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Broadband ellipsometry study of the anisotropic dielectric response of YAlO3

Laurent Bugnon1, Yurii G. Pashkevich1,2, Christian Bernhard1, and Premysl Marsik1,*

  • *Contact author: premysl.marsik@unifr.ch
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Phys. Rev. Research 8, 013236 – Published 3 March, 2026

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/7gtb-x5pm

Abstract

We present a broadband (THz to UV) ellipsometry study of the anisotropic dielectric response of the orthorhombic perovskite YAlO3. The ellipsometric measurements have been performed on YAlO3 crystals with three different surface cuts and for six high-symmetry configurations of the crystal axes with respect to the plane of incidence of the photons. The obtained data are presented in terms of the Mueller matrix elements N, C, and S, and their features are analyzed and discussed with respect to the anisotropy of the dielectric response tensor. In particular, in the infrared range we have identified all 25 infrared-active phonon modes that have been predicted from theoretical studies. We also discuss a negative refraction effect that naturally occurs in the vicinity of an anisotropic longitudinal-optical phonon. Moreover, we have determined the temperature dependence of the phonon parameters between 10 and 330 K. The dielectric response above the phonon range, from about 0.1 to 6.5 eV, is shown to be featureless and characteristic of an insulator with a large band gap above 6.5 eV and is well described by anisotropic Cauchy model.

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Phys. Rev. Research 8, 013236– Published 3 March, 2026
  • Received 6 May 2024
  • Accepted 8 December 2025
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Published by the American Physical Society under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license. Further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the published article's title, journal citation, and DOI.

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