Soft x-ray magnetic circular dichroism study of the colossal magnetoresistance compound La1-xSrxMnO3

Abstract

Soft X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (SXMCD) measurements are reported on the O K- and Mn L-absorption edges of La1-x Srx MnO3 (x = 0.15, 0.18, and 0.4) single crystals in their ferromagnetic regime. This has been done using a recently developed experimental technique for magnetizing the samples offering the possibility to get high-accurancy SXMCD effect measurements on bulk samples. The very strong doping-induced O K-edge intensity is proof of an enhanced O 2p hole component of the doped holes. O K soft X-ray magnetic circular dichroism spectra give evidence for an orbital magnetic moment of this O 2p component ferromagnetically coupled to the Mn moments.