Engineering a Spin-Orbital Magnetic Insulator by Tailoring Superlattices

Author(s): J. Matsuno, K. Ihara, S. Yamamura, H. Wadati, K. Ishii, V. V. Shankar, Hae-Young Kee, and H. Takagi

The magnetic ordering temperature of complex iridates decreases as SrTiO${}_3$ spacer layers are inserted between perovskite SrIrO${}_3$ layers. At a crticial number of spacers the material transitions from an insulator to a semimetal.

[Phys. Rev. Lett. 114, 247209] Published Thu Jun 18, 2015