Spin correlated electronic state on the surface of a spin-orbit Mott system (Layered Iridates)

Abstract

Novel phases of two dimensional electron systems resulting from new surface or interface modified electronic structures have generated significant interest in material science. We utilize photoemission spectroscopy to show that the near-surface electronic structure of a bulk insulating iridate Sr${}_3$Ir${}_2$O${}_7$ lying near metal-Mott insulator transition exhibit weak metallicity signified by finite electronic spectral weight at the Fermi level. The surface electrons exhibit a unique spin structure resulting from an interplay of spin-orbit, Coulomb interaction and surface quantum magnetism, distinct from a topological insulator state. Our results suggest the experimental realization of a novel quasi two dimensional interacting electron surface ground state, opening the door for exotic quantum entanglement and transport phenomena in iridate-based oxide devices.

arXiv comment17 pages, 4 Figures

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Cited by in corpus (7)

• Electronic structure of quantum materials studied by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy
• The Challenge of Spin-Orbit-Tuned Ground States in Iridates
• Structural investigation of the bilayer iridate Sr3Ir2O7
• $J_{eff}=1/2$ Mott Insulating State in Rh and Ir Fluorides
• Crystal field splitting in Sr${}_{n+1}$Ir${}_n$O${}_{3n+1}$ ($n$ = 1, 2) iridates probed by x-ray Raman spectroscopy
• Helical currents in metallic Rashba strips
• Discovery of magnetic topological crystals