From classical to quantum glass

Abstract

We study the effects of a transverse magnetic field on the dynamics of the randomly diluted, dipolar coupled, Ising magnet ${\mathrm{LiHo}}_{0.167}$${\mathrm{Y}}_{0.833}$${\mathrm{F}}_{4}$. The transverse field mixes the eigenfunctions of the ground-state Ising doublet with the otherwise inaccessible excited-state levels. We observe a rapid decrease in the characteristic relaxation times, large changes in the spectral form of the relaxation, and a depression of the spin-glass transition temperature with the introduction of quantum fluctuations.