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Title: Reconciliation of local and long-range tilt correlations in underdoped La2-xBaxCuO4(0 ≤ x ≤ 0.155)

Journal Article · · Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics
 [1];  [2];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [3]
  1. Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)
  2. Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Stony Brook Univ., Stony Brook, NY (United States)
  3. Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States); Columbia Univ., New York, NY (United States)

In this study, a long standing puzzle regarding the disparity of local and long range CuO₆ octahedral tilt correlations in the underdoped regime of La2-xBaxCuO₄ is addressed by utilizing complementary neutron powder diffraction and inelastic neutron scattering (INS) approaches. Long-range and static CuO₆ tilt order with orthogonally inequivalent Cu-O bonds in the CuO₂ planes in the low temperature tetragonal (LTT) phase is succeeded on warming through the low-temperature transition by one with orthogonally equivalent bonds in the low temperature orthorhombic (LTO) phase. In contrast, the signatures of LTT-type tilts in the instantaneous local atomic structure persist on heating throughout the LTO crystallographic phase on the nanoscale, although becoming weaker as temperature increases. Analysis of the INS spectra for the x = 1/8 composition reveals the dynamic nature of the LTT-like tilt fluctuations within the LTO phase and their 3D character. The doping dependence of relevant structural parameters indicates that the magnitude of the Cu-O bond anisotropy has a maximum at x = 1/8 doping were bulk superconductivity is most strongly suppressed, suggesting that the structural anisotropy might be influenced by electron-phonon coupling and the particular stability of the stripe-ordered phase at this composition. The bond-length modulation that pins stripe order is found to be remarkably subtle, with no anomalous bond length disorder at low temperature, placing an upper limit on any in-plane Cu-O bondlength anisotropy. The results further reveal that although appreciable octahedral tilts persist through the high-temperature transition and into the high temperature tetragonal (HTT) phase, there is no significant preference between different tilt directions in the HTT regime. This study also exemplifies the importance of a systematic approach using complementary techniques when investigating systems exhibiting a large degree of complexity and subtle structural responses.

Research Organization:
Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
SC00112704; AC52-06NA25396
OSTI ID:
1182483
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 1179936; OSTI ID: 1188211
Report Number(s):
BNL-107315-2014-JA; BNL-107646-2015-JA; PRBMDO; R&D Project: PM032; KC0202010
Journal Information:
Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics, Vol. 91, Issue 5; ISSN 1098-0121
Publisher:
American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 24 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (7)

Domain Texture of the Orthorhombic Phase of La2−xBaxCuO4 journal August 2019
Charge density wave memory in a cuprate superconductor journal March 2019
High-temperature charge density wave correlations in La 1.875 Ba 0.125 CuO 4 without spin–charge locking journal November 2017
Combined single crystal polarized XAFS and XRD at high pressure: probing the interplay between lattice distortions and electronic order at multiple length scales in high T c cuprates journal July 2016
Staging superstructures in high- T c Sr/O codoped La 2 x Sr x CuO 4 + y journal November 2017
Nematicity and Charge Order in Superoxygenated La 2 x Sr x CuO 4 + y journal August 2018
Unconventional Continuous Structural Disorder at the Order-Disorder Phase Transition in the Hexagonal Manganites text January 2019

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