Abstract

Sound velocity and attenuation measurements on the frustrated garnet material Gd3Ga5O12 (GGG) are presented as a function of field and temperature, using two different acoustic modes and with two different magnetic field orientations: [100] and [110]. We demonstrate that the phase diagram is highly anisotropic, with two distinct field-induced ordered phases for H||[110] and only one for H||[100]. Extensive lattice softening is found to occur at low fields, which can be associated with spin fluctuations. However, deep within the spin liquid phase a low-temperature stiffening of the lattice and reduced attenuation provides evidence for a spin gap which may be related to short-range antiferromagnetic correlations over minimal 10-spin loops.

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