Resonant Soft X-Ray Scattering from Stripe-Ordered La2-xBaxCu O4 Detected by a Transition-Edge Sensor Array Detector

Resonant soft X-ray scattering (RSXS) is a leading probe of valence-band order in materials best known for detecting charge-density-wave order in copper-oxide superconductors. One of the biggest limitations on the RSXS technique is the presence of a severe fluorescence background, which, like the RSXS cross section itself, is enhanced under resonant conditions. This background prevents the study of weak signals such as diffuse scattering from glassy or fluctuating order that is spread widely over momentum space. Recent advances in superconducting transition-edge-sensor (TES) detectors have led to major improvements in energy resolution and detection efficiency in the soft X-ray range. Here, we perform a RSXS study of stripe-ordered La2-xBaxCuO4 at the Cu L3/2 edge (932.2 eV) using a TES detector with 1.5-eV resolution, to evaluate its utility for mitigating the fluorescence-background problem. We find that, for suitable degree of detuning from the resonance, the TES rejects the fluorescence background, leading to a five to ten times improvement in the statistical quality of the data compared to an equivalent, energy-integrated measurement. We conclude that a TES presents a promising approach to reducing background in RSXS studies and may lead to discoveries in materials exhibiting valence-band order that is fluctuating or glassy.