Visualization of Electronic Multiple Ordering and Its Dynamics in High Magnetic Field: Evidence of Electronic Multiple Ordering Crystals

• Published in: ACS applied materials & interfaces Vol. 10; no. 23; pp. 20136 - 20141
• Main Authors: Sheng, Zhigao, Feng, Qiyuan, Zhou, Haibiao, Dong, Shuai, Xu, Xueli, Cheng, Long, Liu, Caixing, Hou, Yubin, Meng, Wenjie, Sun, Yuping, Nakamura, Masao, Tokura, Yoshinori, Kawasaki, Masashi, Lu, Qingyou
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 13.06.2018
• Subjects: magnetic force microscopy; manganite; electronic multiple ordering; phase separation; antiferromagnetic phase; high magnetic field
• ISSN: 1944-8244; 1944-8252
• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b04057

Constituent atoms and electrons determine matter properties together, and they can form long-range ordering respectively. Distinguishing and isolating the electronic ordering out from the lattice crystal is a crucial issue in contemporary materials science. However, the intrinsic structure of a long-range electronic ordering is difficult to observe because it can be easily affected by many external factors. Here, we present the observation of electronic multiple ordering (EMO) and its dynamics at the micrometer scale in a manganite thin film. The strong internal couplings among multiple electronic degrees of freedom in the EMO make its morphology robust against external factors and visible via well-defined boundaries along specific axes and cleavage planes, which behave like a multiple-ordered electronic crystal. A strong magnetic field up to 17.6 T is needed to completely melt such EMO at 7 K, and the corresponding formation, motion, and annihilation dynamics are imaged utilizing a home-built high-field magnetic force microscope. The EMO is parasitic within the lattice crystal house, but its dynamics follows its own rules of electronic correlation, therefore becoming distinguishable and isolatable as the electronic ordering. Our work provides a microscopic foundation for the understanding and control of the electronic ordering and the designs of the corresponding devices.