11,382 research outputs found
Probing 5f-state configurations in URu2Si2 with U L3-edge resonant x-ray emission spectroscopy
Resonant x-ray emission spectroscopy (RXES) was employed at the U L3
absorption edge and the La1 emission line to explore the 5f occupancy, nf, and
the degree of 5f orbital delocalization in the hidden order compound URu2Si2.
By comparing to suitable reference materials such as UF4, UCd11, and alpha-U,
we conclude that the 5f orbital in URu2Si2 is at least partially delocalized
with nf = 2.87 +/- 0.08, and does not change with temperature down to 10 K
within the estimated error. These results place further constraints on
theoretical explanations of the hidden order, especially those requiring a
localized f2 ground state.Comment: 11 pages,7 figure
Quantifying structural damage from self-irradiation in a plutonium superconductor
The 18.5 K superconductor PuCoGa5 has many unusual properties, including
those due to damage induced by self-irradiation. The superconducting transition
temperature decreases sharply with time, suggesting a radiation-induced Frenkel
defect concentration much larger than predicted by current radiation damage
theories. Extended x-ray absorption fine-structure measurements demonstrate
that while the local crystal structure in fresh material is well ordered, aged
material is disordered much more strongly than expected from simple defects,
consistent with strong disorder throughout the damage cascade region. These
data highlight the potential impact of local lattice distortions relative to
defects on the properties of irradiated materials and underscore the need for
more atomic-resolution structural comparisons between radiation damage
experiments and theory.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, to be published in PR
A quasilocal calculation of tidal heating
We present a method for computing the flux of energy through a closed surface
containing a gravitating system. This method, which is based on the quasilocal
formalism of Brown and York, is illustrated by two applications: a calculation
of (i) the energy flux, via gravitational waves, through a surface near
infinity and (ii) the tidal heating in the local asymptotic frame of a body
interacting with an external tidal field. The second application represents the
first use of the quasilocal formalism to study a non-stationary spacetime and
shows how such methods can be used to study tidal effects in isolated
gravitating systems.Comment: REVTex, 4 pages, 1 typo fixed, standard sign convention adopted for
the Newtonian potential, a couple of lines added to the discussion of gauge
dependent term
Quasinormal modes for the charged Vaidya metric
The scalar wave equation is considered in the background of a charged Vaidya
metric in double null coordinates describing a non-stationary charged
black hole with varying mass and charge . The resulting
time-dependent quasinormal modes are presented and analyzed. We show, in
particular, that it is possible to identify some signatures in the quasinormal
frequencies from the creation of a naked singularity.Comment: 4 pages. Prepared for the proceedings of the Spanish Relativity
meeting (ERE2010), Granada, Spain, September 6-10, 201
Analytic nuclear forces and molecular properties from full configuration interaction quantum Monte Carlo
Unbiased stochastic sampling of the one- and two-body reduced density
matrices is achieved in full configuration interaction quantum Monte Carlo with
the introduction of a second, "replica" ensemble of walkers, whose population
evolves in imaginary time independently from the first, and which entails only
modest additional computational overheads. The matrices obtained from this
approach are shown to be representative of full configuration-interaction
quality, and hence provide a realistic opportunity to achieve high-quality
results for a range of properties whose operators do not necessarily commute
with the hamiltonian. A density-matrix formulated quasi-variational energy
estimator having been already proposed and investigated, the present work
extends the scope of the theory to take in studies of analytic nuclear forces,
molecular dipole moments and polarisabilities, with extensive comparison to
exact results where possible. These new results confirm the suitability of the
sampling technique and, where sufficiently large basis sets are available,
achieve close agreement with experimental values, expanding the scope of the
method to new areas of investigation.Comment: 11 page
Making graphene visible
Microfabrication of graphene devices used in many experimental studies
currently relies on the fact that graphene crystallites can be visualized using
optical microscopy if prepared on top of silicon wafers with a certain
thickness of silicon dioxide. We study graphene's visibility and show that it
depends strongly on both thickness of silicon dioxide and light wavelength. We
have found that by using monochromatic illumination, graphene can be isolated
for any silicon dioxide thickness, albeit 300 nm (the current standard) and,
especially, approx. 100 nm are most suitable for its visual detection. By using
a Fresnel-law-based model, we quantitatively describe the experimental data
without any fitting parameters.Comment: Since v1: minor changes to text and figures to improve clarity;
references added. Submitted to Applied Physics Letters, 30-Apr-07. 3 pages, 3
figure
Pd/Cu Site Interchange and Non-Fermi-Liquid Behavior in UCu_4Pd
X-ray-absorption fine-structure measurements of the local structure in
UCu_4Pd are described which indicate a probable lattice-disorder origin for
non-Fermi-liquid behavior in this material. Short Pd-Cu distances are observed,
consistent with 24 +/- 3% of the Pd atoms occupying nominally Cu sites. A
"Kondo disorder" model, based on the effect on the local Kondo temperature T_K
of this interchange and some additional bond-length disorder, agrees
quantitatively with previous experimental susceptibility data, and therefore
also with specific heat and magnetic resonance experiments.Comment: 4 pages, 3 PostScript figures, to be published in PR
Direct Observation of High-Temperature Polaronic Behavior In Colossal Magnetoresistive Manganites
The temperature dependence of the electronic and atomic structure of the
colossal magnetoresistive oxides (x = 0.3, 0.4) has
been studied using core and valence level photoemission, x-ray absorption and
emission, and extended x-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy. A dramatic
and reversible change of the electronic structure is observed on crossing the
Curie temperature, including charge localization and spin moment increase of
Mn, together with Jahn-Teller distortions, both signatures of polaron
formation. Our data are also consistent with a phase-separation scenario.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, revte
The strong coupling constant from lattice QCD with N_f=2 dynamical quarks
We compute for two flavors of light dynamical quarks
using non-perturbatively improved Wilson fermions. We improve on a
recent calculation by employing Pad\'e-improved two-loop and three-loop
perturbation theory to convert the lattice numbers to the scheme.Comment: Contribution to Lattice 2001 (matrix elements), typo correcte
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