Testing the validity of the strong spin-orbit-coupling limit for octahedrally coordinated iridates in a model system Sr${}_3$CuIrO${}_6$

Abstract

The electronic structure of Sr${}_3$CuIrO${}_6$, a model system for the 5d Ir ion in an octahedral environment, is studied through a combination of resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) and theoretical calculations. RIXS spectra at the Ir L${}_3$-edge reveal an Ir $t_{2g}$ manifold that is split into three levels, in contrast to the expectations of the strong spin-orbit-coupling limit. Effective Hamiltonian and $abinito$ quantum chemistry calculations find a strikingly large non-cubic crystal field splitting comparable to the spin-orbit coupling, which results in a strong mixing of the $j_{\mathsf{eff}}=1/2$ and $j_{\mathsf{eff}}=3/2$ states and modifies the isotropic wavefunctions on which many theoretical models are based.

to appear in phys. Rev. Lett

References in corpus (9)

• Mott Insulators in the Strong Spin-Orbit Coupling Limit: From Heisenberg to a Quantum Compass and Kitaev Models
• Novel Jeff = 1/2 Mott State Induced by Relativistic Spin-Orbit Coupling in Sr2IrO4
• Spin-Liquid State in the S = 1/2 Hyperkagome Antiferromagnet Na4Ir3O8
• Bandwidth-Controlled Insulator-Metal Transition and Correlated Metallic State in 5$d$ Transition Metal Oxides Sr${}_{n+1}$Ir${}_n$O${}_{3n+1}$ ($n$=1, 2, and $\infty$)
• Twisted Hubbard Model for Sr2IrO4: Magnetism and Possible High Temperature Superconductivity
• Quantum spin Hall effect in a transition metal oxide Na2IrO3
• Long range magnetic ordering in Na${}_2$IrO${}_3$
• Gapless spin liquids on the three dimensional hyper-kagome lattice of Na${}_4$Ir${}_3$O${}_8$
• Na4Ir3O8 as a 3D spin liquid with fermionic spinons

Cited by in corpus (2)

• Crystal field splitting and correlation effect on the electronic structure of A2IrO3
• Magnetic state of pyrochlore Cd2Os2O7 emerging from strong competition of ligand distortions and longer-range crystalline anisotropy