arXiv subjects

H. -J. Grafe

Publications and source records attributed to H. -J. Grafe.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2014

Inhomogeneous slowing down of spin fluctuations induced by charge stripe order in 1/8-doped lanthanum cuprates

We report $^{139}$La nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) measurements on La$_{2-x}$Sr$_x$CuO$_4$ ($0.07\leq x \leq 0.15$) and La$_{2-x}$Ba$_x$CuO$_4$ ($x=1/8$) single crystals, focusing on the spin freezing observed in 1/8-doped lanthanum cuprates. Charge stripe order seems to induce the inhomogeneous slowing down of spin fluctuations toward spin order and compete with superconductivity.

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arXiv2014

Unusual spin fluctuations and magnetic frustration in olivine and non-olivine LiCoPO$_4$ detected by $^{31}$P and $^7$Li nuclear magnetic resonance

We report $^{31}$P and $^{7}$Li nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies in new non-olivine LiZnPO$_4$-type LiCoPO$_4^\text{tetra}$ microcrystals, where the Co$^{2+}$ ions are tetrahedrally coordinated. Olivine LiCoPO$_4$, which was directly transformed from LiCoPO$_4^\text{tetra}$ by an annealing process, was also studied and compared. The uniform bulk magnetic susceptibility and the $^{31}$P Knight shift obey the Curie-Weiss law for both materials with a high spin Co$^{2+}$ ($3d^7$, $S=3/2$), but the Weiss temperature $Θ$ and the effective magnetic moment $μ_\text{eff}$ are considerably smaller in LiCoPO$_4^\text{tetra}$. The spin-lattice relaxation rate $T_1^{-1}$ reveals a quite different nature of the spin dynamics in the paramagnetic state of both materials. Our NMR results imply that strong geometrical spin frustration occurs in tetrahedrally coordinated LiCoPO$_4$, which may lead to the incommensurate magnetic ordering.

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arXiv2014

Spin Gap in the Single Spin-1/2 Chain Cuprate Sr$_{1.9}$Ca$_{0.1}$CuO$_3$

We report $^{63}$Cu nuclear magnetic resonance and muon spin rotation measurements on the S=1/2 antiferromagnetic Heisenberg spin chain compound Sr$_{1.9}$Ca$_{0.1}$CuO$_3$. An exponentially decreasing spin-lattice relaxation rate 1/T$_1$ indicates the opening of a spin gap. This behavior is very similar to what has been observed for the cognate zigzag spin chain compound Sr$_{0.9}$Ca$_{0.1}$CuO$_2$, and confirms that the occurrence of a spin gap upon Ca doping is independent of the interchain exchange coupling $J'$. Our results therefore generally prove the appearance of a spin gap in an antiferromagnetic Heisenberg spin chain induced by a local bond disorder of the intrachain exchange coupling $J$. A low temperature upturn of 1/T$_1$ evidences growing magnetic correlations. However, zero field muon spin rotation measurements down to 1.5 K confirm the absence of magnetic order in this compound which is most likely suppressed by the opening of the spin gap.

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arXiv2013

Progressive slowing down of spin fluctuations in underdoped LaFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_x$

The evolution of low-energy spin dynamics in the iron-based superconductor LaFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_x$ was studied over a broad doping, temperature, and magnetic field range (x = 0 - 0.15, T up to 480K, H up to 30T) by means of As nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). An enhanced spin-lattice relaxation rate divided by temperature, 1/T1T, in underdoped superconducting samples (x = 0.045, 0.05 and 0.075) suggests the presence of antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations, which are strongly reduced in optimally-doped (x = 0.10) and completely absent in overdoped (x = 0.15) samples. In contrast to previous analysis, Curie-Weiss fits are shown to be insufficient to describe the data over the whole temperature range. Instead, a BPP-type model is used to describe the occurrence of a peak in 1/T1T clearly above the superconducting transition, reflecting a progressive slowing down of the spin fluctuations down to the superconducting phase transition.

