D. Bounoua, R. Saint-Martin, S. Petit, P. Berthet, F. Damay, Y. Sidis, F. Bourdarot, and L. Pinsard-Gaudart, Phys. Rev. B 95, 224429
The low energy magnetic excitations spectra of the pristine and doped quasi-one-dimensional spin chains cuprates SrCuO2 have been investigated by inelastic neutron scattering. The momentum-integrated magnetic dynamical structure factor yields a constant integrated intensity with regard to energy in the pure compound, while it shows a strong decay, at low energies, in the compounds doped with nonmagnetic impurities, namely, SrCu0.99M0.01O2 (with M=Zn or Mg) and Sr0.99La0.01CuO2 (Cu+ carrying S=0 created within the chains). These results evidence the opening of a spin pseudogap in the two-spinon continuum of SrCuO2 upon doping, stemming from disruptions of the spin chains by quantum impurities.
