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Abstract
Excitonic insulators are usually considered to form via the condensation of a soft charge mode of bound electron-hole pairs. This, however, presumes that the soft exciton is of spin-singlet character. Early theoretical considerations have also predicted a very distinct scenario, in which the condensation of magnetic excitons results in an antiferromagnetic excitonic insulator state. Here we report resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) measurements of Sr3Ir2O7. By isolating the longitudinal component of the spectra, we identify a magnetic mode that is well-defined at the magnetic and structural Brillouin zone centers, but which merges with the electronic continuum in between these high symmetry points and which decays upon heating concurrent with a decrease in the material’s resistivity. We show that a bilayer Hubbard model, in which electron-hole pairs are bound by exchange interactions, consistently explains all the electronic and magnetic properties of Sr3Ir2O7 indicating that this material is a realization of the long-predicted antiferromagnetic excitonic insulator phase. Antiferromagnetic excitonic insulators are a distinct form of excitonic insulator, in which electrons and holes are bound by magnetic exchange rather than Coulomb attraction. Here, Mazzone et al. show, using X-ray scattering, that Sr3Ir2O7 realizes this particular state.
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2
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Ahn G, Schmehr JL, Porter Z, Wilson SD, Moon SJ. Doping and temperature evolutions of optical response of Sr 3(Ir 1-xRu x) 2O 7. Sci Rep 2020; 10:22340. [PMID: 33339856 PMCID: PMC7749133 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-79263-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2020] [Accepted: 12/01/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
We report on optical spectroscopic study of the Sr3(Ir1-xRux)2O7 system over a wide doping regime. We find that the changes in the electronic structure occur in the limited range of the concentration of Ru ions where the insulator-metal transition occurs. In the insulating regime, the electronic structure associated with the effective total angular momentum Jeff = 1/2 Mott state remains robust against Ru doping, indicating the localization of the doped holes. Upon entering the metallic regime, the Mott gap collapses and the Drude-like peak with strange metallic character appears. The evolution of the electronic structure registered in the optical data can be explained in terms of a percolative insulator-metal transition. The phonon spectra display anomalous doping evolution of the lineshapes. While the phonon modes of the compounds deep in the insulating and metallic regimes are almost symmetric, those of the semiconducting compound with x = 0.34 in close proximity to the doping-driven insulator-metal transition show a pronounced asymmetry. The temperature evolution of the phonon modes of the x = 0.34 compound reveals the asymmetry is enhanced in the antiferromagnetic state. We discuss roles of the S = 1 spins of the Ru ions and charge excitations for the conspicuous lineshape asymmetry of the x = 0.34 compound.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gihyeon Ahn
- Department of Physics, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea
| | - J L Schmehr
- Materials Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, 93106, USA
| | - Z Porter
- Materials Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, 93106, USA
| | - S D Wilson
- Materials Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, 93106, USA
| | - S J Moon
- Department of Physics, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea. .,Research Institute of Natural Science, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea.
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3
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Li S, Drueke E, Porter Z, Jin W, Lu Z, Smirnov D, Merlin R, Wilson SD, Sun K, Zhao L. Symmetry-Resolved Two-Magnon Excitations in a Strong Spin-Orbit-Coupled Bilayer Antiferromagnet. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2020; 125:087202. [PMID: 32909791 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.125.087202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2020] [Accepted: 07/29/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
We used a combination of polarized Raman spectroscopy and spin wave calculations to study magnetic excitations in the strong spin-orbit-coupled bilayer perovskite antiferromagnet Sr_{3}Ir_{2}O_{7}. We observed two broad Raman features at ∼800 and ∼1400 cm^{-1} arising from magnetic excitations. Unconventionally, the ∼800 cm^{-1} feature is fully symmetric (A_{1g}) with respect to the underlying tetragonal (D_{4h}) crystal lattice which, together with its broad line shape, definitively rules out the possibility of a single magnon excitation as its origin. In contrast, the ∼1400 cm^{-1} feature shows up in both the A_{1g} and B_{2g} channels. From spin wave and two-magnon scattering cross-section calculations of a tetragonal bilayer antiferromagnet, we identified the ∼800 cm^{-1} (1400 cm^{-1}) feature as two-magnon excitations with pairs of magnons from the zone-center Γ point (zone-boundary van Hove singularity X point). We further found that this zone-center two-magnon scattering is unique to bilayer perovskite magnets which host an optical branch in addition to the acoustic branch, as compared to their single layer counterparts. This zone-center two-magnon mode is distinct in symmetry from the time-reversal symmetry broken "spin wave gap" and "phase mode" proposed to explain the ∼92 meV (742 cm^{-1}) gap in resonant inelastic x-ray spectroscopy magnetic excitation spectra of Sr_{3}Ir_{2}O_{7}.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siwen Li
