Inhomogeneous magnetic phases: a Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov-like phase in Sr3Ru2O7.

The phase diagram of Sr3Ru2O7 contains a metamagnetic transition that bifurcates to enclose an anomalous phase with intriguing properties--a large resistivity with anisotropy that breaks the crystal-lattice symmetry. We propose that this is a magnetic analogue of the spatially inhomogeneous superconducting Fulde-Ferrel-Larkin-Ovchinnikov state. We show-through a Ginzburg-Landau expansion where the magnetization transverse to the applied field can become spatially inhomogeneous-that a Stoner model with electronic band dispersion can reproduce this phase diagram and transport behavior.