arXiv subjects

M. Miyazaki

Publications and source records attributed to M. Miyazaki.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Superconductivity on the verge of metal-insulator transition in Cu$_{1-x}$Zn$_x$Ir$_2$S$_4$ probed by $\mu$SR

The thiospinel CuIr$_2$S$_4$ undergoes a metal-insulator transition below $\approx$230 K, which is suppressed by substitution of Cu with Zn (Cu$_{1-x}$Zn$_x$Ir$_2$S$_4$) to induce superconductivity for $0.2\lesssim x\lesssim0.8$. We show that the temperature/field dependence of superfluid density in samples with $x = 0.3$ and 0.4 ($T_{\rm c} \approx 3$ K and 2.5 K) investigated by muon spin rotation and relaxation ($\mu$SR) is consistent with a fully gapped $s$-wave pairing. Meanwhile, the relatively high resistivity (10$^{-3}$-10$^{-2}$ $\Omega\:$cm) in their normal state suggests that the superconductivity is in the "dirty limit" where the mean free path is much shorter than the coherence length ($\ell \ll \xi_0$). This indicates that the potential anisotropy associated with unconventional pairing mechanisms expected under the strong electron correlations is smeared out by the electron scattering. Based on these observations, we discuss potential link between the Zn substitution-induced superconductivity and that recently discovered in CuIr$_2$S$_4$ under high pressure ($>18$ GPa) where the existence of strong electron scattering is also suggested.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2023

Development of Transient $μ$SR Method for High-Flux Pulsed Muons

In order to expand the applicability of muon spin rotation, relaxation, and resonance ($μ$SR) experiments with pulsed muons and to make effective use of the high-flux beam, we have developed a new experimental method ``transient $μ$SR''. In this method, $μ$SR data for each muon pulse are tagged with external parameters such as temperature and magnetic field in real time, allowing the sample environment to be changed without interrupting data collection. As a result, continuous $μ$SR measurements under sample conditions that vary on a time scale longer than the beam pulse interval (40 ms) are realized, and efficient beam utilization is achieved by eliminating the lag time associated with moving between discrete measurement points. The transient $μ$SR method was applied to the study of the magnetic properties of cupric oxide (CuO) and the observation of level-crossing resonance relaxation in copper, and the method was successfully established by confirming that the results reproduce those in the previous reports.

physics.ins-det↗

arXiv2023

Direct observation of oxygen polarization in Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ by O $K$-edge x-ray magnetic circular dichroism

X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) and magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) measurements at the oxygen (O) $K$-edge were performed to investigate the magnetic polarization of ligand O atoms in the weak ferromagnetic (WFM) phase of the Ir perovskite compound Sr$_2$IrO$_4$. With the onset of the WFM phase below $T_{\rm N}\simeq240$ K, XMCD signals corresponding to XAS peaks respectively identified as originating from the magnetic moments of apical and planar oxygen (O$_{\rm A}$ and O$_{\rm P}$) in the IrO$_6$ octahedra were observed. The observation of magnetic moments at O$_{\rm A}$ sites is consistent (except for the relative orientation) with that suggested by prior muon spin rotation ($μ$SR) experiment in the non-collinear antiferromagnetic (NC-AFM) phase below $T_{\rm M}\approx100$ K. Assuming that the O$_{\rm A}$ magnetic moment observed by $μ$SR is also responsible for the corresponding XMCD signal, the magnetic moment of O$_{\rm P}$ is estimated to be consistent with the previous $μ$SR result. Since the O$_{\rm A}$ XMCD signal is mainly contributed by Ir 5$d$ $zx$ and $yz$ orbitals which also hybridize with O$_{\rm P}$, it is inferred that the relatively large O$_{\rm P}$ magnetic moment is induced by Ir 5$d$ $xy$ orbitals. Moreover, the inversion of O$_{\rm A}$ moments relative to Ir moments between the two magnetic phases revealed by XMCD suggests the presence of competing magnetic interactions for O$_{\rm A}$, with which the ordering of O$_{\rm A}$ moments in the NC-AFM phase may be suppressed to $T_{\rm M}$.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2020

Electronic charge transfer driven by spin cycloidal structure

Muon spin rotation and resonant soft X-ray scattering experiments on prototype multiferroics RMn2O5 (R = Y, Sm) are used to demonstrate that the local electric displacements are driven by the spin-current (SC) mechanism. Small local electric displacements were evaluated by observing spin polarization at ligand O ions, for which implanted muons served as an extremely sensitive probe. Our results for YMn2O5 provide evidence that the spin polarization of O ions forming a spin cycloid chain with Mn spins increases in proportion to the vector spin chirality (Si x Sj ) of the Mn ions. This relationship strongly indicates that the charge transfer between O and Mn ions is driven by the SC mechanism, which leads to the ferroelectricity accompanying O spin polarization.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2019

