Observation of Devil's Staircase in the Novel Spin Valve System SrCo6_6O11_{11}

Using resonant soft x-ray scattering as a function of both temperature and magnetic field, we reveal a large number of almost degenerate magnetic orders in SrCo6O11. The Ising-like spins in this frustrated material in fact exhibit a so-called magnetic devil's staircase. It is demonstrated how a magnetic field induces transitions between different microscopic spin configurations, which is responsible for the magnetoresistance of SrCo6O11. This material therefore constitutes a unique combination of a magnetic devil's staircase and spin valve effects, yielding a novel type of magnetoresistance system.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure

Magnetic domain fluctuations in an antiferromagnetic film observed with coherent resonant soft x-ray scattering

We report the direct observation of slow fluctuations of helical antiferromagnetic domains in an ultra-thin holmium film using coherent resonant magnetic x-ray scattering. We observe a gradual increase of the fluctuations in the speckle pattern with increasing temperature, while at the same time a static contribution to the speckle pattern remains. This finding indicates that domain-wall fluctuations occur over a large range of time scales. We ascribe this non-ergodic behavior to the strong dependence of the fluctuation rate on the local thickness of the film.Comment: to appear in Phys. Rev. Let

Opening a nodal gap by fluctuating spin-density-wave in lightly doped La2−x_{2-x}Srx_xCuO4_4

We investigate whether the spin or charge degrees of freedom are responsible for the nodal gap in underdoped cuprates by performing inelastic neutron scattering and x-ray diffraction measurements on La$_{2-x}$Sr$_x$CuO$_4$, which is on the edge of the antiferromagnetic phase. We found that fluctuating incommensurate spin-density-wave (SDW) with a the bottom part of an hourglass dispersion exists even in this magnetic sample. The strongest component of these fluctuations diminishes at the same temperature where the nodal gap opens. X-ray scattering measurements on the same crystal show no signature of charge-density-wave (CDW). Therefore, we suggest that the nodal gap in the electronic band of this cuprate opens due to fluctuating SDW with no contribution from CDW

Bandgap narrowing in Mn doped GaAs probed by room-temperature photoluminescence

The electronic band structure of the (Ga,Mn)As system has been one of the most intriguing problems in solid state physics over the past two decades. Determination of the band structure evolution with increasing Mn concentration is a key issue to understand the origin of ferromagnetism. Here we present room temperature photoluminescence and ellipsometry measurements of Ga_{100%-x}Mn_{x}As alloy. The up-shift of the valence-band is proven by the red shift of the room temperature near band gap emission from the Ga_{100%-x}Mn_{x}As alloy with increasing Mn content. It is shown that even a doping by 0.02 at.% of Mn affects the valence-band edge and it merges with the impurity band for a Mn concentration as low as 0.6 at.%. Both X-ray diffraction pattern and high resolution cross-sectional TEM images confirmed full recrystallization of the implanted layer and GaMnAs alloy formation.Comment: 24 pages, 7 figures, accepted at Phys. Rev. B 201

High Curie temperature and perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in homoepitaxial InMnAs films

We have prepared the dilute magnetic semiconductor (DMS) InMnAs with different Mn concentrations by ion implantation and pulsed laser melting. The Curie temperature of the In1-xMnxAs epilayer depends on the Mn concentration x, reaching 82 K for x=0.105. The substitution of Mn ions at the Indium sites induces a compressive strain perpendicular to the InMnAs layer and a tensile strain along the in-plane direction. This gives rise to a large perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, which is often needed for the demonstration of electrical control of magnetization and for spin-transfer-torque induced magnetization reversal.Comment: 16 pages, 5 figure

Electronic structure, magnetic and dielectric properties of the edge-sharing copper-oxide chain compound NaCu2_{2}O2_{2}

We report an experimental study of \nco, a Mott insulator containing chains of edge-sharing CuO$_4$ plaquettes, by polarized x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS), resonant magnetic x-ray scattering (RMXS), magnetic susceptibility, and pyroelectric current measurements. The XAS data show that the valence holes reside exclusively on the Cu$^{2+}$ sites within the copper-oxide spin chains and populate a $d$-orbital polarized within the CuO$_4$ plaquettes. The RMXS measurements confirm the presence of incommensurate magnetic order below a N\'eel temperature of $T_N = 11.5$ K, which was previously inferred from neutron powder diffraction and nuclear magnetic resonance data. In conjunction with the magnetic susceptibility and XAS data, they also demonstrate a new "orbital" selection rule for RMXS that is of general relevance for magnetic structure determinations by this technique. Dielectric property measurements reveal the absence of significant ferroelectric polarization below $T_N$, which is in striking contrast to corresponding observations on the isostructural compound \lco. The results are discussed in the context of current theories of multiferroicity.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figure

A Comparison of Stripe Modulations in La1.875_{1.875}Ba0.125_{0.125}CuO4_4 and La1.48_{1.48}Nd0.4_{0.4}Sr0.12_{0.12}CuO4_4

We report combined soft and hard x-ray scattering studies of the electronic and lattice modulations associated with stripe order in La$_{1.875}$Ba$_{0.125}$CuO$_4$ and La$_{1.48}$Nd$_{0.4}$Sr$_{0.12}$CuO$_4$. We find that the amplitude of both the electronic modulation of the hole density and the strain modulation of the lattice is significantly larger in La$_{1.875}$Ba$_{0.125}$CuO$_4$ than in La$_{1.48}$Nd$_{0.4}$Sr$_{0.12}$CuO$_4$ and is also better correlated. The in-plane correlation lengths are isotropic in each case; for La$_{1.875}$Ba$_{0.125}$CuO$_4$, $\xi^{hole}=255\pm 5$ \AA\ whereas for La$_{1.48}$Nd$_{0.4}$Sr$_{0.12}$CuO$_4$F, $\xi^{hole}=111\pm 7$ \AA. We find that the modulations are temperature independent in La$_{1.875}$Ba$_{0.125}$CuO$_4$ in the low temperature tetragonal phase. In contrast, in La$_{1.48}$Nd$_{0.4}$Sr$_{0.12}$CuO$_4$, the amplitude grows smoothly from zero, beginning 13 K below the LTT phase transition. We speculate that the reduced average tilt angle in La$_{1.875}$Ba$_{0.125}$CuO$_4$ results in reduced charge localization and incoherent pinning, leading to the longer correlation length and enhanced periodic modulation amplitude.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Momentum-dependent charge correlations in YBa2_2Cu3_3O6+δ_{6+\delta} superconductors probed by resonant x-ray scattering: Evidence for three competing phases

We have used resonant x-ray scattering to determine the momentum dependent charge correlations in YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{6.55}$ samples with highly ordered chain arrays of oxygen acceptors (ortho-II structure). The results reveal nearly critical, biaxial charge density wave (CDW) correlations at in-plane wave vectors (0.315, 0) and (0, 0.325). The corresponding scattering intensity exhibits a strong uniaxial anisotropy. The CDW amplitude and correlation length are enhanced as superconductivity is weakened by an external magnetic field. Analogous experiments were carried out on a YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{6.6}$ crystal with a dilute concentration of spinless (Zn) impurities, which had earlier been shown to nucleate incommensurate magnetic order. Compared to pristine crystals with the same doping level, the CDW amplitude and correlation length were found to be strongly reduced. These results indicate a three-phase competition between spin-modulated, charge-modulated, and superconducting states in underdoped YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{6+\delta}$.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures revised version, to appear in Phys. Rev. Let