Phys.org has reported:

Researchers led by Pengcheng Dai at Rice University in the United States have found liquid-crystal-like behaviour in a compound containing the rare-earth element ytterbium. Its quantum spins favour a particular direction but do not align to produce magnetism on larger scales.

The discovery helps explain puzzling properties of the compound. In some materials, physical properties arise from the collective behaviour of quantum spins rather than from individual particles.