Temperature dependent d-d excitations in manganites probed by resonant inelastic x-ray scattering

TL;DR

This study investigates how temperature influences electronic d-d excitations in manganites using resonant inelastic x-ray scattering, revealing their relation to magnetic order and electronic structure.

Contribution

It demonstrates the temperature dependence of electronic excitations in manganites and links these changes to magnetic order through theoretical calculations.

Findings

Spectral weight between 1.5 and 5 eV varies with temperature.

Temperature dependence is related to magnetic order, not conductivity.

Inter-site d-d excitations are identified as key contributors.

Abstract

We report the observation of temperature dependent electronic excitations in various manganites utilizing resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) at the Mn K-edge. Excitations were observed between 1.5 and 16 eV with temperature dependence found as high as 10 eV. The change in spectral weight between 1.5 and 5 eV was found to be related to the magnetic order and independent of the conductivity. On the basis of LDA+U and Wannier function calculations, this dependence is associated with intersite d-d excitations. Finally, the connection between the RIXS cross-section and the loss function is addressed.