Coupled Spin-Charge-Phonon Fluctuation in the All-In/All-Out Antiferromagnet Cd$_2$Os$_2$O$_7$

We report on a novel spin-charge fluctuation in the all-in-all-out pyrochlore magnet Cd$_2$Os$_2$O$_7$, where the spin fluctuation is driven by the conduction of thermally excited electrons/holes and associated fluctuation of Os valence. The fluctuation exhibits an activation energy significantly greater than the spin-charge excitation gap and a peculiar frequency range of $10^{6}$--$10^{10}$ s$^{-1}$. These features are attributed to the hopping motion of carriers as small polarons in the insulating phase, where the polaron state is presumably induced by the magnetoelastic coupling via the strong spin-orbit interaction. Such a coupled spin-charge-phonon fluctuation manifests as a part of the metal-insulator transition that is extended over a wide temperature range due to the modest electron correlation comparable with other interactions characteristic for 5$d$-subshell systems.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2016

Metal-Insulator Transition and Pseudogap in Bi$_{1.76}$Pb$_{0.35}$Sr$_{1.89}$CuO$_{6+δ}$ High-$T_c$ Cuprates

It is inferred from bulk-sensitive muon Knight shift measurement for a Bi$_{1.76}$Pb$_{0.35}$Sr$_{1.89}$CuO$_{6+δ}$ single-layer cuprate that metal-insulator (MI) transition (in the low temperature limit, $T\rightarrow0$) occurs at the critical hole concentration $p=p_{\rm MI}=0.09(1)$, where the electronic density of states (DOS) at the Fermi level is reduced to zero by the pseudogap irrespective of the Néel order or spin glass magnetism. Superconductivity also appears for $p>p_{\rm MI}$, suggesting that this feature is controlled by the MI transition. More interestingly, the magnitude of the DOS reduction induced by the pseudogap remains unchanged over a wide doping range ($0.1\le p\le0.2$), indicating that the pseudogap remains as a hallmark of the MI transition for $p>p_{\rm MI}$.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2016

Cage Electron-Hydroxyl Complex State as Electron Donor in Mayenite

It is inferred from the chemical shift of muon spin rotation ($μ$SR) spectra that muons implanted in pristine (fully oxidized) mayenite, [Ca$_{12}$Al$_{14}$O$_{32}]^{2+}$[$\square_5$O$^{2-}$] (C12A7, with $\square$ referring to the vacant cage), are bound to O$^{2-}$ at the cage center to form OMu$^-$ (where Mu represents muonium, a muonic analog of the H atom). However, an isolated negatively charged state (Mu$^-$, an analog of H$^-$) becomes dominant when the compound approaches the state of electride [Ca$_{12}$Al$_{14}$O$_{32}]^{2+}$[$\square_4$2e$^{-}$] as a result of the reduction process. Moreover, the OMu$^-$ state in the pristine specimen exhibits depolarization of paramagnetic origin at low temperatures (below $\sim$30~K), indicating that OMu$^-$ accompanies a loosely bound electron in the cage that can be thermally activated. This suggests that interstitial muons (and hence H) forming a "cage electron-hydroxyl" complex can serve as electron donors in C12A7.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2015

Strong electron correlation behind the superconductivity in Ce-free and Ce-underdoped high-Tc T'-cuprates

In order to investigate the electronic state of Ce-free and Ce-underdoped high-Tc cuprates with the so-called T' structure, we have performed muon-spin-relaxation (muSR) and specific-heat measurements of Ce-free T'-La_1.8_Eu_0.2_CuO_4+d_ (T'-LECO) polycrystals and Ce-underdoped T'-Pr_1.3-x_La_0.7_Ce_x_CuO_4+d_ (T'-PLCCO) single crystals with x=0.10. The muSR spectra of the reduced superconducting samples of both T'-LECO with Tc=15K and T'-PLCCO with x=0.10 and Tc=27K have revealed that a short-range magnetic order coexists with the superconductivity in the ground state. The formation of a short-range magnetic order due to a tiny amount of excess oxygen in the reduced superconducting samples strongly suggest that the Ce-free and Ce-underdoped T'-cuprates are regarded as strongly correlated electron systems.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2015

Evidence for ordered magnetic moments at oxygen sites in antiferromagnetic Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ and Sr$_3$Ir$_2$O$_7$

