Freezing and large time scales induced by geometrical frustration

We investigate the properties of an effective Hamiltonian with competing interactions involving spin and chirality variables, relevant for the description of the trimerized version of the spin-1/2 kagome antiferromagnet. Using classical Monte Carlo simulations, we show that remarkable behaviors develop at very low temperatures. Through an entropic selection mechanism, the low-energy states are characterized by a dynamical freezing of the chiralities, which decouples the lattice into “dimers” and “triangles” of antiferromagnetically coupled spins. Under the presence of an external magnetic field, the particular topology of the chiralities induces a very slow spin dynamics, reminiscent of what happens in ordinary spin glasses.