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arXiv2013

Anomalous superconducting state in LiFeAs implied by the $^{75}$As Knight shift measurement

$^{75}$As NMR investigation of a single crystal of superconducting LiFeAs is presented. The Knight shift and the \textit{in situ} ac susceptibility measurements as a function of temperature and external field are indicative of two superconducting (SC) transition temperatures, each of which is associated with its own upper critical field. Strikingly, the Knight shift maintains its normal state value over a temperature range in the SC state before it drops abruptly being consistent with spin-singlet pairing. Together with our previous NMR study, the anomalous SC state featured by the constant Knight shift is attributed to the extremely sensitive SC properties of LiFeAs, probably stemming from its proximity to a critical instability.

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arXiv2012

Common effect of chemical and external pressures on the magnetic properties of RECoPO (RE = La, Pr)

We report a detailed investigation of RECoPO (RE = La, Pr) and LaCoAsO materials performed by means of muon spin spectroscopy. Zero-field measurements show that the electrons localized on the Pr$^{3+}$ ions do not play any role in the static magnetic properties of the compounds. Magnetism at the local level is indeed fully dominated by the weakly-itinerant ferromagnetism from the Co sublattice only. The increase of the chemical pressure triggered by the different ionic radii of La$^{3+}$ and Pr$^{3+}$, on the other hand, plays a crucial role in enhancing the value of the magnetic critical temperature and can be mimicked by the application of external hydrostatic pressure up to 24 kbar. A sharp discontinuity in the local magnetic field at the muon site in LaCoPO at around 5 kbar suggests a sizeable modification in the band structure of the material upon increasing pressure. This scenario is qualitatively supported by \emph{ab-initio} density-functional theory calculations.

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arXiv2012

Evidence of a critical hole concentration in underdoped YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_y$ single crystals revealed by $^{63}$Cu NMR

We report a $^{63}$Cu NMR investigation in detwinned YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_y$ single crystals, focusing on the highly underdoped regime (y=6.35-6.6). Measurements of both the spectra and the spin-lattice relaxation rates of $^{63}$Cu uncover the emergence of static order at a well-defined onset temperature $T_0$ without a known order parameter as yet. While $T_0$ is rapidly suppressed with increasing hole doping concentration $p$, the spin pseudogap was identified only near and above the doping content at which $T_0\rightarrow 0$. Our data indicate the presence of a critical hole doping $p_c\sim 0.1$, which may control both the static order at $p p_c$.

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arXiv2012

Persistence of singlet fluctuations in the coupled spin tetrahedra system Cu2Te2O5Br2 revealed by high-field magnetization and 79Br NQR - 125Te NMR

We present high-field magnetization and $^{79}$Br nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) and $^{125}$Te nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) studies in the weakly coupled Cu$^{2+}$ ($S=1/2$) tetrahedral system Cu$_2$Te$_2$O$_5$Br$_2$. The field-induced level crossing effects were observed by the magnetization measurements in a long-ranged magnetically ordered state which was confirmed by a strong divergence of the spin-lattice relaxation rate 1/T1 at T0=13.5 K. In the paramagnetic state, 1/T1 reveals an effective singlet-triplet spin gap much larger than that observed by static bulk measurements. Our results imply that the inter- and the intra-tetrahedral interactions compete, but at the same time they cooperate strengthening effectively the local intratetrahedral exchange couplings. We discuss that the unusual feature originates from the frustrated intertetrahedral interactions.

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arXiv2012

Phase separation at the magnetic-superconducting transition in La$_{0.7}$Y$_{0.3}$FeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$

In this paper we report a detailed $μ^{+}$SR and {}$^{19}$F-NMR study of the La$_{0.7}$Y$_{0.3}$FeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$ class of materials. Here, the diamagnetic La$_{1-y}$Y$_{y}$ substitution increases chemical pressure and, accordingly, sizeably enhances the optimal superconducting transition temperature. We investigate the magnetic-superconducting phase transition by keeping the Y content constant ($y = 0.3$) and by varying the F content in the range $0.025 \leq x \leq 0.15$. Our results show how magnetism and superconductivity coexist for $x = 0.065$. Such coexistence is due to segregation of the two phases in macroscopic regions, resembling what was observed in LaFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$ materials under applied hydrostatic pressure. This scenario is qualitatively different from the nanoscopic coexistence of the two order parameters observed when La is fully substituted by magnetic rare-earth ions like Sm or Ce.

