Magnetization curves and low-temperature thermodynamics of two spin-1/2 Heisenberg edge-shared tetrahedra

Abstract

A full energy spectrum, magnetization and susceptibility of a spin-1/2 Heisenberg model on two edge-shared tetrahedra are exactly calculated by assuming two different coupling constants. It is shown that a ground state in zero field is either a singlet or a triplet state depending on a relative strength of both coupling constants. Low-temperature magnetization curves may exhibit three different sequences of intermediate plateaux at the following fractional values of the saturation magnetization: 1/3-2/3-1, 0-1/3-2/3-1 or 0-2/3-1. The inverse susceptibility displays a marked temperature dependence significantly influenced by a character of the zero-field ground state. The obtained theoretical results are confronted with recent high-field magnetization data of the mineral crystal fedotovite K2Cu3(SO4)3.