Depth-resolved resonant inelastic x-ray scattering at a superconductor/half-metallic ferromagnet interface through standing-wave excitation

Abstract

We demonstrate that combining standing-wave (SW) excitation with resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) can lead to depth resolution and interface sensitivity for studying orbital and magnetic excitations in correlated oxide heterostructures. SW-RIXS has been applied to multilayer heterostructures consisting of a superconductor La${}_{1.85}$Sr${}_{0.15}$CuO${}_4$(LSCO) and a half-metallic ferromagnet La${}_{0.67}$Sr${}_{0.33}$MnO${}_3$ (LSMO). Easily observable SW effects on the RIXS excitations were found in these LSCO/LSMO multilayers. In addition, we observe different depth distribution of the RIXS excitations. The magnetic excitations are found to arise from the LSCO/LSMO interfaces, and there is also a suggestion that one of the dd excitations comes from the interfaces. SW-RIXS measurements of correlated-oxide and other multilayer heterostructures should provide unique layer-resolved insights concerning their orbital and magnetic excitations, as well as a challenge for RIXS theory to specifically deal with interface effects.

arXiv comment18 pages, 3 figures, plus supplemental materials (14 pages)

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Cited by in corpus (3)

• High resolution depth profiling using near-total-reflection hard X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy
• Two-dimensional electron systems in perovskite oxide heterostructures: Role of the polarity-induced substitutional defects
• Probing the polar-nonpolar oxide interfaces using resonant x-ray standing wave techniques