- Department of Physics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA
| | - Elizabeth Drueke
- Department of Physics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA
| | - Zach Porter
- Materials Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA
| | - Wencan Jin
- Department of Physics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA
| | - Zhengguang Lu
- National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Tallahassee, Florida 32310, USA
- Department of Physics, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida 32310, USA
| | - Dmitry Smirnov
- National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Tallahassee, Florida 32310, USA
| | - Roberto Merlin
- Department of Physics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA
| | - Stephen D Wilson
- Materials Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA
| | - Kai Sun
- Department of Physics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA
| | - Liuyan Zhao
- Department of Physics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, USA
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4
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Schmehr JL, Zoghlin E, Porter Z, Wang X, Ruff JPC, Tian W, Islam Z, Wilson SD. Preferential quenching of 5d antiferromagnetic order in Sr 3(Ir 1-x Mn x ) 2O 7. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2019; 31:244003. [PMID: 30861499 DOI: 10.1088/1361-648x/ab0ef9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The breakdown of [Formula: see text] antiferromagnetism in the limit of strong disorder is studied in Sr3(Ir1-x Mn x )2O7. Upon Mn-substitution, antiferromagnetic ordering of the Ir cations becomes increasingly two-dimensional, resulting in the complete suppression of long-range Ir magnetic order above [Formula: see text]. Long-range antiferromagnetism however persists on the Mn sites to higher Mn concentrations (x > 0.25) and is necessarily mediated via a random network of majority Ir sites. Our data suggest a shift in the Mn valence from Mn4+ to Mn3+ at intermediate doping levels, which in turn generates nonmagnetic Ir5+ sites and suppresses long-range order within the Ir network. The collapse of long-range [Formula: see text] antiferromagnetism and the survival of percolating antiferromagnetic order on Mn-sites demonstrates a complex 3d-5d exchange process that surprisingly enables minority Mn spins to order far below the conventional percolation threshold for a bilayer square lattice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julian L Schmehr
- Materials Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, United States of America
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Vale JG, Boseggia S, Walker HC, Springell RS, Hunter EC, Perry RS, Collins SP, McMorrow DF. Critical fluctuations in the spin-orbit Mott insulator Sr 3Ir 2O 7. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2019; 31:185803. [PMID: 30721882 DOI: 10.1088/1361-648x/ab0471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
X-ray magnetic critical scattering measurements and specific heat measurements were performed on the perovskite iridate [Formula: see text]. We find that the magnetic interactions close to the Néel temperature [Formula: see text] are three-dimensional. This contrasts with previous studies which suggest two-dimensional behaviour like Sr2IrO4. Violation of the Harris criterion ([Formula: see text]) means that weak disorder becomes relevant. This leads a rounding of the antiferromagnetic phase transition at [Formula: see text], and modifies the critical exponents relative to the clean system. Specifically, we determine that the critical behaviour of [Formula: see text] is representative of the diluted 3D Ising universality class.
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Affiliation(s)
- J G Vale
- London Centre for Nanotechnology and Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London (UCL), Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom. Laboratory for Quantum Magnetism, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, CH-1015, Switzerland
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6
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Chu H, Zhao L, de la Torre A, Hogan T, Wilson SD, Hsieh D. A charge density wave-like instability in a doped spin-orbit-assisted weak Mott insulator. NATURE MATERIALS 2017; 16:200-203. [PMID: 28092687 DOI: 10.1038/nmat4836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2016] [Accepted: 11/21/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Layered perovskite iridates realize a rare class of Mott insulators that are predicted to be strongly spin-orbit coupled analogues of the parent state of cuprate high-temperature superconductors. Recent discoveries of pseudogap, magnetic multipolar ordered and possible d-wave superconducting phases in doped Sr2IrO4 have reinforced this analogy among the single layer variants. However, unlike the bilayer cuprates, no electronic instabilities have been reported in the doped bilayer iridate Sr3Ir2O7. Here we show that Sr3Ir2O7 realizes a weak Mott state with no cuprate analogue by using ultrafast time-resolved optical reflectivity to uncover an intimate connection between its insulating gap and antiferromagnetism. However, we detect a subtle charge density wave-like Fermi surface instability in metallic electron doped Sr3Ir2O7 at temperatures (TDW) close to 200 K via the coherent oscillations of its collective modes, which is reminiscent of that observed in cuprates. The absence of any signatures of a new spatial periodicity below TDW from diffraction, scanning tunnelling and photoemission based probes suggests an unconventional and possibly short-ranged nature of this density wave order.
