Field-tunable spin disordered phase in the triangular-lattice delafossite TlYbSe2

Abstract: We introduce a relatively disorder-free frustrated triangular lattice compound TlYbSe2 belonging to the rare-earth delafossite family - extending the search for the quintessential chiral quantum spin liquid state. While DC magnetization suggests magnetic exchange interactions in the order of several kelvin, the zero-field AC magnetization and heat capacity measurements reveal no signs of long-range magnetic order down to 20 mK, indicating a highly frustrated quantum-disordered ground state. The high-field AC magnetization reveals a phase diagram generally consistent with a large family of Yb delafossites. We observe a spin glass transition around ~ 30 mK at zero field, which we argue is due to free spins. A broad anomaly in the heat capacity measurements between 2-5 K - indicative of short-range spin correlations - along with a linear temperature dependence at low temperatures and the complete absence of long-range order at low fields, establishes the low-temperature, low-field regime of TlYbSe2 as a prime location for exploring field-tunable QSL behavior.