The origin of fine structure in magnetization curve of α-CoV₂O₆

Multiple field-induced plateaus in $\alpha$-CoV$_2$O$_6$ at low temperatures were revealed earlier by M. Lenertz et al. [J. Phys. Chem. C 115, 17190 (2011)] and carefully investigated recently by M. Nandi and P. Mandal [J. Appl. Phys. 119, 133904 (2016)]. Four equidistant steps were observed in the magnetization curve. We present a model to describe this phenomenon. A magnetic structure of this substance is formed by highly anisotropic triangular lattice of Ising chains running along the $\bf{b}$ axis. Due to a three-fold degeneracy of three-sublattice magnetic ordering, domain boundaries appear. Their transformation under magnetic field variation leads to two additional steps in the 1/3 magnetization plateau and gives rise to complex magnetic behavior observed experimentally. The domain structure in $\alpha$-CoV$_2$O$_6$ occurs to be strongly anisotropic because a lifetime of the metastable states depends greatly on the configuration orientation. A strong dependence of the magnetization curve on magnetic field sweep time is predicted.