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Affiliation(s)
- H Chu
- Department of Applied Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
- Institute for Quantum Information and Matter, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
| | - L Zhao
- Institute for Quantum Information and Matter, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
- Department of Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
| | - A de la Torre
- Institute for Quantum Information and Matter, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
- Department of Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
| | - T Hogan
- Materials Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA
| | - S D Wilson
- Materials Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA
| | - D Hsieh
- Institute for Quantum Information and Matter, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
- Department of Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California 91125, USA
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7
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Lu X, McNally DE, Moretti Sala M, Terzic J, Upton MH, Casa D, Ingold G, Cao G, Schmitt T. Doping Evolution of Magnetic Order and Magnetic Excitations in (Sr_{1-x}La_{x})_{3}Ir_{2}O_{7}. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2017; 118:027202. [PMID: 28128620 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.118.027202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
We use resonant elastic and inelastic x-ray scattering at the Ir-L_{3} edge to study the doping-dependent magnetic order, magnetic excitations, and spin-orbit excitons in the electron-doped bilayer iridate (Sr_{1-x}La_{x})_{3}Ir_{2}O_{7} (0≤x≤0.065). With increasing doping x, the three-dimensional long range antiferromagnetic order is gradually suppressed and evolves into a three-dimensional short range order across the insulator-to-metal transition from x=0 to 0.05, followed by a transition to two-dimensional short range order between x=0.05 and 0.065. Because of the interactions between the J_{eff}=1/2 pseudospins and the emergent itinerant electrons, magnetic excitations undergo damping, anisotropic softening, and gap collapse, accompanied by weakly doping-dependent spin-orbit excitons. Therefore, we conclude that electron doping suppresses the magnetic anisotropy and interlayer couplings and drives (Sr_{1-x}La_{x})_{3}Ir_{2}O_{7} into a correlated metallic state with two-dimensional short range antiferromagnetic order. Strong antiferromagnetic fluctuations of the J_{eff}=1/2 moments persist deep in this correlated metallic state, with the magnon gap strongly suppressed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xingye Lu
- Research Department Synchrotron Radiation and Nanotechnology, Paul Scherrer Institut, CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
| | - D E McNally
- Research Department Synchrotron Radiation and Nanotechnology, Paul Scherrer Institut, CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
| | - M Moretti Sala
- European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, BP 220, F-38043 Grenoble Cedex, France
| | - J Terzic
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506, USA
- Department of Physics, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA
| | - M H Upton
- Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, USA
| | - D Casa
- Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, USA
| | - G Ingold
- Research Department Synchrotron Radiation and Nanotechnology, Paul Scherrer Institut, CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
- SwissFEL, Paul Scherrer Institut, CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
| | - G Cao
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40506, USA
- Department of Physics, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, Colorado 80309, USA
| | - T Schmitt
- Research Department Synchrotron Radiation and Nanotechnology, Paul Scherrer Institut, CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
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8
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Ahn G, Song SJ, Hogan T, Wilson SD, Moon SJ. Infrared Spectroscopic Evidences of Strong Electronic Correlations in (Sr1-xLax)3Ir2O7. Sci Rep 2016; 6:32632. [PMID: 27599573 PMCID: PMC5013521 DOI: 10.1038/srep32632] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2016] [Accepted: 08/11/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
We report on infrared spectroscopic studies of the electronic response of the (Sr1-xLax)3Ir2O7 system. Our experiments revealed hallmarks of strong electronic correlations in the evolution of the electronic response across the filling-controlled insulator-metal transition. We observed a collapse of the Jeff = 1/2 Mott gap accompanying the transfer of the spectral weight from the high-energy region to the gap region with electron doping. The intraband conductivity at the metallic side of the transition was found to consist of coherent Drude-like and incoherent responses. The sum rule and the extended Drude model analyses further indicated a large mass enhancement. Our results demonstrate a critical role of the electronic correlations in the charge dynamics of the (Sr1-xLax)3Ir2O7 system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gihyeon Ahn