In this study, the magnetic ground state of iridium perovskites (Sr$_{n+1}$Ir$_{n}$O$_{3n+1}$, where $n=1$, 2, and $\infty$) was considered using muon spin spectroscopy ($μ$SR). When probed by muons in Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ and Sr$_3$Ir$_2$O$_7$ ($n=1,2$), the internal field ($B_{\rm loc}$) showed clear sign of a magnetic order in two stages at transition temperatures $T_{\rm N}\simeq 230$ K and $T_{\rm m}\simeq 90$ K in Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ and $T_{\rm N}\simeq 280$ K and $T_{\rm m}\simeq 70$ K in Sr$_3$Ir$_2$O$_7$, respectively. In contrast, no long-range magnetic order was observed in orthorhombic SrIrO$_3$ ($n=\infty$). Based on the known magnetic structure in Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ and Sr$_3$Ir$_2$O$_7$, we successfully identified muon sites in these compounds from the magnitude of $B_{\rm loc}$ in the first stage ($T_{\rm m}\le T\le T_{\rm N}$). Below $T_{\rm m}$, $B_{\rm loc}$ probed by a fraction of muons occupying sites near the apical oxygen of IrO$_6$ octahedra exhibited a further increase but remained mostly unchanged for sites close to the in-plane oxygen. While such behavior cannot be explained by the alteration of the Ir spin structure, it is consistent with the selective appearance of ordered magnetic moments on the apical oxygen. The oxygen polarization was also in line with the reported magnetization anomalies in these compounds below $\sim T_{\rm m}$. A possible link between the oxygen polarization and ferroelectric (multiferroic) behavior in Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ was considered.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2014

Bulk superconductivity in undoped T'-La$_{1.9}$Y$_{0.1}$CuO$_4$ probed by muon spin rotation

The Meissner effect has been directly demonstrated by depth-resolved muon spin rotation measurements in high-quality thin films of the T'-structured cuprate, T'-La$_{1.9}$Y$_{0.1}$CuO$_4$, to confirm bulk superconductivity ($T_c\simeq21$ K) in its {\sl undoped} state. The gradual expelling of an external magnetic field is observed over a depth range of $\sim$100 nm in films with a thickness of 275(15) nm, from which the penetration depth is deduced to be 466(22) nm. Based on this result, we argue that the true ground state of the "parent" compound of the $n$-type cuprates is not a Mott insulator but a strongly correlated metal with colossal sensitivity to apical oxygen impurities.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2014

Magnetic frustration in iridium spinel compound CuIr$_2$S$_4$

We demonstrate via a muon spin rotation experiment that the electronic ground state of the iridium spinel compound, CuIr$_2$S$_4$, is not the presumed spin-singlet state but a novel paramagnetic state, showing a quasistatic spin glass-like magnetism below ~100 K. Considering the earlier indication that IrS$_6$ octahedra exhibit dimerization associated with the metal-to-insulator transition below 230 K, the present result suggests that a strong spin-orbit interaction may be playing an important role in determining the ground state that accompanies magnetic frustration.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2014

Cooperative order in the weakly magnetic domain of LaFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$ near the doping phase boundary

Spatial phase separation into mesoscopic domains of non-magnetic [superconducting (SC) below Tc = 25.5 K] and two kinds of magnetic phases, one showing disordered spin density wave (d-SDW) order and another associated with glassy weak magnetism (WM), are observed below ~100 K by muon spin rotation (muSR) in LaFeAsO1-xFx for x = 0.057(3) which is near the boundary of these phases on the doping phase diagram. In contrast to the competing order observed in the regular SDW phase of Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2, the WM domain exhibits cooperative coupling of superconducting and magnetic order parameters as inferred from strong diamagnetism and associated negative shift of muSR frequency just below Tc.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2011

Quasi-One-Dimensional Spin Dynamics in $d$-Electron Heavy-Fermion Metal Y$_{1-x}$Sc$_x$Mn$_2$

Slow spin fluctuations ($ν< 10^{12}$ s$^-1$) observed by the muon spin relaxation technique in Y$_{1-x}$Sc$_x$Mn$_2$ exhibits a power law dependence on temperature ($ν\propto T^α$), where the power converges asymptotically to unity ($α\rightarrow 1$) as the system moves away from spin-glass instability with increasing Sc content $x$. This linear $T$ dependence, which is common to that observed in LiV$_2$O$_4$, is in line with the prediction of the "intersecting Hubbard chains" model for a metallic pyrochlore lattice, suggesting that the geometrical constraints to t2g bands specific to the pyrochlore structure serve as a basis of the $d$-electron heavy-fermion state.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2010

Magnetic ground state of pyrochlore oxides close to metal-insulator boundary probed by muon spin rotation

