689 research outputs found
Multiple-scattering effects on incoherent neutron scattering in glasses and viscous liquids
Incoherent neutron scattering experiments are simulated for simple dynamic
models: a glass (with a smooth distribution of harmonic vibrations) and a
viscous liquid (described by schematic mode-coupling equations). In most
situations multiple scattering has little influence upon spectral
distributions, but it completely distorts the wavenumber-dependent amplitudes.
This explains an anomaly observed in recent experiments
Thermalization via Heat Radiation of an Individual Object Thinner than the Thermal Wavelength
Modeling and investigating the thermalization of microscopic objects with
arbitrary shape from first principles is of fundamental interest and may lead
to technical applications. Here, we study, over a large temperature range, the
thermalization dynamics due to far-field heat radiation of an individual,
deterministically produced silica fiber with a predetermined shape and a
diameter smaller than the thermal wavelength. The temperature change of the
subwavelength-diameter fiber is determined through a measurement of its optical
path length in conjunction with an ab initio thermodynamic model of the fiber
structure. Our results show excellent agreement with a theoretical model that
considers heat radiation as a volumetric effect and takes the emitter shape and
size relative to the emission wavelength into account
Atomic Transport in Dense, Multi-Component Metallic Liquids
Pd43Ni10Cu27P0 has been investigated in its equilibrium liquid state with
incoherent, inelastic neutron scattering. As compared to simple liquids, liquid
PdNiCuP is characterized by a dense packing with a packing fraction above 0.5.
The intermediate scattering function exhibits a fast relaxation process that
precedes structural relaxation. Structural relaxation obeys a time-temperature
superposition that extends over a temperature range of 540K. The mode-coupling
theory of the liquid to glass transition (MCT) gives a consistent description
of the dynamics which governs the mass transport in liquid PdNiCuP alloys. MCT
scaling laws extrapolate to a critical temperature Tc at about 20% below the
liquidus temperature. Diffusivities derived from the mean relaxation times
compare well with Co diffusivities from recent tracer diffusion measurements
and diffsuivities calculated from viscosity via the Stokes-Einstein relation.
In contrast to simple metallic liquids, the atomic transport in dense, liquid
PdNiCuP is characterized by a drastical slowing down of dynamics on cooling, a
q^{-2} dependence of the mean relaxation times at intermediate q and a
vanishing isotope effect as a result of a highly collective transport
mechanism. At temperatures as high as 2Tc diffusion in liquid PdNiCuP is as
fast as in simple liquids at the melting point. However, the difference in the
underlying atomic transport mechanism indicates that the diffusion mechanism in
liquids is not controlled by the value of the diffusivity but rather by that of
the packing fraction
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Strain derivative of thermoelectric properties as a sensitive probe for nematicity
The nematic instability is an undebatable ingredient of the physics of iron-based superconductors. Yet, its origin remains enigmatic as it involves a fermiology with an intricate interplay of lattice-, orbital-, and spin degrees of freedom. It is well known that thermoelectric transport is an excellent probe for revealing even subtle signatures of instabilities and pertinent fluctuations. In this paper, we report a strong response of the thermoelectric transport properties of two underdoped 1111 iron-based superconductors to a vanishingly small strain. By introducing the strain derivative of the Seebeck and the Nernst coefficients, we provide a description of the nematic order parameter, proving the existence of an anisotropic Peltier-tensor beside an anisotropic conductivity tensor. Our measurements reveal that the transport nematic phenomenology is the result of the combined effect of both an anisotropic scattering time and Fermi surface distortions, pointing out that in a realistic description, abreast of the spin fluctuations also the orbital character is a fundamental ingredient. In addition, we show that nematic fluctuations universally relax in a Curie–Weiss fashion above TS in all the elasto-transport measurements and we provide evidences that nematicity must be band selective
Nanofiber Fabry-Perot microresonator for non-linear optics and cavity quantum electrodynamics
We experimentally realize a Fabry-Perot-type optical microresonator near the
cesium D2 line wavelength based on a tapered optical fiber, equipped with two
fiber Bragg gratings which enclose a sub-wavelength diameter waist. Owing to
the very low taper losses, the finesse of the resonator reaches F = 86 while
the on-resonance transmission is T = 11 %. The characteristics of our resonator
fulfill the requirements of non-linear optics and cavity quantum
electrodynamics in the strong coupling regime. In combination with its
demonstrated ease of use and its advantageous mode geometry, it thus opens a
realm of applications.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
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Molecular mode-coupling theory applied to a liquid of diatomic molecules
We study the molecular mode coupling theory for a liquid of diatomic
molecules. The equations for the critical tensorial nonergodicity parameters
and the critical amplitudes of the - relaxation
are solved up to a cut off = 2 without any
further approximations.
