123 research outputs found
Spiral spin-liquid and the emergence of a vortex-like state in MnScS
Spirals and helices are common motifs of long-range order in magnetic solids,
and they may also be organized into more complex emergent structures such as
magnetic skyrmions and vortices. A new type of spiral state, the spiral
spin-liquid, in which spins fluctuate collectively as spirals, has recently
been predicted to exist. Here, using neutron scattering techniques, we
experimentally prove the existence of a spiral spin-liquid in MnScS by
directly observing the 'spiral surface' - a continuous surface of spiral
propagation vectors in reciprocal space. We elucidate the multi-step ordering
behavior of the spiral spin-liquid, and discover a vortex-like triple-q phase
on application of a magnetic field. Our results prove the effectiveness of the
- Hamiltonian on the diamond lattice as a model for the spiral
spin-liquid state in MnScS, and also demonstrate a new way to realize a
magnetic vortex lattice.Comment: 10 pages, 11 figure
Magnetic state in URu2Si2, UPd2Al3 and UNi2Al3 probed by point contacts
The antiferromagnetic (AFM) state has been investigated in the three
heavy-fermion compounds URu2Si2, UPd2Al3, and UNi2Al3 by measuring dV/dI(V)
curves of point contacts at different temperatures (1.5-20 K) and magnetic
fields (0-28 T). The zero-bias maximum in dV/dI(V) for URu2Si2 points to a
partially gapped Fermi-surface related to the itinerant nature of the AFM state
contrary to UPd2Al3 where analogous features have not been found. The AFM state
in UNi2Al3 has more similarities with URu2Si2. For URu2Si2, the same critical
field of about 40 T along the easy c axis is found for all features in dV/dI(V)
corresponding to the Neel temperature, the gap in the electronic density of
states, and presumably the ordered moments.Comment: 10 pages incl. 5 figures, LaTex 2
Disorder-to-order transition in the magnetic and electronic properties of URh_2Ge_2
We present a study of annealing effects on the physical properties of
tetragonal single--crystalline URh_2Ge_2. This system, which in as-grown form
was recently established as the first metallic 3D random-bond heavy-fermion
spin glass, is transformed by an annealing treatment into a long-range
antiferromagnetically (AFM) ordered heavy-fermion compound. The transport
properties, which in the as-grown material were dominated by the structural
disorder, exhibit in the annealed material signs of typical metallic behavior
along the crystallographic a axis. From our study URh_2Ge_2 emerges as
exemplary material highlighting the role and relevance of structural disorder
for the properties of strongly correlated electron systems. We discuss the link
between the magnetic and electronic behavior and how they are affected by the
structural disorder.Comment: Phys. Rev. B, in print (scheduled 1 Mar 2000
Field-induced quantum fluctuations in the heavy fermion superconductor CeCu2Ge2
Quantum-mechanical fluctuations in strongly correlated electron systems cause
unconventional phenomena such as non-Fermi liquid behavior, and arguably high
temperature superconductivity. Here we report the discovery of a field-tuned
quantum critical phenomenon in stoichiometric CeCu2Ge2, a spin density wave
ordered heavy fermion metal that exhibits unconventional superconductivity
under ~ 10 GPa of applied pressure. Our finding of the associated quantum
critical spin fluctuations of the antiferromagnetic spin density wave order,
dominating the local fluctuations due to single-site Kondo effect, provide new
information about the underlying mechanism that can be important in
understanding superconductivity in this novel compound.Comment: Heavy Fermion, Quantum Critical Phenomeno
Influence of a magnetic field on the antiferromagnetic order in UPt_3
A neutron diffraction experiment was performed to investigate the effect of a
magnetic field on the antiferromagnetic order in the heavy fermion
superconductor UPt_3. Our results show that a field in the basal plane of up to
3.2 Tesla, higher than H_c2(0), has no effect: it can neither select a domain
nor rotate the moment. This has a direct impact on current theories for the
superconducting phase diagram based on a coupling to the magnetic order.Comment: 7 pages, RevTeX, 3 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Orbital state and magnetic properties of LiV_2 O_4
LiV_2 O_4 is one of the most puzzling compounds among transition metal oxides
because of its heavy fermion like behavior at low temperatures. In this paper
we present results for the orbital state and magnetic properties of LiV_2 O_4
