Role of antisymmetric exchange in selecting magnetic chirality in Ba3NbFe3Si2O14

Phys Rev Lett. 2011 Dec 16;107(25):257203. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.107.257203. Epub 2011 Dec 16.

Abstract

We present an electron spin resonance (ESR) investigation of the acentric Ba(3)NbFe(3)Si(2)O(14), featuring a unique single-domain double-chiral magnetic ground state. Combining simulations of the ESR linewidth anisotropy and the antiferromagnetic-resonance modes allows us to single out the Dzyaloshinsky-Moriya (DM) interaction as the leading magnetic anisotropy term. We demonstrate that the rather minute out-of-plane DM component d(c)=45 mK is responsible for selecting a unique ground state, which endures thermal fluctuations up to astonishingly high temperatures.