Encoding complexity within supramolecular analogues of frustrated magnets

DOI: 10.1038/nchem.2462

Authors: Andrew Cairns (University of Oxford) , Matthew Cliffe (University of Oxford) , Joseph Paddison (University of Oxford; ISIS Facility; Georgia Institute of Technology) , Dominik Daisenberger (Diamond Light Source) , Matthew G. Tucker (ISIS Facility) , François-Xavier Coudert (PSL Research University, Chimie ParisTech – CNRS) , Andrew L. Goodwin (University of Oxford)
Co-authored by industrial partner: No

Type: Journal Paper
Journal: Nature Chemistry , VOL 8 , PAGES 442 - 447

State: Published (Approved)
Published: May 2016

Abstract: The solid phases of gold(I) and/or silver(I) cyanides are supramolecular assemblies of inorganic polymer chains in which the key structural degrees of freedom—namely, the relative vertical shifts of neighbouring chains—are mathematically equivalent to the phase angles of rotating planar (‘XY’) spins. Here, we show how the supramolecular interactions between chains can be tuned to mimic different magnetic interactions. In this way, the structures of gold(I) and/or silver(I) cyanides reflect the phase behaviour of triangular XY magnets. Complex magnetic states predicted for this family of magnets—including collective spin-vortices of relevance to data storage applications—are realized in the structural chemistry of these cyanide polymers. Our results demonstrate how chemically simple inorganic materials can behave as structural analogues of otherwise inaccessible ‘toy’ spin models and also how the theoretical understanding of those models allows control over collective (‘emergent’) phenomena in supramolecular systems.

Journal Keywords: Chemical physics; Materials chemistry; Supramolecular chemistry

Subject Areas: Chemistry, Physics, Materials


Instruments: I15-Extreme Conditions

Added On: 28/07/2016 17:37

Discipline Tags:

Physics Physical Chemistry Chemistry Magnetism Materials Science Chemical Engineering Engineering & Technology Inorganic Chemistry

Technical Tags:

Diffraction X-ray Powder Diffraction