Magnetic excitations of the Kitaev model candidate RuBr3

Magnetic excitations of the Kitaev model candidate RuBr3 | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Magnetic excitations of the Kitaev model candidate RuBr 3 Kazuhiro Nawa, Yoshinori Imai, Maiko Kofu, Richard Mole, Hideyuki Fujihara, and 7 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7773124/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 11 Mar, 2026 Read the published version in npj Quantum Materials → Version 1 posted 10 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The Kitaev model, which consists of bond-dependent Ising interactions on the honeycomb plane, is known as a promising model for realising a spin liquid in the exact ground state. Since bond-dependent Ising interactions are induced by orbital exchange processes via ligand ions, it is important to reveal the effect of ligand ions on the formation of bond-dependent Ising interactions experimentally. In this study, we performed powder inelastic neutron scattering on RuBr3 with a layered honeycomb structure, which is isostructural to the low-temperature struc- ture of α-RuCl3. Strongly dispersive magnetic modes were observed near the centre of the antiferromagnetic zone below TN. With increasing temperature, the spectral weight remains near the centre of the antiferromagnetic zone just above TN, whereas it shifts to the Γ point at 3TN. Strong dispersion indicates that antiferromagnetic interactions that stabilise the zigzag antiferromagenetic order, nearest-neighbour symmetric off-diagonal or third-neighbour isotropic magnetic interactions, are comparable to or even stronger than ferromagnetic Kitaev inter- actions, and drive the ground state of RuBr3 away from the ideal ferromagnetic Kitaev spin liquid state. Physical sciences/Materials science Physical sciences/Physics Kitaev materials spin excitations inelastic neutron scattering Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files supplementalv2.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 11 Mar, 2026 Read the published version in npj Quantum Materials → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 26 Nov, 2025 Reviews received at journal 14 Nov, 2025 Reviews received at journal 12 Nov, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 24 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 24 Oct, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 21 Oct, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 21 Oct, 2025 Editor assigned by journal 21 Oct, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 13 Oct, 2025 First submitted to journal 03 Oct, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7773124","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":534613423,"identity":"20484b92-86e5-4e3c-8fa7-8374688d8950","order_by":0,"name":"Kazuhiro 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