Anomalous phonon redshift in K-doped BaFe$_2$As$_2$ iron pnictides

B. Xu (1, 2) , Y. M. Dai (3) , B. Shen (2) , H. Xiao (2) , Z. R. Ye (4) , A. Forget (5) , D. Colson (5) , D. L. Feng (6) , H. H. Wen (2) , C. C. Homes (3) , X. G. Qiu (2) , R. P. S. M. Lobo (1)

1 LPEM - Laboratoire de Physique et d'Etude des Matériaux (UMR 8213)
2 Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics
3 BNL - Brookhaven National Laboratory [Upton, NY]
4 Fudan University [Shanghai]
5 LNO - Laboratoire Nano-Magnétisme et Oxydes
6 NJU - Nanjing University

The effect of K, Co, and P dopings on the lattice dynamics in the BaFe$_2$As$_2$ system is studied by infrared spectroscopy. We focus on the phonon at ∼ 253 cm$^{-1}$ , the highest energy in-plane infrared-active Fe-As mode in BaFe$_2$As$_2$. Our studies show that Co and P dopings lead to a blueshift of this phonon in frequency, which can be simply interpreted by the change in lattice parameters induced by doping. In sharp contrast, an unusual redshift of the same mode was observed in the K-doped compound, at odds with the above explanation. This anomalous behavior in K-doped BaFe$_2$As$_2$ is more likely associated with the coupling between lattice vibrations and other channels, such as charge or spin. This coupling scenario is also supported by the asymmetric line shape and intensity growth of the phonon in the K-doped compound.

Domains: Physics [physics]

B. Xu, Y. M. Dai, B. Shen, H. Xiao, Z. R. Ye, et al.. Anomalous phonon redshift in K-doped BaFe$_2$As$_2$ iron pnictides. Physical Review B: Condensed Matter and Materials Physics (1998-2015), 2015, 91, pp.104510. ⟨10.1103/PhysRevB.91.104510⟩. ⟨cea-01497885⟩