Structure of End States for a Haldane Spin Chain

Inelastic neutron scattering was used to probe edge states in a quantum spin liquid. The experiment was performed on finite length antiferromagnetic spin-1 chains in Y₂BaNi_1-xMgₓO₅. At finite fields, there is a Zeeman resonance below the Haldane gap. The wave-vector dependence of its intensity provides direct evidence for staggered magnetization at chain ends, which decays exponentially towards the bulk [ξ=8(1) at T=0.1 K]. Continuum contributions to the chain-end spectrum indicate interchain segment interactions. We also observe a finite size blueshift of the Haldane gap.