3,275 research outputs found
Pressure dependence of the magnetization in the ferromagnetic superconductor UGe_2
The recent discovery that superconductivity occurs in several clean itinerant
ferromagnets close to low temperature magnetic instabilities naturally invites
an interpretation based on a proximity to quantum criticality. Here we report
measurements of the pressure dependence of the low temperature magnetisation in
one of these materials, UGe_2. Our results show that both of the magnetic
transitions observed in this material as a function of pressure are first order
transitions and do not therefore correspond to quantum critical points. Further
we find that the known pressure dependence of the superconducting transition is
not reflected in the pressure dependence of the static susceptibility. This
demonstrates that the spectrum of excitations giving superconductivity is not
that normally associated with a proximity to quantum criticality in weak
itinerant ferromagnets. In contrast our data suggest that instead the pairing
spectrum might be related to a sharp spike in the electronic density of states
that also drives one of the magnetic transitions.Comment: to appear in Phys. Rev. Let
Force Dependence of the Michaelis Constant in a Two-State Ratchet Model for Molecular Motors
We present a quantitative analysis of recent data on the kinetics of ATP
hydrolysis, which has presented a puzzle regarding the load dependence of the
Michaelis constant. Within the framework of coarse grained two-state ratchet
models, our analysis not only explains the puzzling data, but provides a
modified Michaelis law, which could be useful as a guide for future
experiments.Comment: 4 pages, 3 eps figures, accepted for publication on Physical Review
Letter
Theoretical Study on Coexistence of Ferromagnetism and Superconductivity
On the basis of a two-dimensional t-t' Hubbard model in ferromagnetic and
paramagnetic states, the triplet superconducting mechanism is investigated by
the third-order perturbation theory with respect to the on-site Coulomb
interaction U. In general, the superconducting state is more stable in the
paramagnetic state than in the ferromagnetic state. As a special case, the
dominant ferromagnetic superconductivity is obtained by the electron-electron
correlation between the electronlike majority and holelike minority bands.
Furthermore, it is pointed out that in some cases the two bands play an
essential role for the coexistence of superconductivity and ferromagnetism.Comment: 5 pages, 10 figure
Solvable Examples of Drift and Diffusion of Ions in Non-uniform Electric Fields
The drift and diffusion of a cloud of ions in a fluid are distorted by an
inhomogeneous electric field. If the electric field carries the center of the
distribution in a straight line and the field configuration is suitably
symmetric, the distortion can be calculated analytically. We examine the
specific examples of fields with cylindrical and spherical symmetry in detail
assuming the ion distributions to be of a generally Gaussian form. The effects
of differing diffusion coefficients in the transverse and longitudinal
directions are included
Microscopic theories for cubic and tetrahedral superconductors: application to PrOs_4Sb_{12}
We examine weak-coupling theory for unconventional superconducting states of
cubic or tetrahedral symmetry for arbitrary order parameters and Fermi surfaces
and identify the stable states in zero applied field. We further examine the
possibility of having multiple superconducting transitions arising from the
weak breaking of a higher symmetry group to cubic or tetrahedral symmetry.
Specifically, we consider two higher symmetry groups. The first is a weak
crystal field theory in which the spin-singlet Cooper pairs have an approximate
spherical symmetry. The second is a weak spin orbit coupling theory for which
spin-triplet Cooper pairs have a cubic orbital symmetry and an approximate
spherical spin rotational symmetry. In hexagonal UPt_3, these theories easily
give rise to multiple transitions. However, we find that for cubic materials,
there is only one case in which two superconducting transitions occur within
weak coupling theory. This sequence of transitions does not agree with the
observed properties of PrOs_4Sb_{12}. Consequently, we find that to explain two
transitions in PrOs_4Sb_{12} using approximate higher symmetry groups requires
a strong coupling theory. In view of this, we finally consider a weak coupling
theory for which two singlet representations have accidentally nearly
degenerate transition temperatures (not due to any approximate symmetries). We
provide an example of such a theory that agrees with the observed properties of
PrOs_4Sb_{12}.Comment: 11 pages,1 figur
Pressure-temperature phase diagram of ferromagnetic superconductors
The symmetry approach to the description of the (P,T) phase diagram of
ferromagnet superconductors with triplet pairing is developed. Taking into
account the recent experimental observations made on UCoGe it is considered the
case of a crystal with orthorhombic structure and strong spin-orbital coupling.
It is shown that formation of ferromagnet superconducting state from a
superconducting state is inevitably accompanied by the first order type
transition.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur
Brownian molecular motors driven by rotation-translation coupling
We investigated three models of Brownian motors which convert rotational
diffusion into directed translational motion by switching on and off a
potential. In the first model a spatially asymmetric potential generates
directed translational motion by rectifying rotational diffusion. It behaves
much like a conventional flashing ratchet. The second model utilizes both
rotational diffusion and drift to generate translational motion without spatial
asymmetry in the potential. This second model can be driven by a combination of
a Brownian motor mechanism (diffusion driven) or by powerstroke (drift driven)
depending on the chosen parameters. In the third model, elements of both the
Brownian motor and powerstroke mechanisms are combined by switching between
three distinct states. Relevance of the model to biological motor proteins is
discussed.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figure
Drying and cracking mechanisms in a starch slurry
Starch-water slurries are commonly used to study fracture dynamics. Drying
starch-cakes benefit from being simple, economical, and reproducible systems,
and have been used to model desiccation fracture in soils, thin film fracture
in paint, and columnar joints in lava. In this paper, the physical properties
of starch-water mixtures are studied, and used to interpret and develop a
multiphase transport model of drying. Starch-cakes are observed to have a
nonlinear elastic modulus, and a desiccation strain that is comparable to that
generated by their maximum achievable capillary pressure. It is shown that a
large material porosity is divided between pore spaces between starch grains,
and pores within starch grains. This division of pore space leads to two
distinct drying regimes, controlled by liquid and vapor transport of water,
respectively. The relatively unique ability for drying starch to generate
columnar fracture patterns is shown to be linked to the unusually strong
separation of these two transport mechanisms.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figures [revised in response to reviewer comments
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