Phonon self-energy and origin of anomalous neutron scattering spectra in SnTe and PbTe thermoelectrics

The anharmonic lattice dynamics of rock-salt thermoelectric compounds SnTe and PbTe are investigated with inelastic neutron scattering (INS) and first-principles calculations. The experiments show that, surprisingly, although SnTe is closer to the ferroelectric instability, phonon spectra in PbTe exhibit a more anharmonic character. This behavior is reproduced in first-principles calculations of the temperature-dependent phonon self-energy. Our simulations reveal how the nesting of phonon dispersions induces prominent features in the self-energy, which account for the measured INS spectra and their temperature dependence. We establish that the phase-space for three-phonon scattering processes, rather than just the proximity to the lattice instability, is the mechanism determining the complex spectrum of the transverse-optical ferroelectric mode

Magnetic-Field-Induced Antiferromagnetism in Two-Dimensional Hubbard Model: Analysis of CeRhIn5_5

We propose the mechanism for the magnetic-field-induced antiferromagnetic (AFM) state in a two-dimensional Hubbard model in the vicinity of the AFM quantum critical point (QCP), using the fluctuation-exchange (FLEX) approximation by taking the Zeeman energy due to the magnetic field $B$ into account. In the vicinity of the QCP, we find that the AFM correlation perpendicular to $B$ is enhanced, whereas that parallel to $B$ is reduced. This fact means that the finite magnetic field increases $T_N$, with the AFM order perpendicular to $B$. The increment in $T_N$ can be understood in terms of the reduction of both quantum and thermal fluctuations due to the magnetic field, which is caused by the self-energy effect within the FLEX approximation. The present study naturally explains the increment in $T_N$ in CeRhIn_5 under the magnetic field found recently.Comment: 5 page

Spin Excitations in BaFe1.84Co0.16As2 Superconductor Observed by Inelastic Neutron Scattering

Superconductivity appears to compete against the spin-density-wave in Fe pnictides. However, optimally cobalt doped samples show a quasi-two-dimensional spin excitation centered at the (0.5, 0.5, L) wavevector, "the spin resonance peak", that is strongly tied to the onset of superconductivity. By inelastic neutron scattering on single crystals we show the similarities and differences of the spin excitations in BaFe1.84Co0.16As2, with respect to the spin excitations in the high-temperature superconducting cuprates. As in the cuprates the resonance occurs as an enhancement to a part of the spin excitation spectrum which extends to higher energy transfer and higher temperature. However, unlike in the cuprates, the resonance peak in this compound is asymmetric in energy.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures; PACS # 74.70.-b, 74.20.Mn, 78.70.Nx, 74.25.Ha; corrected discussion of figures in tex