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arXiv2012

$^{139}$La NMR investigation in underdoped La$_{1.93}$Sr$_{0.07}$CuO$_4$

We report $^{139}$La and $^{63}$Cu nuclear magnetic and quadrupole resonance (NMR/NQR) studies in an underdoped La$_{1.93}$Sr$_{0.07}$CuO$_4$ single crystal, focusing on the $^{139}$La NMR in the normal state. We demonstrate that the local structural distortions in the low-temperature orthorhombic structure cause the tilting of the direction of the electric field gradient (EFG) at the nuclei from the c axis, resulting in two NMR central transition spectra at both the $^{139}$La and $^{63}$Cu nuclei in an external field. Taking into account the tilt angle of the EFG, the temperature dependence of the $^{139}$La spectra allowed us to determine the $^{139}$La Knight shift and the structural order parameter. The angle and temperature dependence of the $^{139}$La spectrum is in perfect agreement with the macroscopic average structure and proves a displacive transition. The $^{139}$La nuclear spin-lattice relaxation rates, $T_1^{-1}$, suggest that La$_{1.93}$Sr$_{0.07}$CuO$_4$ undergoes a gradual change to a temperature-independent paramagnetic regime in the high temperature region. Both the spectra and $T_1^{-1}$ of the $^{139}$La as a function of temperature reveal a sharp anomaly around $T_S=387(1)$ K, implying a first-order-like structural transition, and a dramatic change below ~70 K arising from collective glassy spin freezing.

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arXiv2011

AC susceptibility investigation of vortex dynamics in nearly-optimally doped REFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$ superconductors (RE = La, Ce, Sm)

Ac susceptibility and static magnetization measurements were performed in the nearly-optimally doped LaFeAsO$_{0.9}$F$_{0.1}$ and CeFeAsO$_{0.92}$F$_{0.08}$ superconductors, complementing earlier results on SmFeAsO$_{0.8}$F$_{0.2}$ [Phys. Rev. {\bf B 83}, 174514 (2011)]. The magnetic field -- temperature phase diagram of the mixed superconducting state is drawn for the three materials, displaying a sizeable reduction of the liquid phase upon increasing $T_{c}$ in the range of applied fields ($H \leq 5$ T). This result indicates that SmFeAsO$_{0.8}$F$_{0.2}$ is the most interesting compound among the investigated ones in view of possible applications. The field-dependence of the intra-grain depinning energy $U_{0}$ exhibits a common trend for all the samples with a typical crossover field value (2500 Oe $\lesssim H_{cr} \lesssim 5000$ Oe) separating regions where single and collective depinning processes are at work. Analysis of the data in terms of a simple two-fluid picture for slightly anisotropic materials allows to estimate the zero-temperature penetration depth $λ_{ab}(0)$ and the anisotropy parameter $γ$ for the three materials. Finally, a sizeable suppression of the superfluid density is deduced in a $s^{\pm}$ two-gap scenario.

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arXiv2011

Pseudogap-like phase in Ca(Fe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$)$_2$As$_2$ revealed by $^{75}$As NQR

We report $^{75}$As NQR measurements on single crystalline Ca(Fe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$)$_2$As$_2$ ($0\leq x \leq 0.09$). The nuclear spin-lattice relaxation rate $T_1^{-1}$ as a function of temperature $T$ and Co dopant concentration $x$ reveals a normal-state pseudogap-like phase below a crossover temperature $T^*$ in the under- and optimally-doped region. The resulting $x$-$T$ phase diagram shows that, after suppression of the spin-density-wave order, $T^*$ intersects $T_c$ falling to zero rapidly near the optimal doping regime. Possible origins of the pseudogap behavior are discussed.

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arXiv2011

Incommensurate magnetic excitations in superconducting LiFeAs

Magnetic correlations in superconducting LiFeAs were studied by elastic and by inelastic neutron scattering experiments. There is no indication for static magnetic ordering but inelastic correlations appear at the incommensurate wave vector (0:5+-d 0:-+d 0) with d=0.07 slightly shifted from the commensurate ordering observed in other FeAs-based compounds. The incommensurate magnetic excitations respond to the opening of the superconducting gap by a transfer of spectral weight.

