2,530 research outputs found
First-order nature of the ferromagnetic phase transition in (La-Ca)MnO_3 near optimal doping
Neutron scattering has been used to study the nature of the ferromagnetic
transition in single crystals of La_0.7Ca_0.3MnO_3 and La_0.8Ca_0.2MnO_3, and
polycrystalline samples of La_0.67Ca_0.33MnO_3 and La_5/8Ca_3/8MnO_3 where the
naturally occurring O-16 can be replaced with the O-18 isotope. Small angle
neutron scattering on the x=0.3 single crystal reveals a discontinuous change
in the scattering at the Curie temperature for wave vectors below ~0.065 A^-1.
Strong relaxation effects are observed for this domain scattering, for the
magnetic order parameter, and for the quasielastic scattering, demonstrating
that the transition is not continuous in nature. There is a large oxygen
isotope effect observed for the T_C in the polycrystalline samples. For the
optimally doped x=3/8 sample we observed T_C(O-16)=266.5 K and T_C(O-18)=261.5
K at 90% O-18 substitution. The temperature dependence of the spin-wave
stiffness is found to be identical for the two samples despite changes in T_C.
Hence, T_C is not solely determined by the magnetic subsystem, but instead the
ferromagnetic phase is truncated by the formation of polarons which cause an
abrupt transition to the paramagnetic, insulating state. Application of
uniaxial stress in the x=0.3 single crystal sharply enhances the polaron
scattering at room temperature. Measurements of the phonon density-of-states
show only modest differences above and below T_C and between the two different
isotopic samples.Comment: 13 pages, 16 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Normal adult speakers' tongue palate contact patterns for alveolar oral and nasal stops
This study compared tongue palate contact patterns for oral stops (/t/, /d/) with those for the nasal stop /n/ in order to provide normative data for diagnosing and treating individuals with speech disorders. Electropalatographic (EPG) data were recorded from fifteen English speaking adults for word initial /t/, /d/ and /n/ in a high and a low vowel context. EPG frames were classified according to three criteria: (1) anterior constriction; (2) bilateral constriction; and (3) zero posterior central contact. Total amount of contact and variability were also measured. The results showed that almost all (99%) stops met criteria 1 and 3, with fewer articulations (88% of /t/; 83% of /d/ and 55% of /n/) meeting criterion 2. Although all stops had similar spatial patterns, /t/ and /d/ had more contact and were more likely to have bilateral constriction than /n/. There were no differences in variability between /t/, /d/ and /n/, however. The clinical implications of the results for the management of individuals with speech disorders are discussed
Colossal Magnetoresistance is a Griffiths Singularity
It is now widely accepted that the magnetic transition in doped manganites
that show large magnetoresistance is a type of percolation effect. This paper
demonstrates that the transition should be viewed in the context of the
Griffiths phase that arises when disorder suppresses a magnetic transition.
This approach explains unusual aspects of susceptibility and heat capacity data
from a single crystal of LaCaMnOComment: 4 page
The Structure of Nanoscale Polaron Correlations in La1.2Sr1.8Mn2O7
A system of strongly-interacting electron-lattice polarons can exhibit charge
and orbital order at sufficiently high polaron concentrations. In this study,
the structure of short-range polaron correlations in the layered colossal
magnetoresistive perovskite manganite, La1.2Sr1.8Mn2O7, has been determined by
a crystallographic analysis of broad satellite maxima observed in diffuse X-ray
and neutron scattering data. The resulting q=(0.3,0,1) modulation is a
longitudinal octahedral-stretch mode, consistent with an incommensurate
Jahn-Teller-coupled charge-density-wave fluctuations, that implies an unusual
orbital-stripe pattern parallel to the directions.Comment: Reformatted with RevTe
Glass Transition in the Polaron Dynamics of CMR Manganites
Neutron scattering measurements on a bilayer manganite near optimal doping
show that the short-range polarons correlations are completely dynamic at high
T, but then freeze upon cooling to a temperature T* 310 K. This glass
transition suggests that the paramagnetic/insulating state arises from an
inherent orbital frustration that inhibits the formation of a long range
orbital- and charge-ordered state. Upon further cooling into the
ferromagnetic-metallic state (Tc=114 K), where the polarons melt, the diffuse
scattering quickly develops into a propagating, transverse optic phonon.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures. Physical Review Letters (in Press
Experimental and Theoretical Challenges in the Search for the Quark Gluon Plasma: The STAR Collaboration's Critical Assessment of the Evidence from RHIC Collisions
We review the most important experimental results from the first three years
of nucleus-nucleus collision studies at RHIC, with emphasis on results from the
STAR experiment, and we assess their interpretation and comparison to theory.
The theory-experiment comparison suggests that central Au+Au collisions at RHIC
produce dense, rapidly thermalizing matter characterized by: (1) initial energy
densities above the critical values predicted by lattice QCD for establishment
of a Quark-Gluon Plasma (QGP); (2) nearly ideal fluid flow, marked by
constituent interactions of very short mean free path, established most
probably at a stage preceding hadron formation; and (3) opacity to jets. Many
of the observations are consistent with models incorporating QGP formation in
the early collision stages, and have not found ready explanation in a hadronic
framework. However, the measurements themselves do not yet establish
unequivocal evidence for a transition to this new form of matter. The
theoretical treatment of the collision evolution, despite impressive successes,
invokes a suite of distinct models, degrees of freedom and assumptions of as
yet unknown quantitative consequence. We pose a set of important open
questions, and suggest additional measurements, at least some of which should
be addressed in order to establish a compelling basis to conclude definitively
that thermalized, deconfined quark-gluon matter has been produced at RHIC.Comment: 101 pages, 37 figures; revised version to Nucl. Phys.
- …