Resonant inelastic x-ray scattering study of α -RuCl3: a progress report

Abstract
Ru M3-edge resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) measurements of α-RuCl3 with 27 meV resolution reveals a spin-orbit exciton without noticeable splitting. We extract values for the spin-orbit coupling constant (λ= 154 ± 2 meV) and trigonal distortion field energy (│Δ│< 65 meV) which support the jeff = 1/2 nature of α-RuCl3. We demonstrate the feasibility of M-edge RIXS for 4d systems, which allows ultra high-resolution RIXS of 4d systems until instrumentation for L-edge RIXS improves.
Funding Information
  • Canada Foundation for Innovation
  • Ontario Innovation Trust
  • Brookhaven National Laboratory (DE-SC0012704)
  • Division of Physics (PHY-1607611)
  • Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada