Precise dd excitations and commensurate intersite Coulomb interactions in the dissimilar cuprates YBa2Cu3 O7-y and La2-xSrxCu O4

Using high-resolution extreme ultraviolet resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (EUVRIXS) spectroscopy at the Cu M-edge, we observed doping dependent spectral shifts of interorbital (dd) excitations of YBa2Cu3O7-y and La2-xSrxCuO4. With increasing the hole doping level from undoped to optimally doped superconducting compositions, the leading edge of dd excitations is found to shift towards lower energy loss in a roughly linear trend that is irrespective of the cuprate species. The magnitude of the energy shift can be explained by including a 0.15 eV Coulomb attraction between Cu3d(x2-y2) electrons and the doped holes on the surrounding oxygens in the atomic multiplet calculations. The consistent energy shift between distinct cuprate families suggests that this intersite Coulomb interaction energy scale is relatively material independent, and provides an important reference point for understanding charge density wave phenomena in the cuprate phase diagram.