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arXiv2011

NMR Studies of pseudogap and electronic inhomogeneity in Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+δ}$

We report $^{17}$O NMR measurements in single crystals of overdoped Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+δ}$ with $T_c=82$ K. We measure the full anisotropy of the planar oxygen Knight shift, electric field gradient, and spin lattice relaxation rate tensors, and show that the entire temperature dependence is determined by the suppression of the density of states in the pseudogap below $T^*\sim 94$ K. The linewidth can be explained by a combination of magnetic and quadrupolar broadening as a result of an inhomogeneous distribution of local hole concentrations that is consistent with scanning tunneling microscopy measurements. This distribution is temperature independent, does not break $C_4$ symmetry, and exhibits no change below $T^*$ or $T_c$.

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arXiv2011

Disorder-induced Spin Gap in the Zigzag Spin-1/2 Chain Cuprate Sr_{0.9}Ca_{0.1}CuO_2

We report a comparative study of 63Cu Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spin lattice relaxation rates, T_1^{-1}, on undoped SrCuO_2 and Ca doped Sr_{0.9}Ca_{0.1}CuO_2 spin chain compounds. A temperature independent T_1^{-1} is observed for SrCuO_2 as expected for an S=1/2 Heisenberg chain. Surprisingly, we observe an exponential decrease of T_1^{-1} for T < 90,K in the Ca-doped sample evidencing the opening of a spin gap. The data analysis within the J_1-J_2 Heisenberg model employing density-matrix renormalization group calculations suggests an impurity driven small alternation of the J_2-exchange coupling as a possible cause of the spin gap.

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arXiv2010

Nanoscale electronic order in iron pnictides

The charge distribution in RFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_x$ (R=La, Sm) iron pnictides is probed using As nuclear quadrupole resonance. Whereas undoped and optimally-doped or overdoped compounds feature a single charge environment, two charge environments are detected in the underdoped region. Spin-lattice relaxation measurements show their coexistence at the nanoscale. Together with the quantitative variations of the spectra with doping, they point to a local electronic order in the iron layers, where low- and high-doping-like regions would coexist. Implications for the interplay of static magnetism and superconductivity are discussed.

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arXiv2010

Charge order and low frequency spin dynamics in lanthanum cuprates revealed by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

We report detailed 17O, 139La, and 63Cu Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and Nuclear Quadrupole Resonance (NQR) measurements in a stripe ordered La1.875Ba0.125CuO4 single crystal and in oriented powder samples of La1.8-xEu0.2SrxCuO4. We observe a partial wipeout of the 17O NMR intensity and a simultaneous drop of the 17O electric field gradient (EFG) at low temperatures where the spin stripe order sets in. In contrast, the 63Cu intensity is completely wiped out at the same temperature. The drop of the 17O quadrupole frequency is compatible with a charge stripe order. The 17O spin lattice relaxation rate shows a peak similar to that of the 139La, which is of magnetic origin. This peak is doping dependent and is maximal at x ~ 1/8.

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arXiv2010

Unusual disorder effects in superconducting LaFeAs_(1-d)O_0.9F_0.1 as revealed by NMR spectroscopy

We report 75As NMR measurements of the spin-lattice relaxation in the superconducting state of LaFeAsO_(0.9)F_(0.1) and As-deficient LaFeAs_(1-d)O_0.9F_0.1. The temperature behavior of 1/T_1 below T_c changes drastically from a T^3-dependence for LaFeAsO_(0.9)F_(0.1) to a T^5-dependence for the As-deficient sample. These results, together with the previously reported unexpected increase of T_c and the slope of the upper critical field near T_c for the As-deficient sample, are discussed in terms of non-universal SC gaps in Fe-pnictides and the effect of As deficiency as an exotic case where nonmagnetic 'smart' impurities even stabilize an s+- wave superconductor or within a scenario of a disorder-driven change to s++ superconductivity.

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