Dynamic octahedral fluctuations and the effects on orbital ordering in YTiO3

Journal Article · Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2014 · Journal of the Physical Society of Japan

DOI:https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSJ.83.084601· OSTI ID:1143549

Li, Bing ^[1]; Louca, Despina ^[1]; Hu, Biao ^[2]; Niedziela, Jennifer L ^[3]; Zhou, Jianshi ^[2]; Goodenough, J. B. ^[2]

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1. University of Virginia
2. University of Texas at Austin
3. ORNL

YTiO3 is revisited to investigate the influence of local lattice dynamics on orbital ordering using inelastic neutron scattering. Orbital order survives well above the ferromagnetic transition, into the paramagnetic state, but what eventually leads to disorder is not well understood. By probing the local lattice dynamics via the dynamic pair density function analysis, it is found that local fluctuations associated with octahedral tilting and rotational modes and Y displacements persist up to 60 meV. The local fluctuations exhibit a temperature dependence that may lead to the suppression of the Ti orbital overlap leading to a temperature dependent orbital disorder.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Spallation Neutron Source (SNS)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: DE-AC05-00OR22725
• OSTI ID: 1143549
• Journal Information: Journal of the Physical Society of Japan, Vol. 83, Issue 8; ISSN 0031--9015
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English