Heisenberg-Kitaev physics in magnetic fields

Abstract

Magnetic insulators in the regime of strong spin-orbit coupling exhibit intriguing behaviors in external magnetic fields, reflecting the frustrated nature of their effective interactions. We review the recent advances in understanding the field responses of materials that are described by models with strongly bond-dependent spin exchange interactions, such as Kitaev's celebrated honeycomb model and its extensions. We discuss the field-induced phases and the complex magnetization processes found in these theories and compare with experimental results in the layered Mott insulators $\alpha$-RuCl$_3$ and Na$_2$IrO$_3$, which are believed to realize this fascinating physics.