- Department of Physics, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Korea
| | - S. J. Song
- Department of Physics, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Korea
| | - T. Hogan
- Department of Physics, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts 02467, USA
- Department of Materials, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA
| | - S. D. Wilson
- Department of Materials, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA
| | - S. J. Moon
- Department of Physics, Hanyang University, Seoul 04763, Korea
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Nakayama M, Kondo T, Tian Z, Ishikawa JJ, Halim M, Bareille C, Malaeb W, Kuroda K, Tomita T, Ideta S, Tanaka K, Matsunami M, Kimura S, Inami N, Ono K, Kumigashira H, Balents L, Nakatsuji S, Shin S. Slater to Mott Crossover in the Metal to Insulator Transition of Nd_{2}Ir_{2}O_{7}. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2016; 117:056403. [PMID: 27517783 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.117.056403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
We present an angle-resolved photoemission study of the electronic structure of the three-dimensional pyrochlore iridate Nd_{2}Ir_{2}O_{7} through its magnetic metal-insulator transition. Our data reveal that metallic Nd_{2}Ir_{2}O_{7} has a quadratic band, touching the Fermi level at the Γ point, similar to that of Pr_{2}Ir_{2}O_{7}. The Fermi node state is, therefore, a common feature of the metallic phase of the pyrochlore iridates. Upon cooling below the transition temperature, this compound exhibits a gap opening with an energy shift of quasiparticle peaks like a band gap insulator. The quasiparticle peaks are strongly suppressed, however, with further decrease of temperature, and eventually vanish at the lowest temperature, leaving a nondispersive flat band lacking long-lived electrons. We thereby identify a remarkable crossover from Slater to Mott insulators with decreasing temperature. These observations explain the puzzling absence of Weyl points in this material, despite its proximity to the zero temperature metal-insulator transition.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Nakayama
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
| | - Takeshi Kondo
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
| | - Z Tian
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
| | - J J Ishikawa
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
| | - M Halim
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
| | - C Bareille
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
| | - W Malaeb
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
- Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Beirut Arab University, Beirut 11-5020, Lebanon
| | - K Kuroda
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
| | - T Tomita
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
| | - S Ideta
- UVSOR Facility, Institute for Molecular Science, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan
| | - K Tanaka
- UVSOR Facility, Institute for Molecular Science, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan
| | - M Matsunami
- Toyota Technological Institute, Nagoya 468-8511, Japan
| | - S Kimura
- Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan
| | - N Inami
- Institute of Materials Structure Science, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK), Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0801, Japan
| | - K Ono
- Institute of Materials Structure Science, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK), Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0801, Japan
| | - H Kumigashira
- Institute of Materials Structure Science, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK), Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0801, Japan
| | - L Balents
- Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, Santa Barbara, California 93106, USA
| | - S Nakatsuji
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
- CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), 4-1-8 Honcho Kawaguchi, Saitama 332-0012, Japan
| | - S Shin
- ISSP, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8581, Japan
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de la Torre A, McKeown Walker S, Bruno FY, Riccó S, Wang Z, Gutierrez Lezama I, Scheerer G, Giriat G, Jaccard D, Berthod C, Kim TK, Hoesch M, Hunter EC, Perry RS, Tamai A, Baumberger F. Collapse of the Mott Gap and Emergence of a Nodal Liquid in Lightly Doped Sr(2)IrO(4). PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2015; 115:176402. [PMID: 26551128 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.115.176402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
We report angle resolved photoemission experiments on the electron doped Heisenberg antiferromagnet (Sr(1-x)La(x))(2)IrO(4). For a doping level of x=0.05, we find an unusual metallic state with coherent nodal excitations and an antinodal pseudogap bearing strong similarities with underdoped cuprates. This state emerges from a rapid collapse of the Mott gap with doping resulting in a large underlying Fermi surface that is backfolded by a (π,π) reciprocal lattice vector which we attribute to the intrinsic structural distortion of Sr(2)IrO(4).
