A microscopic view on the Mott transition in chromium-doped V2O3
Lupi S, Baldassarre L, Mansart B, Perucchi A, Barinov A, Dudin P, Papalazarou E, Rodolakis F, Rueff JP, Itie JP, Ravy S, Nicoletti D, Postorino P, Hansmann P, Parragh N, Toschi A, Saha-Dasgupta T, Andersen OK, Sangiovanni G, Held K, Marsi M (2010)
Publication Type: Journal article
Publication year: 2010
Journal
Book Volume: 1
DOI: 10.1038/ncomms1109
Abstract
V2O3 is the prototype system for the Mott transition, one of the most fundamental phenomena of electronic correlation. Temperature, doping or pressure induce a metal-to-insulator transition (MIT) between a paramagnetic metal (PM) and a paramagnetic insulator. This or related MITs have a high technological potential, among others, for intelligent windows and field effect transistors. However the spatial scale on which such transitions develop is not known in spite of their importance for research and applications. Here we unveil for the first time the MIT in Cr-doped V2O3 with submicron lateral resolution: with decreasing temperature, microscopic domains become metallic and coexist with an insulating background. This explains why the associated PM phase is actually a poor metal. The phase separation can be associated with a thermodynamic instability near the transition. This instability is reduced by pressure, that promotes a genuine Mott transition to an eventually homogeneous metallic state.
Authors with CRIS profile
Involved external institutions
Università degli studi "La Sapienza"
Italy (IT)
University of Paris 11 - Paris-Sud / Université Paris XI Paris-Sud
France (FR)
Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A.
Italy (IT)
Synchrotron SOLEIL
France (FR)
Technische Universität Wien / Vienna University of Technology
Austria (AT)
S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences
India (IN)
Max-Planck-Institut für Festkörperforschung
Germany (DE)
Italy (IT)
University of Paris 11 - Paris-Sud / Université Paris XI Paris-Sud
France (FR)
Elettra Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A.
Italy (IT)
Synchrotron SOLEIL
France (FR)
Technische Universität Wien / Vienna University of Technology
Austria (AT)
S. N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences
India (IN)
Max-Planck-Institut für Festkörperforschung
Germany (DE)
How to cite
APA:
Lupi, S., Baldassarre, L., Mansart, B., Perucchi, A., Barinov, A., Dudin, P.,... Marsi, M. (2010). A microscopic view on the Mott transition in chromium-doped V2O3. Nature Communications, 1. https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms1109
MLA:
Lupi, S., et al. "A microscopic view on the Mott transition in chromium-doped V2O3." Nature Communications 1 (2010).
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