Resonant Bragg diffraction of soft, circularly polarized x-rays has been used to observe directly the temperature dependence of chiral-order melting in a motif of Mn ions in terbium manganate. The underlying mechanism uses the b-axis component of a c
ycloid, which vanishes outside the polar phase. Melting is witnessed by the first and second harmonics of a cycloid, and we explain why the observed temperature dependence is different in the two harmonics. Our direct observation of melting is supported by a solid foundation of evidence, derived from extensive studies of the azimuthal-angle dependence of intensities with both linear and circular polarization.
Chiral properties of the two phases - collinear motif (below Morin transition temperature, TM=250 K) and canted motif (above TM) - of magnetically ordered hematite ({alpha}-Fe2O3) have been identified in single crystal resonant x-ray Bragg diffractio
n, using circular polarized incident x-rays tuned near the iron K-edge. Magneto-electric multipoles, including an anapole, fully characterize the high-temperature canted phase, whereas the low-temperature collinear phase supports both parity-odd and parity-even multipoles that are time-odd. Orbital angular momentum accompanies the collinear motif, while it is conspicuously absent with the canted motif. Intensities have been successfully confronted with analytic expressions derived from an atomic model fully compliant with chemical and magnetic structures. Values of Fe atomic multipoles previously derived from independent experimental data, are shown to be completely trustworthy.
We have used soft x-ray magnetic diffraction at the Fe3+ L2,3 edges to examine to what extent the Dzyaloshinsky-Moriya interaction in Ba3NbFe3Si2O14 influences its low temperature magnetic structure. A modulated component of the moments along the c-a
xis is present, adding to the previously proposed helical magnetic configuration of co-planar moments in the a,b-plane. This leads to a helical-butterfly structure and suggests that both the multi-axial in-plane and the uniform out-of-plane Dzyaloshinsky-Moriya vectors are relevant. A non zero orbital magnetic signal is also observed at the oxygen K edge, which reflects the surprisingly strong hybridization between iron 3d and oxygen 2p states, given the nominal spherical symmetry of the Fe3+ half filled shell.
The effect of x-rays on an orbital and charge ordered epitaxial film of a Pr$_{0.5}$Ca$_{0.5}$MnO$_{3}$ is presented. As the film is exposed to x-rays, the antiferromagnetic response increases and concomitantly the conductivity of the film improve. T
hese results are discussed in terms of a persistent x-ray induced doping, leading to a modification of the magnetic structure. This effect allows writing electronic and magnetic domains in the film and represents a novel way of manipulating magnetism.
We have investigated the antiferromagnetic insulating phase of the Mott-Hubbard insulator V$_2$O$_3$ by resonant x-ray Bragg diffraction at the vanadium K-edge. Combining the information obtained from azimuthal angle scans, linear incoming polarizati
on scans and by fitting collected data to the scattering amplitude derived from the established chemical I2/a and magnetic space groups we provide evidence of the ordering motif of anapolar moments (which results from parity violation coupling to an electromagnetic field). Experimental data (azimuthal dependence and polarization analysis) collected at space-group forbidden Bragg reflections are successfully accounted within our model in terms of vanadium magnetoelectric multipoles. We demonstrate that resonant x-ray diffraction intensities in all space-group forbidden Bragg reflections of the kind $(hkl)_m$ with odd $h$ are produced by an E1-E2 event. The determined tensorial parameters offer a test for ab-initio calculations in this material, that can lead to a deeper and more quantitative understanding of the physical properties of V$_2$O$_3$.
We have performed non-resonant x-ray diffraction, resonant soft and hard x-ray magnetic diffraction, soft x-ray absorption and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism measurements to clarify the electronic and magnetic states of the Co3+ ions in GdBaCo2O5.
5. Our data are consistent with a 3+ Py Co HS state at the pyramidal sites and a 3+ Oc Co LS state at the octahedral sites. The structural distortion, with a doubling of the a axis (2ap x 2ap x 2ap cell), shows alternating elongations and contractions of the pyramids and indicates that the metal-insulator transition is associated with orbital order in the t2g orbitals of the 3+ Py Co HS state. This distortion corresponds to an alternating ordering of xz and yz orbitals along the a and c axes for the 3+ Py Co . The orbital ordering and pyramidal distortion lead to deformation of the octahedra, but the 3+ Oc Co LS state does not allow an orbital order to occur for the 3+ Oc Co ions. The soft x-ray magnetic diffraction results indicate that the magnetic moments are aligned in the ab plane but are not parallel to the crystallographic a or b axes. The orbital order and the doubling of the magnetic unit cell along the c axis support a non-collinear magnetic structure. The x-ray magnetic circular dichroism data indicate that there is a large orbital magnetic contribution to the total ordered Co moment.
