Unravelling Structural Complexity within a Family of Frustrated S = ½ Kagome Antiferromagnets

Quantum spin liquids (QSLs) are exotic states of matter in which magnetic frustration and strong quantum fluctuations destroy long-range magnetic order. Here, we propose to explore the subtle structural distortions in a new family of highly frustrated quantum magnets, Cu4(OD)6FX (X = Cl, Br, I), composed of kagome networks of antiferromagnetically coupled Cu2+ ions, to understand the exchange pathways that lead to magnetic order at TN ~ 15 K. Furthermore, we have established that doping Cu4(OD)6FBr with Zn2+ forms a QSL phase, and so we wish to confirm whether highly Zn-doped analogues of ZnCu3(OD)6FX demonstrate the same series of structural distortions as their undoped counterparts, or if they maintain a higher symmetry at low temperature.