Dynamic Jahn-Teller effect in the strong spin-orbit coupling regime
Exotic quantum phases, arising from a complex interplay of charge, spin, lattice and orbital degrees of freedom, are of immense interest to a wide research community. A well-known example of such an entangled behavior is the Jahn-Teller effect, where the lifting of orbital degeneracy proceeds through lattice distortions. Here we demonstrate that a highly-symmetrical 5d1 double perovskite Ba2MgReO6, comprising a 3D array of isolated ReO6 octahedra, represents a rare example of a dynamic Jahn-Teller system in the strong spin-orbit coupling regime. Thermodynamic and resonant inelastic x-ray scattering experiments, supported by quantum chemistry calculations, undoubtedly show that the Jahn-Teller instability leads to a ground-state doublet, resolving a long-standing puzzle in this family of compounds. The dynamic state of ReO6 octahedra persists down to the lowest temperatures, where a multipolar order sets in, allowing for investigations of the interplay between a dynamic JT effect and strongly correlated electron behavior.
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Živković, I., Soh, J. R., Malanyuk, O., Yadav, R., Pisani, F., Tehrani, A. M., Tolj, D., Pasztorova, J., Hirai, D., Wei, Y., Zhang, W., Galdino, C., Yu, T., Ishii, K., Demuer, A., Yazyev, O. V., Schmitt, T., & Rønnow, H. M. (2024). Dynamic Jahn-Teller effect in the strong spin-orbit coupling regime. Nature Communications, 15(1), Article 8587. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-52935-w
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