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Affiliation(s)
- A de la Torre
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - S McKeown Walker
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - F Y Bruno
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - S Riccó
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - Z Wang
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
- Swiss Light Source, Paul Scherrer Institut, CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
| | - I Gutierrez Lezama
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - G Scheerer
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - G Giriat
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - D Jaccard
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - C Berthod
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - T K Kim
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Campus, Didcot OX11 0DE, United Kingdom
| | - M Hoesch
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Campus, Didcot OX11 0DE, United Kingdom
| | - E C Hunter
- School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Edinburgh, James Clerk Maxwell Building, Mayfield Road, Edinburgh EH9 2TT, United Kingdom
| | - R S Perry
- London Centre for Nanotechnology and UCL Centre for Materials Discovery, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom
| | - A Tamai
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
| | - F Baumberger
- Department of Quantum Matter Physics, University of Geneva, 24 Quai Ernest-Ansermet, 1211 Geneva 4, Switzerland
- Swiss Light Source, Paul Scherrer Institut, CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
- SUPA, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9SS, United Kingdom
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11
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Kushwaha P, Sunko V, Moll PJW, Bawden L, Riley JM, Nandi N, Rosner H, Schmidt MP, Arnold F, Hassinger E, Kim TK, Hoesch M, Mackenzie AP, King PDC. Nearly free electrons in a 5d delafossite oxide metal. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2015; 1:e1500692. [PMID: 26601308 PMCID: PMC4646822 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1500692] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2015] [Accepted: 08/20/2015] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the role of electron correlations in strong spin-orbit transition-metal oxides is key to the realization of numerous exotic phases including spin-orbit-assisted Mott insulators, correlated topological solids, and prospective new high-temperature superconductors. To date, most attention has been focused on the 5d iridium-based oxides. We instead consider the Pt-based delafossite oxide PtCoO2. Our transport measurements, performed on single-crystal samples etched to well-defined geometries using focused ion beam techniques, yield a room temperature resistivity of only 2.1 microhm·cm (μΩ-cm), establishing PtCoO2 as the most conductive oxide known. From angle-resolved photoemission and density functional theory, we show that the underlying Fermi surface is a single cylinder of nearly hexagonal cross-section, with very weak dispersion along k z . Despite being predominantly composed of d-orbital character, the conduction band is remarkably steep, with an average effective mass of only 1.14m e. Moreover, the sharp spectral features observed in photoemission remain well defined with little additional broadening for more than 500 meV below E F, pointing to suppressed electron-electron scattering. Together, our findings establish PtCoO2 as a model nearly-free-electron system in a 5d delafossite transition-metal oxide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pallavi Kushwaha
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Nöthnitzer Straße 40, 01187 Dresden, Germany
| | - Veronika Sunko
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Nöthnitzer Straße 40, 01187 Dresden, Germany
- Scottish Universities Physics Alliance, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9SS, UK
| | - Philip J. W. Moll
- Laboratory for Solid State Physics, ETH Zurich, CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Lewis Bawden
- Scottish Universities Physics Alliance, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9SS, UK
| | - Jonathon M. Riley
- Scottish Universities Physics Alliance, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9SS, UK
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Nabhanila Nandi
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Nöthnitzer Straße 40, 01187 Dresden, Germany
| | - Helge Rosner
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Nöthnitzer Straße 40, 01187 Dresden, Germany
| | - Marcus P. Schmidt
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Nöthnitzer Straße 40, 01187 Dresden, Germany
| | - Frank Arnold
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Nöthnitzer Straße 40, 01187 Dresden, Germany
| | - Elena Hassinger
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Nöthnitzer Straße 40, 01187 Dresden, Germany
| | - Timur K. Kim
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Moritz Hoesch
- Diamond Light Source, Harwell Campus, Didcot, Oxfordshire OX11 0DE, UK
| | - Andrew P. Mackenzie
- Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Nöthnitzer Straße 40, 01187 Dresden, Germany
- Scottish Universities Physics Alliance, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9SS, UK
| | - Phil D. C. King
- Scottish Universities Physics Alliance, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9SS, UK
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Fermi arcs vs. Fermi pockets in electron-doped perovskite iridates. Sci Rep 2015; 5:8533. [PMID: 25704850 PMCID: PMC4336940 DOI: 10.1038/srep08533] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2014] [Accepted: 01/23/2015] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
We report on an angle resolved photoemission (ARPES) study of bulk electron-doped perovskite iridate, (Sr1−xLax)3Ir2O7. Fermi surface pockets are observed with a total electron count in keeping with that expected from La substitution. Depending on the energy and polarization of the incident photons, these pockets show up in the form of disconnected “Fermi arcs”, reminiscent of those reported recently in surface electron-doped Sr2IrO4. Our observed spectral variation is consistent with the coexistence of an electronic supermodulation with structural distortion in the system.
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