Doping and temperature evolutions of optical response of Sr3(Ir1-xRux)2O7

We report on optical spectroscopic study of the Sr₃(Ir_1-xRu_x)₂O₇ system over a wide doping regime. We find that the changes in the electronic structure occur in the limited range of the concentration of Ru ions where the insulator-metal transition occurs. In the insulating regime, the electronic structure associated with the effective total angular momentum J_eff = 1/2 Mott state remains robust against Ru doping, indicating the localization of the doped holes. Upon entering the metallic regime, the Mott gap collapses and the Drude-like peak with strange metallic character appears. The evolution of the electronic structure registered in the optical data can be explained in terms of a percolative insulator-metal transition. The phonon spectra display anomalous doping evolution of the lineshapes. While the phonon modes of the compounds deep in the insulating and metallic regimes are almost symmetric, those of the semiconducting compound with x = 0.34 in close proximity to the doping-driven insulator-metal transition show a pronounced asymmetry. The temperature evolution of the phonon modes of the x = 0.34 compound reveals the asymmetry is enhanced in the antiferromagnetic state. We discuss roles of the S = 1 spins of the Ru ions and charge excitations for the conspicuous lineshape asymmetry of the x = 0.34 compound.

Composition-tuning in a solid-state electrotransport furnace with active thermal expansion compensation

A new solid-state electrotransport (SSE) apparatus for refining ultra-pure single crystals of metallic compounds under ultra-high vacuum is described. The setup employs a novel thermal expansion compensation mechanism to minimize mechanical stress on the sample during refinement with cold clamps for contamination-less purification at elevated temperatures. The apparatus is designed to tune the composition of initially slightly off-stoichiometric samples. The expansion compensation and stress-free operation were tested by recording the thermal expansion of elemental cerium in a treatment up to 655 °C. SSE refinement was then performed on a high-quality single crystal of U₆Fe resulting in a 50% increase of its residual resistivity ratio to the highest value obtained for a single crystal to date.