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Abstract
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We undertake a theoretical analysis to probe the Kerr spectrum within the superconducting phase of strontium ruthenate, where the Kerr rotation experiments demonstrate the existence of a superconducting state with broken time-reversal symmetry. We find that spin-orbit coupling changes the hybridization along the Fermi surface’s diagonal zone mainly affects Hall transport. We show that the dominant Hall response arises mainly from the quasi-1D orbitals dyz and dxz, linked to their hybridization, while other contributions are negligible. This shows that breaking of time-reversal symmetry of quasi-1D orbitals can account for the existence of the Kerr angle, irrespective of the order symmetry specific to the dxy orbital. Moreover, the optical Hall conductivity and Kerr angle estimated for the hypothesized superconducting orders also closely match the experimental findings, providing important insight on the role of the spin-orbit coupling, hybridization, and emergent order.
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