Magnetism of ruthernium pyrochlore oxides A2Ru2O7 (A = Hg, Cd, Ca), whose electronic properties within a localized ion picture are characterized by non-degenerate t2g orbitals (Ru5+, 4d3) and thereby subject to geometrical frustration, has been investigated by muon spin rotation/relaxation (muSR) technique. The A cation (mostly divalent) was varied to examine the effect of covalency (Hg > Cd > Ca) on their electronic property. In a sample with A = Hg that exhibits a clear metal-insulator (MI) transition below >> 100 K (which is associated with a weak structural transition), a nearly commensurate magnetic order is observed to develop in accordance with the MI transition. Meanwhile, in the case of A = Cd where the MI transition is suppressed to the level of small anomaly in the resistivity, the local field distribution probed by muon indicates emergence of a certain magnetic inhomogeneity below » 30 K. Moreover, in Ca2Ru2O7 that remains metallic, we find a highly inhomogeneous local magnetism below >>25 K that comes from randomly oriented Ru moments and thus described as a "frozen spin liquid" state. The systematic trend of increasing randomness and itinerant character with decreasing covalency suggests close relationship between these two characters. As a reference for the effect of orbital degeneracy and associated Jahn-Teller instability, we examine a tetravalent ruthernium pyrochlore, Tl2Ru2O7 (Ru4+, 4d4), where the result of muSR indicates a non-magnetic ground state that is consistent with the formation of the Haldane chains suggested by neutron diffraction experiment.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2010

Incommensurate spin correlations induced by magnetic Fe ions substituted into overdoped Bi1.75Pb0.35Sr1.90CuO6+z

Spin correlations in the overdoped region of Bi1.75Pb0.35Sr1.90CuO6+z have been explored with Fe-doped single crystals characterized by neutron scattering, muon-spin-rotation (muSR) spectroscopy, and magnetic susceptibility measurements. Static incommensurate spin correlations induced by the Fe spins are revealed by elastic neutron scattering. The resultant incommensurability delta is unexpectedly large (~0.2 r.l.u.), as compared with delta ~ 1/8 in overdoped superconductor La2-xSrxCuO4. Intriguingly, the large delta in this overdoped region is close to the hole concentration p. This result is reminiscent of the delta ~ p trend observed in underdoped La2-xSrxCuO4; however, it is inconsistent with the saturation of delta in the latter compound in the overdoped regime. While our findings in Fe-doped Bi1.75Pb0.35Sr1.90CuO6+z support the commonality of incommensurate spin correlations in high-Tc cuprate superconductors, they also suggest that the magnetic response might be dominated by a distinct mechanism in the overdoped region.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2010

Anisotropic order parameter in Li-intercalated layered superconductor Li$_x$ZrNCl

In this study, it is shown that in a layered nitride superconductor, i.e., LixZrNCl (0.07<=x<=0.21), the superconducting order parameter is highly anisotropic in a sample with x=0.12, as inferred from both the temperature and the magnetic field dependences of the muon depolarization rate (sigma_s, proportional to the superfluid density). Moreover, the tendency of strong anisotropy with an increase in x is indicated by the T dependence of sigma_s. These observations are in good agreement with the recent theory that predicts the development of anisotropy in a d+id' gap upon carrier filling to the bands with disconnected Fermi surfaces on a honeycomb lattice.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2009

Insular superconductivity in Co-doped iron pnictide CaFe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$AsF

The presence of macroscopic phase separation between the superconducting and magnetic phases in \cfcaf is demonstrated by muon spin rotation (muSR) measurements conducted across their phase boundaries (x=0.05-0.15). The magnetic phase tends to retain the high transition temperature (T_m > T_c), while Co-doping induces strong randomness. The volumetric fraction of superconducting phase is nearly proportional to the Co content $x$ with constant superfluid density. These observations suggest the formation of superconducting "islands" (or domains) associated with Co ions in the Fe$_2$As$_2$ layers, indicating a very short coherence length.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2008

Full Gap Superconductivity in Ba$_{0.6}$K$_{0.4}$Fe$_2$As$_2$ Probed by Muon Spin Rotation

Superfluid density ($n_s$) in the mixed state of an iron pnictide superconductor Ba$_{0.6}$K$_{0.4}$Fe$_2$As$_2$ is determined by muon spin rotation for a sample with optimal doping ($x=0.4$). The temperature dependence of $n_s$ is perfectly reproduced by the conventional BCS model for s-wave paring, where the order parameter can be either a single-gap with $Δ=8.35(6)$ meV [$2Δ/k_BT_c=5.09(4)$], or double-gap structure with $Δ_1=12$ meV (fixed) [$2Δ_1/k_BT_c=7.3$] and $Δ_2=6.8(3)$ meV [$2Δ_2/k_BT_c=4.1(2)$]. The latter is consistent with the recent result of angle-resolved photo-emssion spectroscopy. The large gap parameters ($2Δ/k_BT_c$) indicate extremely strong coupling of carriers to bosons that mediate the Cooper pairing.

cond-mat.supr-con↗