Honeycomb lattices of divalent, high-spin Co ions are predicted to host dominant Kitaev exchange interactions expanding opportunities to realize the elusive Kitaev Quantum Spin Liquid (KQSL) state. Hydrostatic pressure studies on leading candidate material Na3Co2SbO6 revealed a transition into a low-spin Co state, quenching the orbital degrees of freedom necessary to realize a KQSL state, but leading to possible emergence of quantum paramagnetism in the compressed honeycomb lattice of S=1/2 divalent Co ions.
- E. H. T. Poldi
- R. Tartaglia
- D. Haskel