Topological thermal Hall effect in frustrated kagome antiferromagnets

Abstract

In frustrated magnets the Dzyaloshinsky-Moriya interaction arising from spin-orbit coupling can induce a magnetic long-range order. Here, we report a theoretical prediction of thermal Hall effect in frustrated kagom\'e magnets such as KCr$_3$(OH)$_6$(SO4)$_2$ and KFe$_3$(OH)$_{6}$(SO$_{4}$)$_2$. The thermal Hall effects in these materials are induced by scalar spin chirality as opposed to DMI in previous studies. The scalar spin chirality originates from magnetic-field-induced chiral spin configuration due to non-coplanar spin textures, but in general it can be spontaneously developed as a macroscopic order parameter in chiral quantum spin liquids. Therefore, we infer that there is a possibility of thermal Hall effect in frustrated kagom\'e magnets such as herbertsmithite ZnCu$_3$(OH)$_6$Cl$_2$ and the chromium compound Ca$_{10}$Cr$_7$O$_{28}$, although they also show evidence of magnetic order in the presence of a magnetic field or pressure.