Magnetic Coulomb Phase in the Spin Ice Ho 2 Ti 2 O 7

• Published in: Science
• Main Authors: Fennell, T., Deen, P. P., Wildes, A. R., Schmalzl, K., Prabhakaran, D., Boothroyd, A. T., Aldus, R. J., McMorrow, D. F., Bramwell, S. T.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 2009
• Subjects: Dy; South Pole; South pole
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.1177582; https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.1177582

Magnetic Monopoles Magnets come with a north and a south pole. Despite being predicted to exist, searches in astronomy and in high-energy particle physics experiments for magnetic monopoles (either north or south on their own) have defied observation. Theoretical work in condensed-matter systems has predicted that spin-ice structures may harbor such elusive particles (see the Perspective by Gingras ). Fennell et al. (p. 415 , published online 3 September) and Morris et al. (p. 411 , published online 3 September) used polarized neutron scattering to probe the spin structure forming in two spin-ice compounds—Ho 2 Ti 2 O 7 and Dy 2 Ti 2 O 7 —and present results in support of the presence of magnetic monopoles in both materials.