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    Muon Knight Shift as a Precise Probe of the Superconducting Symmetry of Sr2RuO4

    Hisakazu Matsuki1,2,*, Rustem Khasanov3,†, Jonas A. Krieger3, Thomas J. Hicken3, Kosuke Yuchi4, Jake S. Bobowski5, Giordano Mattoni1, Atsutoshi Ikeda1,6, Ryutaro Okuma4 et al.

    Hubertus Luetkens3 and Yoshiteru Maeno1,‡

    • 1Toyota Riken–Kyoto University Research Center (TRiKUC), Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan
    • 2Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan
    • 3PSI Center for Neutron and Muon Sciences, 5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland
    • 4Institute for Solid State Physics, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8501, Japan
    • 5Department of Physics, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, British Columbia V1V 1V7, Canada
    • 6Department of Electronic Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto 615-8510, Japan

    • *Contact author: matsuki.hisakazu.2i@kyoto-u.ac.jp
    • †Contact author: rustem.khasanov@psi.ch
    • ‡Contact author: maeno.yoshiteru.b04@kyoto-u.jp

    Phys. Rev. Lett. 136, 066001 – Published 9 February, 2026

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/sgcz-9rc7

    Abstract

    Muon spin rotation (μSR) measurements of internal magnetic field shifts, known as the muon Knight shift, are used for determining pairing symmetries in superconductors. While this technique has been especially effective for f-electron-based heavy-fermion superconductors, it remains challenging in d-electron-based superconductors such as Sr2RuO4, where the Knight shift is intrinsically small. Here, we report high-precision muon Knight shift measurements of superconducting Sr2RuO4. We observe that using multiple pieces of crystals, a common practice in μSR measurements, induces a substantial paramagnetic shift below the superconducting transition temperature, Tc, when a weak magnetic field is applied. We attribute such an unresolved paramagnetic shift to stray fields generated by neighboring diamagnetic crystals. To avoid this, one piece of crystal was used in this Letter. We experimentally determine the muon Knight shift of Sr2RuO4 in the normal state to be −116±7  ppm. By combining the observed muon Knight shift with independently determined bulk magnetization data from the same crystal used in μSR and carefully separating various contributions to the shift, we confirm a significant reduction in the spin Knight shift below Tc, consistent with spin-singlet-like pairing. This result constitutes the precise muon Knight shift measurement in a d-electron-based superconductor. Our results highlight the potential of μSR as a powerful complementary technique to the established method of nuclear magnetic resonance for probing the spin susceptibility in superconductors.

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