Solid State Chemistry Group
We are working on the synthesis and characterization of ceramic and single crystal materials with novel electronic and magnetic properties. Numerous complex oxide materials have been successfully crystallized by the Traveling Solvent Floating Zone (TSFZ) method using an optical furnace. This includes cuprates, manganates, orthoferrites, cobaltites, borates and phosphates. Novel chalcogenide iron superconductors have been synthesized as powders and single crystals (Bridgman method).
News
Doctoral thesis award 2022 for Igor Plokhikh
Doctoral thesis award of the Dr. Alfons Paulus Foundation at the University of Regensburg, Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy for Igor Plokhikh
On 14th of July 2022 Dr Igor Plokhikh (currently postdoc at SSCG, LMX PSI) has been awarded with the Doctoral thesis award of the Dr. Alfons Paulus Foundation at the University of Regensburg, Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy. He completed his doctoral studies at the group of Prof. Arno Pfitzner working on synthesis, crystal growth and characterization of crystal and magnetic structures of new magnetic Eu2+-containing compounds. This work resulted in discovery of over 10 new compounds, some of which exhibit complex magnetic phase diagrams.
NCCR-MARVEL Highlight 2021
First-ever rare earth nickelate single crystals lead to first experimental evidence supporting predicted multiferroicity
New SSC Access rules
Due to the Corona pandemic starting 1. May 2021, new access rules to the SSC user facilites will apply. More details can be found at https://www.psi.ch/de/lmx-ssc/access-rules.
Scientific Highlight
Flat-band hybridization between f and d states near the Fermi energy of SmCoIn5
We present high-quality angle-resolved photoemission (ARPES) and density functional theory calculations (DFT+U) of SmCoIn5. We find broad agreement with previously published studies of LaCoIn5 and CeCoIn5, confirming that the Sm 4f electrons are mostly localized. Nevertheless, our model is consistent with an additional delocalized Sm component, stemming from hybridization between the 4f electrons and the metallic bands at “hot spot” positions in the Brillouin zone.
Phonon promoted charge density wave in topological kagome metal ScV6Sn6
Charge density wave (CDW) orders in vanadium-based kagome metals have recently received tremendous attention, yet their origin remains a topic of debate. The discovery of ScV6Sn6, a bilayer kagome metal featuring an intriguing √3 × √3 × √3 CDW order, offers a novel platform to explore the underlying mechanism behind the unconventional CDW. Here we combine ...
Field-induced bound-state condensation and spin-nematic phase in SrCu2(BO3)2 revealed by neutron scattering up to 25.9 T
In quantum magnetic materials, ordered phases induced by an applied mag- netic field can be described as the Bose-Einstein condensation (BEC) of mag- non excitations. In the strongly frustrated system SrCu2(BO3)2, no clear magnon BEC could be observed, pointing to an alternative mechanism, but the high fields required to probe this physics have remained a barrier to detailed investigation.Here we exploit the first purpose-built high-field neutron scattering facility to measure ...