Columnar defects acting as passive internal field detectors

We have studied the angular dependence of the irreversible magnetization of several YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_7$ and 2H-NbSe$_2$ single crystals with columnar defects tilted off the c-axis. At high magnetic fields, the irreversible magnetization $M_i(\Theta_H)$ exhibits a well known maximum when the applied field is parallel to the tracks. As the field is decreased below $H \sim 0.02 H_{c2}$, the peak shifts away from the tracks' direction toward either the c-axis or the ab-planes. We demonstrate that this shift results from the misalignment between the external and internal field directions due to the competition between anisotropy and geometry effects.Comment: 5 figure

Drastic annealing effects in transport properties of single crystals of the YbNi2B2C heavy fermion system

We report temperature dependent resistivity, specific heat, magnetic susceptibility and thermoelectric power measurements made on the heavy fermion system YbNi2B2C, for both as grown and annealed single crystals. Our results demonstrate a significant variation in the temperature dependent electrical resistivity and thermoelectric power between as grown crystals and crystals that have undergone optimal (150 hour, 950 C) annealing, whereas the thermodynamic properties: (c_p(T) and chi(T)) remain almost unchanged. We interpret these results in terms of redistributions of local Kondo temperatures associated with ligandal disorder for a small (~ 1%) fraction of the Yb sites.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, submitted to PR

Conceptual Model for Serious Games Design: Case Study of Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

The field of Serious Games (SGs) is relatively new; however, so far, these have focused more on assessing impacts on results rather than identifying the most appropriate implementation phases to obtain a successful SG. The present work proposes a conceptual model for the design of SGs, which is based on four stages: Analysis, Design, Development, and Evaluation, under the life cycle of the software. For the validation of the model, an SG called ATHYNOS was developed, which was applied in a case study comparing it with the traditional therapy. The results obtained allowed to demonstrate that the SGs is a complementary tool for the treatment of children diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).     Keywords: ATHYNOS, conceptual model, serious games design, attention deficit disorde

Anomalous infrared spectra of hybridized phonons in type-I clathrate Ba8_8Ga16_{16}Ge30_{30}

The optical conductivity spectra of the rattling phonons in the clathrate Ba$_8$Ga$_{16}$Ge$_{30}$ are investigated in detail by use of the terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. The experiment has revealed that the lowest-lying vibrational mode of a Ba(2)$^{2+}$ ion consists of a sharp Lorentzian peak at 1.2 THz superimposed on a broad tail weighted in the lower frequency regime around 1.0 THz. With decreasing temperature, an unexpected linewidth broadening of the phonon peak is observed, together with monotonic softening of the phonon peak and the enhancement of the tail structure. These observed anomalies are discussed in terms of impurity scattering effects on the hybridized phonon system of rattling and acoustic phonons.Comment: Submitted to JPS

How different Fermi surface maps emerge in photoemission from Bi2212

We report angle-resolved photoemission spectra (ARPES) from the Fermi energy ($E_F$) over a large area of the ($k_x,k_y$) plane using 21.2 eV and 32 eV photons in two distinct polarizations from an optimally doped single crystal of Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+\delta}$ (Bi2212), together with extensive first-principles simulations of the ARPES intensities. The results display a wide-ranging level of accord between theory and experiment and clarify how myriad Fermi surface (FS) maps emerge in ARPES under various experimental conditions. The energy and polarization dependences of the ARPES matrix element help disentangle primary contributions to the spectrum due to the pristine lattice from those arising from modulations of the underlying tetragonal symmetry and provide a route for separating closely placed FS sheets in low dimensional materials.Comment: submitted to PR

Irreversible magnetization under rotating fields and lock-in effect on ErBa_2Cu_3O_7 single crystal with columnar defects

We have measured the irreversible magnetization M_i of an ErBa_2Cu_3O_7 single crystal with columnar defects (CD), using a technique based on sample rotation under a fixed magnetic field H. This method is valid for samples whose magnetization vector remains perpendicular to the sample surface over a wide angle range - which is the case for platelets and thin films - and presents several advantages over measurements of M_L(H) loops at fixed angles. The resulting M_i(\Theta) curves for several temperatures show a peak in the CD direction at high fields. At lower fields, a very well defined plateau indicative of the vortex lock-in to the CD develops. The H dependence of the lock-in angle \phi_L follows the H^{-1} theoretical prediction, while the temperature dependence is in agreement with entropic smearing effects corresponding to short range vortex-defects interactions.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures, to be published in Phys. Rev.

Direct observation of Fe spin reorientation in single crystalline YbFe6Ge6

We have grown single crystals of YbFe6Ge6 and LuFe6Ge6 and characterized their anisotropic behaviour through low field magnetic susceptibility, field-dependent magnetization, resistivity and heat capacity measurements. The Yb+3 valency is confirmed by LIII XANES measurements. YbFe6Ge6 crystals exhibit a field-dependent, sudden reorientation of the Fe spins at about 63 K, a unique effect in the RFe6Ge6 family (R = rare earths) where the Fe ions order anti-ferromagnetically with Neel temperatures above 450 K and the R ions' magnetism appears to behave independently. The possible origins of this unusual behaviour of the ordered Fe moments in this compound are discussed.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figures, accepted in J. Phys.: Cond. Matte