Abstract
We studied the symmetry of the Fe wave function in magnetite below the Verwey temperature with resonant soft-x-ray diffraction. Although the lattice structure of the low-temperature phase of is well described by the pseudo-orthorhombic with a slight monoclinic distortion, we find that the wave function does not reflect the symmetry, and its distortion toward monoclinic symmetry is by far larger than that of the lattice. The result supports a scenario in which the Verwey transition involves the ordering of orbitals with complex-number coefficients.
- Received 7 August 2011
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.108.227203
© 2012 American Physical Society