Phase transitions and spin dynamics of the quasi-one dimensional Ising-like antiferromagnet BaCo_{2}V_{2}O_{8} in a longitudinal magnetic field

Abstract

By combining inelastic neutron scattering and numerical simulations, we study the quasi-one-dimensional Ising-like quantum antiferromagnet BaCo_{2}V_{2}O_{8} in a longitudinal magnetic field applied along the Ising anisotropy, which is also the chain direction. The external field closes the excitation gap due to the magnetic anisotropy, inducing a transition from the Néel ordered state to an incommensurate longitudinal spin density wave phase. If the field is increased further, another transition into a transverse antiferromagnetic phase takes place at 9 T due to the competition between longitudinal and transverse correlations. We numerically and experimentally show that the model of XXZ chains connected by a weak interchain interaction well reproduces this transition. We also calculate the dynamical susceptibility and demonstrate that it agrees quantitatively with inelastic neutron scattering measurements. In contrast to the abrupt change of magnetic ordering, the spectra do not change much at the transition at 9 T, and the spin dynamics can be described as a Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid. We also refine the modeling of BaCo_{2}V_{2}O_{8} by including a four-site periodic term arising from the crystal structure which enables one to account for an anomaly of the magnetic susceptibility appearing at 19.5 T, as well as for the anticrossing observed in the inelastic neutron scattering spectra.