Dominant Role of a Pseudogap in the Physics of the Colossal Magnetoresistive Oxides

Abstract

We have performed direct electronic structure measurements of the colosssal magnetoresistive oxides using high energy resolution photoemission spectroscopy. A key result of these measurements is the discovery of a pseudogap which drastically supresses or completely removes the spectral weight (density of states) at the Fermi energy E F . It is shown that the pseudogap plays a dominant role in the "colossal" conductivity changes which occur across the magnetic ordering temperature. We briefly discuss possible origins for the pseudogap.