Here are indices of spherical harmonics. Contrary to previous studies,
where additional approximations were applied, we find in agreement with
simulations, that all molecular degrees of freedom vitrify at a single
temperature . The theoretical results for the non ergodicity parameters
and the critical amplitudes are compared with those from simulations. The
qualitative agreement is good for all molecular degrees of freedom. To study
the influence of the cut off on the non ergodicity parameter, we also calculate
the non ergodicity parameters for an upper cut off . In addition we
also propose a new method for the calculation of the critical nonergodicity
parameterComment: 27 pages, 17 figure
Reorientational relaxation of a linear probe molecule in a simple glassy liquid
Within the mode-coupling theory (MCT) for the evolution of structural
relaxation in glass-forming liquids, correlation functions and susceptibility
spectra are calculated characterizing the rotational dynamics of a top-down
symmetric dumbbell molecule, consisting of two fused hard spheres immersed in a
hard-sphere system. It is found that for sufficiently large dumbbell
elongations, the dynamics of the probe molecule follows the same universal
glass-transition scenario as known from the MCT results of simple liquids. The
-relaxation process of the angular-index-j=1 response is stronger,
slower and less stretched than the one for j=2, in qualitative agreement with
results found by dielectric-loss and depolarized-light-scattering spectroscopy
for some supercooled liquids. For sufficiently small elongations, the
reorientational relaxation occurs via large-angle flips, and the standard
scenario for the glass-transition dynamics is modified for odd-j responses due
to precursor phenomena of a nearby type-A MCT transition. In this case, a major
part of the relaxation outside the transient regime is described qualitatively
by the -relaxation scaling laws, while the -relaxation scaling
law is strongly disturbed.Comment: 40 pages. 10 figures as GIF-files, to be published in Phys. Rev.
The boson peak in structural and orientational glasses of simple alcohols: Specific heat at low temperatures
We review in this work specific-heat experiments, that we have conducted on
different hydrogen-bonded glasses during last years. Specifically, we have
measured the low-temperature specific heat Cp for a set of glassy alcohols:
normal and fully-deuterated ethanol, 1- and 2- propanol, and glycerol. Ethanol
exhibits a very interesting polymorphism presenting three different solid
phases at low temperature: a fully-ordered (monoclinic) crystal, an
orientationally-disordered (cubic) crystal or 'orientational glass', and the
ordinary structural glass. By measuring and comparing the low-temperature
specific heat of the three phases, in the 'boson peak' range 2-10 K as well as
in the tunneling-states range below 1K, we are able to provide a quantitative
confirmation that ''glassy behavior'' is not an exclusive property of amorphous
solids. On the other hand, propanol is the simplest monoalcohol with two
different stereoisomers (1- and 2-propanol), what allows us to study directly
the influence of the spatial rearrangement of atoms on the universal properties
of glasses. We have measured the specific heat of both isomers, finding a
noteworthy quantitative difference between them. Finally, low-temperature
specific-heat data of glassy glycerol have also been obtained. Here we propose
a simple method based upon the soft-potential model to analyze low-temperature
specific-heat measurements, and we use this method for a quantitative
comparison of all these data of glassy alcohols and as a stringent test of
several universal correlations and scaling laws suggested in the literature. In
particular, we find that the interstitialcy model for the boson peak [A. V.
Granato, Phys. Rev. Lett. 68 (1992) 974] gives a very good account of the
temperature at which the maximum in Cp/T^3 occurs.Comment: 16 pages, 2 figures, Proceedings of the 4th International Discussion
Meeting on Relaxations in Complex Systems, Hersonissos (Crete), June 2001.
Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids (accepted for publication
PISA: a political project and a research agenda
PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) is one of two large scale international comparative projects of student assessment that now exert considerable influence upon school science education policy, the other being TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study). This paper focuses on PISA, now the most influential study. This article outlines the origins of PISA, identifies some of the challenges in its construction and the claims made for it. It argues that while the statistical and methodological aspects of PISA have received much research attention, other elements of PISA have been largely ignored. In particular, there are several outcomes of PISA testing that point towards a significant research agenda. In addition, the political, ideological and economic assumptions underpinning the PISA project have implications for school science curriculum policy that deserve closer scrutiny and debate
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