obtained from a combination of density functional theory within the local
density approximation and dynamical mean-field theory (DMFT). The DMFT
equations are solved by quantum Monte Carlo simulations. The trigonal crystal
field splits the V 3d orbitals such that the a_{1g} and e_{g}^{pi} orbitals
cross the Fermi level, with the former being slightly lower in energy and
narrower in bandwidth. In this situation, the d-d Coulomb interaction leads to
an almost localization of one electron per V ion in the a_{1g} orbital, while
the e_{g}^{pi} orbitals form relatively broad bands with 1/8 filling. 2The
theoretical high-temperature paramagnetic susceptibility chi(T) follows a
Curie-Weiss law with an effective paramagnetic moment p_{eff}=1.65 in agreement
with the experimental results.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figures, 2 table
Surface critical behavior of bcc binary alloys
The surface critical behavior of bcc binary alloys undergoing a continuous
B2-A2 order-disorder transition is investigated in the mean-field (MF)
approximation. Our main aim is to provide clear evidence for the fact that
surfaces which break the two-sublattice symmetry generically display the
critical behavior of the NORMAL transition, whereas symmetry-preserving
surfaces exhibit ORDINARY surface critical behavior. To this end we analyze the
lattice MF equations for both types of surfaces in terms of nonlinear
symplectic maps and derive a Ginzburg-Landau model for the symmetry-breaking
(100) surface. The crucial feature of the continuum model is the emergence of
an EFFECTIVE ORDERING (``staggered'') SURFACE FIELD, which depends on
temperature and the other lattice model parameters, and which explains the
appearance of NORMAL critical behavior for symmetry-breaking surfaces.Comment: 16 pages, REVTeX 3.0, 13 EPSF figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Formation of heavy quasiparticle state in two-band Hubbard model
A realization of heavy fermion state is investigated on the basis of two-band
Hubbard model. By means of the slave-boson mean-field approximation, it is
shown that for the intermediate electron density, n_e=1.5, the inter-band
Coulomb repulsion U strongly emphasizes initially small difference between
bands, and easily stabilizes integral valence in the lower band. As a result, a
strong renormalization takes place in the lower band and the mixing strength
between two bands. It gives rise to a sharp peak at the Fermi level in the
quasiparticle density of states, as that obtained in the periodic Anderson
model. In contrast to a simple insight that the Hund's-rule coupling J reduces
the characteristic energy, it turns out to be almost irrelevant to the
renormalization for J<U. The required conditions are suitable for LiV_2O_4, the
first observed heavy fermion compound in transition metal oxide.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, to be published in Phys. Rev.
Staggered Pairing Phenomenology for UPd_2Al_3 and UNi_2Al_3
We apply the staggered-pairing Ginzburg-Landau phenomenology to describe
superconductivity in UPd_2Al_3 and UNi_2Al_3. The phenomenology was applied
successfully to UPt_3 so it explains why these materials have qualitatively
different superconducting phase diagrams although they have the same
point-group symmetry. UPd_2Al_3 and UNi_2Al_3 have a two-component
superconducting order parameter transforming as an H-point irreducible
representation of the space group. Staggered superconductivity can induce
charge-density waves characterized by new Bragg peaks suggesting experimental
tests of the phenomenology.Comment: 4 pages, REVTeX, 2 Postscript figure
Heavy-Mass Behavior of Ordered Perovskites ACu3Ru4O12 (A = Na, Ca, La)
We synthesized ACu3Ru4O12 (A = Na, Na0.5Ca0.5, Ca, Ca0.5La0.5, La) and
measured their DC magnetization, AC susceptibility, specific heat, and
resistivity, in order to investigate the effects of the hetero-valent
substitution. A broad peak in the DC magnetization around 200 K was observed
only in CaCu3Ru4O12, suggesting the Kondo effect due to localized Cu2+ ions.
However, the electronic specific heat coefficients exhibit large values not
only for CaCu3Ru4O12 but also for all the other samples. Moreover, the Wilson
ratio and the Kadowaki-Woods ratio of our samples are all similar to the values
of other heavy-fermion compounds. These results question the Kondo effect as
the dominant origin of the mass enhancement, and rather indicate the importance
of correlations among itinerant Ru electrons.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures, to be published in J. Phys. Soc. Jp
- …