Resonant inelastic x-ray incarnation of Young's double-slit experiment

Abstract

Young's archetypal double-slit experiment forms the basis for modern diffraction techniques: the elastic scattering of waves yields an interference pattern that captures the real-space structure. Here, we report on an inelastic incarnation of Young's experiment and demonstrate that resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) measures interference patterns which reveal the symmetry and character of electronic excited states in the same way as elastic scattering does for the ground state. A prototypical example is provided by the quasi-molecular electronic structure of insulating Ba3CeIr2O9 with structural Ir dimers and strong spin-orbit coupling. The double 'slits' in this resonant experiment are the highly localized core levels of the two Ir atoms within a dimer. The clear double-slit-type sinusoidal interference patterns that we observe allow us to characterize the electronic excitations, demonstrating the power of RIXS interferometry to unravel the electronic structure of solids containing, e.g., dimers, trimers, ladders, or other superstructures.

arXiv comment8 pages, 8 figures

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Cited by in corpus (22)

• Orbital effects in solids: basics, recent progress and opportunities
• Spin-orbit-entangled electronic phases in 4$d$ and 5$d$ transition-metal compounds
• Hexagonal Perovskites as Quantum Materials
• Fingerprints of Kitaev physics in the magnetic excitations of honeycomb iridates
• Probing light-driven quantum materials with ultrafast resonant inelastic X-ray scattering
• Spin-orbit entangled j=1/2 moments in Ba${}_2$CeIrO${}_6$ -- a frustrated fcc quantum magnet
• Direct detection of dimer orbitals in Ba${}_5$AlIr${}_2$O${}_{11}$
• Evolution of electronic and magnetic properties in a series of iridate double perovskites Pr${}_{2-x}$Sr${}_x$MgIrO${}_6$ ($x$ = 0, 0.5, 1.0)
• Quasimolecular electronic structure of the spin-liquid candidate Ba${}_3$InIr${}_2$O${}_9$
• Quasimolecular $J_{\mathrm{tet}}$=3/2 moments in the cluster Mott insulator GaTa${}_4$Se${}_8$
• RIXS interferometry and the role of disorder in the quantum magnet Ba${}_3$Ti${}_{3-x}$Ir${}_x$O${}_9$
• Multiple field-induced phases in the frustrated triangular magnet Cs${}_3$Fe${}_2$Br${}_9$
• Soft and anisotropic local moments in 4$d$ and 5$d$ mixed-valence M${}_2$O${}_9$ dimers
• Electronic excitations in $5d^4$ J=0 Os${}^{4+}$ halides studied by RIXS and optical spectroscopy
• Spin-orbit excitons and electronic configuration of the $5d^4$ insulator Sr${}_3$Ir${}_2$O${}_7$F${}_2$
• Role of disorder in the electronic and magnetic properties of Ag${}_3$LiIr${}_2$O${}_6$
• Charge ordering in Ir dimers in the ground state of Ba${}_5$AlIr${}_2$O${}_{11}$
• Inelastic light scattering in the spin cluster Mott insulator Cu${}_2$OSeO${}_3$
• A set-up for Hard X-ray Time-resolved Resonant Inelastic X-ray Scattering at SwissFEL
• A $j_{\mathrm{eff}}=1/2$ pseudospinon continuum in CaIrO${}_3$
• Quasimolecular electronic structure of the trimer iridate Ba${}_4$NbIr${}_3$O${}_{12}$
• Novel electronic state of honeycomb iridate Cu${}_2$IrO${}_3$ at high pressure