Duality and Domain wall dynamics in CoNb2O6

Bond-dependent interactions can lead to magnetic frustration even on simple bipartite lattices, which in turn leads to very rich quantum many-body physics as exemplified by the Kitaev model. We demonstrate the existence of such bond dependent interactions in CoNb2O6, a one-dimensional easy axis magnetic material. Through THz spectroscopy and theoretical calculations we find that the magnetic frustration results in rich domain wall dynamics in the low field regime. At higher fields and close to a quantum phase transition, the THz data provide the first direct experimental evidence for the Kramers-Wannier duality. Our work establishes that Co-based magnets provide a rich source of new materials where Kitaev model-like interactions may be explored.

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