Magnetic excitations in Nd${}_{n+1}$Ni${}_n$O${}_{3n+1}$ Ruddlesden-Popper nickelates observed via resonant inelastic x-ray scattering

Abstract

Magnetic interactions are thought to play a key role in the properties of many unconventional superconductors, including cuprates, iron pnictides, and square-planar nickelates. Superconductivity was also recently observed in the bilayer and trilayer Ruddlesden-Popper nickelates, whose electronic structure is expected to differ from that of cuprates and square-planar nickelates. Here we study how electronic structure and magnetic interactions evolve with the number of layers, $n$, in thin film Ruddlesden-Popper nickelates Nd${}_{n+1}$Ni${}_n$O${}_{3n+1}$ with $n=1,3$, and 5 using resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS). The RIXS spectra are consistent with a high-spin $|3d^8\underline{L}⟩$ electronic configuration, resembling that of La${}_{2-x}$Sr${}_x$NiO${}_4$ and the parent perovskite, NdNiO${}_3$. The magnetic excitations soften to lower energy in the structurally self-doped, higher-$n$ films. Our observations confirm that structural tuning is an effective route for altering electronic properties, such as magnetic superexchange, in this prominent family of materials.

main + SM: 18 pages, 12 figures

References in corpus (32)

• Superconductivity near 80 Kelvin in single crystals of La3Ni2O7 under pressure
• Phase diagram and superconducting dome of infinite-layer $\mathrm{N}{\mathrm{d}}_{1-\mathrm{x}}\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{r}}_{\mathrm{x}}\mathrm{Ni}{\mathrm{O}}_2$ thin films
• Ground state oxygen holes and the metal-insulator transition in the negative charge transfer rare-earth nickelates
• High-temperature superconductivity with zero-resistance and strange metal behavior in La${}_3$Ni${}_2$O${}_{7-\delta }$
• Superconductivity in pressurized trilayer La${}_4$Ni${}_3$O${}_{10-\delta }$ single crystals
• Doping evolution of the Mott-Hubbard landscape in infinite-layer nickelates
• Giant Magnon Gap in Bilayer Iridate Sr3Ir2O7: Enhanced Pseudo-dipolar Interactions Near the Mott Transition
• Electronic and magnetic excitations in La${}_3$Ni${}_2$O${}_7$
• Intertwined density waves in a metallic nickelate
• Orbital and Spin Character of Doped Carriers in Infinite-Layer Nickelates
• Insights into the High Temperature Superconducting Cuprates from Resonant Inelastic X-ray Scattering
• Strong Superexchange in a $d^{9-\delta }$ Nickelate Revealed by Resonant Inelastic X-Ray Scattering
• Exploring Quantum Materials with Resonant Inelastic X-Ray Scattering
• Signature of Superconductivity in Pressurized Trilayer-nickelate Pr${}_4$Ni${}_3$O${}_{10-\delta }$
• Resolving the Electronic Ground State of La3Ni2O7-δ Films
• Correlations turn electronic structure of finite-layer nickelates upside down
• Electronic structure and magnetic properties of higher-order layered nickelates: La${}_{n+1}$Ni${}_n$O${}_{2n+2}$ ($n=4-6$)
• Synthesis and electronic properties of Nd${}_{n+1}$Ni${}_n$O${}_{3n+1}$ Ruddlesden-Popper nickelate thin films
• Limits to the strain engineering of layered square-planar nickelate thin films
• Contrasting physical properties of the trilayer nickelates Nd${}_4$Ni${}_3$O${}_{10}$ and Nd${}_4$Ni${}_3$O${}_8$
• Bulk superconductivity in pressurized trilayer nickelate Pr4Ni3O10 single crystals
• Antiferromagnetic Excitonic Insulator State in Sr3Ir2O7
• Role of Oxygen States in the Low Valence Nickelate La${}_4$Ni${}_3$O${}_8$
• Electronic structure of higher-order Ruddlesden-Popper nickelates
• Correlated electronic structure of a quintuple-layer nickelate
• Resonant inelastic x-ray scattering study of bond order and spin excitations in nickelate thin-film structures
• Structural disorder and magnetic correlations driven by oxygen doping in Nd2NiO4+d (d ~ 0.11)
• Electronic character of charge order in square planar low valence nickelates
• Strain-Tuned Magnetic Frustration in a Square Lattice $J_1$-$J_2$ Material
• Orbital polarization, charge transfer, and fluorescence in reduced valence nickelates
• Capping effects on spin and charge excitations in parent and superconducting Nd1-xSrxNiO2
• Resonant inelastic x-ray scattering data for Ruddlesden-Popper and reduced Ruddlesden-Popper nickelates

Cited by in corpus (3)

• Strain-Engineered Electronic Structure and Superconductivity in La${}_3$Ni${}_2$O${}_7$ Thin Films
• Electronic layer decoupling driven by density-wave order in La${}_4$Ni${}_3$O${}_{10}$
• Distinct orbital contributions to electronic and magnetic structures in La${}_4$Ni${}_3$O${}_{10}$