PSI Center for Photon Science

Unravelling the coexistence of insulating and metallic-like excitations in SrIrO₃

Fig. 1: RIXS investigation of iridate/titanate heterostructures. (a) Representation of (SrIrO₃)_m(SrTiO₃)₁ superlattices grown on a (001)-oriented SrTiO₃ single-crystal substrate. (b) Phase diagram of the (SrIrO₃)_m(SrTiO₃)₁ system, showing the bandwidth-controlled metal-insulator transition that occurs as the confinement increases from m = 3 to m = 2. (c) Intensity map of Ir L₃-edge RIXS spectra for the m = 4 sample at T = 20 K, plotted as a function of energy transfer and momentum transfer Q. Two distinct excitations are observed: a low-energy paramagnon and an SOE at intermediate energies.

The intense beams of X-ray light at the user facilities operated by the PSI Center for Photon Science shed light on the smallest structures of matter.

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Lab News & Scientific Highlights

24.10.2025

•Fundamentals of Nature

Measuring How Molecules Communicate

A collaboration between PSI and the University of Vienna has resulted in a new experimental method that, for the first time, enables the direct measurement of partial charges in molecules. Partial charges are fundamental to understanding molecular structure, interactions, and reactivity, yet until now no general technique existed to determine them experimentally.