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The spin- $1/2$kagome Heisenberg antiferromagnets are believed to host exotic quantum entangled states. Recently, the reports of $1/9$magnetization plateau and magnetic oscillations in a kagome antiferromagnet ${\mathrm{YCu}}_3{\left(\mathrm{OH}\right)}_6{\mathrm{Br}}_2\left[{\text{Br}}_x{\left(\mathrm{OH}\right)}_{1-x}\right]$(YCOB) have made this material a promising candidate for experimentally realizing quantum spin liquid states. Here, we present measurements of the specific heat $C_p$in YCOB in high magnetic fields (up to 41.5 T) down to 0.46 K, and the $1/9$plateau feature has been confirmed. Moreover, the temperature dependence of $C_p/T$in the vicinity of $1/9$plateau region can be fitted by a linear in $T$term which indicates the presence of a Dirac spectrum, together with a constant term, which indicates a finite density of states contributed by other spinon Fermi surfaces. Surprisingly, the constant term is highly anisotropic in the direction of the magnetic field. Additionally, we observe a double-peak feature near 30 T above the $1/9$plateau which is another hallmark of fermionic excitations in the specific heat. This combination of gapless behavior and the double-peak structure strongly suggests that the $1/9$plateau in YCOB is nontrivial and hosts fermionic quasiparticles. 

Inorganic lead-halide perovskite, cesium lead bromide (CsPbBr3), shows outstanding optoelectronic properties. Both solution- and melt-based methods have been proposed for CsPbBr3 crystal growth. The solution-based growth was done at low-temperature, whereas the melt-based growth was done at high-temperature. However, the comparison of optical, physical, and defect states using these two different growth conditions has been scarcely studied. Here, we have compared the thermal and optical properties of solution-grown and melt-grown single crystals of CsPbBr3. Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy (PALS) analysis showed that melt-grown crystal has a relatively smaller number of defects than the chemical synthesis method. In addition, crystals grown using the chemical method showed a higher fluorescence lifetime than melt-grown CsPbBr3. 

A novel antiferromagnetic semiconductor, Eu 3 Sn 2 P 4 , has been discovered. Single crystals of Eu 3 Sn 2 P 4 were prepared using the Sn self-flux method. The crystal structure determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction shows that Eu 3 Sn 2 P 4 crystallizes in the orthorhombic structure with the space group Cmca (Pearson Symbol, oP 216). Six Sn–Sn dimers connected by P atoms form a Sn 12 P 24 crown-shaped cluster with a Eu atom located in the center. Magnetization measurements indicate that the system orders antiferromagnetically below a T N ∼14 K at a low field and undergoes a metamagnetic transition at a high field when T < T N . The effective magnetic moment is 7.41(3) μ B per Eu, corresponding to Eu 2+ . The electric resistivity reveals a non-monotonic temperature dependence with non-metallic behavior below ∼60 K, consistent with the band structure calculations. By fitting the data using the thermally activated resistivity formula, we estimate the energy gap to be ∼0.14 eV. Below T N , the resistivity tends to saturate, suggesting the reduction of charge-spin scattering.