Crystal Growth and Characterization of Rare-earth Triangular Lattice Borates

Triangular antiferromagnetic materials have attracted attention because competing interactions on the lattice can give rise to exotic phenomena, such as quantum spin liquids. Motivated by evidence that Ba₃Yb(BO₃)₃ may host a spin-1/2 quantum dipole lattice, we have synthesized several members of the borate family Ba₃RE(BO₃)₃ using different rare-earth elements to examine the effect of placing different spins in the lattice. We have grown large single crystals of these materials using the optical floating zone technique and performed in-house thermodynamics characterization measurements, from which we find no evidence of ordering down to the lowest accessible temperatures. In this talk we will present the results of our experimental efforts.