ABSTRACT
We report an extraordinary pressure dependence of the magnetic interactions in the metal-organic system [CuF_{2}(H_{2}O)_{2}]_{2}pyrazine. At zero pressure, this material realizes a quasi-two-dimensional spin-1/2 square-lattice Heisenberg antiferromagnet. By high-pressure, high-field susceptibility measurements we show that the dominant exchange parameter is reduced continuously by a factor of 2 on compression. Above 18 kbar, a phase transition occurs, inducing an orbital re-ordering that switches the dimensionality, transforming the quasi-two-dimensional lattice into weakly coupled chains. We explain the microscopic mechanisms for both phenomena by combining detailed x-ray and neutron diffraction studies with quantitative modeling using spin-polarized density functional theory.
ABSTRACT
The recent discovery of a charge order in underdoped YBa2Cu3Oy raised the question of the interplay between superconductivity and this competing phase. Understanding the normal state of high-temperature superconductors is now an essential step towards the description of the pairing mechanism in those materials and determining the upper critical field is therefore of fundamental importance. We present here a calorimetric determination of the field-temperature phase diagram in underdoped YBa2Cu3Oy single crystals. We show that the specific heat saturates in high magnetic fields. This saturation is consistent with a normal state without any significant superconducting contribution and a total Sommerfeld coefficient γNâ¼6.5±1.5 mJ mol(-1) K(-2) putting strong constraints on the theoretical models for the Fermi surface reconstruction.