Long-range magnetic order with disordered spin orientations in a high-entropy antiferromagnet
Abstract
Disorder in magnetic systems typically suppresses long-range order, promoting short-range states such as spin glasses and magnetic clusters. This is particularly prominent in high-entropy materials, characterized by the random distributions of local magnetic entities and exchange interactions. However, in rare exceptions, long-range magnetic order can persist in high-entropy systems, while the microscopic characters and underlying mechanisms remain elusive, especially the magnetic behaviors of individual elements. Here, combining neutron diffraction and resonant soft x-ray scattering, we have conducted an element-specific investigation into the magnetic order of a high-entropy honeycomb-lattice van der Waals material (Mn1/4Fe1/4Co1/4Ni1/4)PS3. Despite significant atomic disorder, long-range zigzag antiferromagnetic order is observed below 72 K, with all four transition-metal elements participating in a unified phase transition. However, the spin orientations of various elements are distinct, attributed to the competition between single-ion anisotropies and exchange interactions. Our findings showcase a novel form of long-range magnetic order with disordered spin orientations, which is synergically stabilized by distinct magnetic elements in a high entropy magnet, offering a new paradigm for understanding complex magnetic systems.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2603.10412,
title = {Long-range magnetic order with disordered spin orientations in a high-entropy antiferromagnet},
author = {Yao Shen and Guangkai Zhang and Qinghua Zhang and Xuejuan Gui and Yu Zhang and Heemin Lee and Cheng-Tai Kuo and Jun-Sik Lee and Ronny Sutarto and Feng Ye and Zhao Pan and Xiaomei Qin and Jinchen Wang and Tianping Ying and Youwen Long},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2603.10412},
year = {2026}
}
Comments
10 pages, plus references, 1 table, 4 figures, and Supplementary information, accepted for publication in Nature Communications