Probing the Magnetic Ground State in the Quantum Spin Liquid Candidate Ce2Hf2O7

Magnetic materials displaying quantum spin liquid (QSL) ground states are of great topical interest due to the exotic nature of their excitations and emergent properties at low temperatures. Recent work has provided strong evidence for a QSL ground state in Ce2Zr2O7 and identifies this as a novel QSL phase near the boundary between “dipolar” and “octupolar” nature. Additionally, measurements on Ce2Sn2O7 were interpreted in terms of a QSL within the octupolar sector. Here we are proposing an experiment that will allow us to probe the low temperature magnetic diffuse scattering from new powder samples of Ce2Hf2O7, a sister pyrochlore to the QSL candidates Ce2Zr2O7 and Ce2Sn2O7. Neutron scattering experiments such as the one proposed here were crucial in furthering the understanding of the magnetic ground states in Ce2Zr2O7 and Ce2Sn2O7 and we expect the same to be the case for Ce2Hf2O7.