Floating-zone growth and characterization of triangular lattice antiferromagnetic α-SrCr2O4 crystals

The triangular S=3/2 antiferromagnetic α-phase MCr2O4 (M=Ca, Sr, Ba) family has received increasing attention for their low dimensional geometrically frustrated magnetism. For the first time, the single crystals of α-SrCr2O4 were successfully grown by the floating-zone method. The plate-like crystals are highly a-axis oriented with a 60° twinning structure in the bc plane. We also investigated the magnetic susceptibilities, specific heat and dielectric properties systematically. Our results confirm a long range magnetic ordering emerging in α-SrCr2O4 below about 43 K. These crystals are suitable for the future neutron scattering experiments and other in-depth physical measurements.