the magnetic ordering transition at Curie temperature TC and the transition between two different ferromagnetic phases TFM, accompanied by a structure transition from monoclinic to triclinic symmetry upon cooling. The pressure effects on magnetic parameters were studied with three independent techniques. TC was found to be almost unaffected by pressures up to 0.6 GPa whereas TFM increases rapidly with increasing pressure and reaches TC at a triple point at ~ 0.85 GPa. At higher pressures, only one magnetic phase transition is observed moving to higher temperatures with increasing pressure to reach 99 K at 7.3 GPa. In contrast, the low-temperature bulk magnetization is dramatically reduced by applying pressure (by more than 50% at 2.5 GPa) suggesting a possible pressure-induced reduction of vanadium magnetic moment. We discussed these results in light of recent theoretical studies to analyze exchange interactions and provide how to increase the Curie temperature of VI3.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2018

Magnetoelastic phenomena in antiferromagnetic uranium intermetallics: the $\mathrm{UAu_{2}Si_{2}}$ case

Thermal expansion, magnetostriction and magnetization measurements under magnetic field and hydrostatic pressure were performed on a $\mathrm{UAu_{2}Si_{2}}$ single crystal. They revealed a large anisotropy of magnetoelastic properties manifested by prominent length changes leading to a collapse of the unit-cell volume accompanied by breaking the fourfold symmetry (similar to that in $\mathrm{URu_{2}Si_{2}}$ in the hidden-order state) in the antiferromagnetic state as consequences of strong magnetoelastic coupling. The magnetostriction curves measured at higher temperatures confirm a bulk character of the 50 K weak ferromagnetic phase. The large positive pressure change of the ordering temperature predicted from Ehrenfest relation contradicts the more than an order of magnitude smaller pressure dependence observed by the magnetization and specific heat measured under hydrostatic pressure. A comprehensive magnetic phase diagram of $\mathrm{UAu_{2}Si_{2}}$ in magnetic field applied along the $c$ axis is presented. The ground-state antiferromagnetic phase is suppressed by a field-induced metamagnetic transition that changes its character from the second to the first order at the tricritical point.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2014

Ambient Pressure Superconductivity emerging in the Local Moment Antiferromagnetic Phase of Ce$_{3}$PdIn$_{11}$

We report on magnetization, specific heat and resistivity experiments on single crystals of the novel heavy Fermion compound Ce$_3$PdIn$_{11}$. At ambient pressure the compound exhibits two successive transitions at T$_{1}$ = 1.63 K and T$_{\mathrm {N}}$ = 1.49 K into incommensurate and commensurate local moment antiferromagnetic states, respectively, before becoming superconducting below T$_{\mathrm {c}}$ = 0.42 K. The large values of dB$_{\mathrm {c2}}$/dT and B$_{\mathrm {c2}}$ = 2.8 T imply that heavy quasiparticles form the Cooper pairs. Thus, Ce$_{3}$PdIn$_{11}$ is the first ambient pressure heavy Fermion superconductor where 4f electrons are simultaneously responsible for magnetic order and superconductivity.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2013

Interface induced room-temperature ferromagnetism in hydrogenated epitaxial graphene

Due to the predominantly surface character of graphene, it is highly suitable for functionalization with external atoms and/or molecules leading to a plethora of new and interesting phenomena. Here we show ferromagnetic properties of hydrogen-functionalized epitaxial graphene on SiC. Ferromagnetism in such a material is not directly evident as it is inherently composed of only non-magnetic constituents. Our results nevertheless show strong ferromagnetism, which cannot be explained by simple magnetic impurities. The ferromagnetism is unique to hydrogenated epitaxial graphene on SiC, where interactions with the interfacial buffer layer play a crucial role. We argue that the origin of the observed ferromagnetism is governed by electron correlation effects of the narrow Si-dangling-bond (Si-DB) states in the buffer layer exchange-coupled to localized states in the hydrogenated graphene layer. This forms a quasi-three-dimensional ferromagnet with a Curie temperature higher than 300 K.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