title: Giant Optical Polarization Rotation Induced by Spin-Orbit Coupling in Polarons.
abstract: We have uncovered a giant gyrotropic magneto-optical response for doped ferromagnetic manganite La_{2/3}Ca_{1/3}MnO_{3} around the near room-temperature paramagnetic-to-ferromagnetic transition. At odds with current wisdom, where this response is usually assumed to be fundamentally fixed by the electronic band structure, we point to the presence of small polarons as the driving force for this unexpected phenomenon. We explain the observed properties by the intricate interplay of mobility, Jahn-Teller effect, and spin-orbit coupling of small polarons. As magnetic polarons are ubiquitously inherent to many strongly correlated systems, our results provide an original, general pathway towards the generation of magnetic-responsive gigantic gyrotropic responses that may open novel avenues for magnetoelectric coupling beyond the conventional modulation of magnetization.
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: Blai
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Casals
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: Rafael
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cichelero
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra y Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad de Cantabria, Cantabria Campus Internacional, Avenida de los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, Spain.
authors.forename: Pablo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: García Fernández
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciencias de la Tierra y Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad de Cantabria, Cantabria Campus Internacional, Avenida de los Castros s/n, 39005 Santander, Spain.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Junquera
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pesquera
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: Mariano
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Campoy-Quiles
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: Ingrid C
authors.initials: IC
authors.lastname: Infante
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: Florencio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sánchez
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: Josep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fontcuberta
authors.affiliation: Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB-CSIC), Campus de la UAB, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalonia, Spain.
authors.forename: Gervasi
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Herranz