Magnetic ordering in the kagome lattice antiferromagnet KCr3(OD)6(SO4)2 -: art. no. 054421

Measurements of the magnetic susceptibility and neutron powder diffraction revealed that the kagome lattice antiferromagnet KCr3(OD)(6)(SO4)(2) exhibits clear long-range magnetic order at T-N= 4.0 K in contrast to previous reports. The ordered magnetic structure is found to be the so-called q=0 type 120 degrees structure on the kagome lattice. A model which satisfies the observed magnetic intensity is, however, that the direction of the ordered moments, which form a nearly coplanar 120 degrees ground state, distribute uniformly in the ab plane. We propose a q=0 structure fluctuating slowly around the c axis as a ground state. This explanation may give a reasonable account for the obtained magnetic structure and the sample dependence.