Unconventional magnetic and thermodynamic properties of S=1/2 spin ladder with ferromagnetic legs

Phys Rev Lett. 2013 Apr 12;110(15):157205. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.157205. Epub 2013 Apr 10.

Abstract

We have succeeded in synthesizing single crystals of a new organic radical 3-Cl-4-F-V [3-(3-chloro-4-fluorophenyl)-1,5-diphenylverdazyl]. Through the ab initio molecular orbital calculation and the analysis of the magnetic properties, this compound was confirmed to be the first experimental realization of an S=1/2 spin-ladder system with ferromagnetic leg interactions. The field-temperature phase diagram indicated that the ground state is situated very close to the quantum critical point. Furthermore, we found an unexpected field-induced successive phase transition, which possibly originates from the interplay of low dimensionality and frustration.