Two spatially separated phases in semiconducting Rb0.8_{0.8}Fe1.5_{1.5}S2_2

We report neutron scattering and transport measurements on semiconducting Rb$_{0.8}$Fe$_{1.5}$S$_2$, a compound isostructural and isoelectronic to the well-studied $A_{0.8}$Fe$_{y}$Se$_2 (A=$ K, Rb, Cs, Tl/K) superconducting systems. Both resistivity and DC susceptibility measurements reveal a magnetic phase transition at $T=275$ K. Neutron diffraction studies show that the 275 K transition originates from a phase with rhombic iron vacancy order which exhibits an in-plane stripe antiferromagnetic ordering below 275 K. In addition, interdigitated mesoscopically with the rhombic phase is an ubiquitous phase with $\sqrt{5}\times\sqrt{5}$ iron vacancy order. This phase has a magnetic transition at $T_N=425$ K and an iron vacancy order-disorder transition at $T_{S}=600$ K. These two different structural phases are closely similar to those observed in the isomorphous Se materials. Based on the close similarities of the in-plane antiferromagnetic structures, moments sizes, and ordering temperatures in semiconducting Rb$_{0.8}$Fe$_{1.5}$S$_2$ and K$_{0.81}$Fe$_{1.58}$Se$_2$, we argue that the in-plane antiferromagnetic order arises from strong coupling between local moments. Superconductivity, previously observed in the $A_{0.8}$Fe$_{y}$Se$_{2-z}$S$_z$ system, is absent in Rb$_{0.8}$Fe$_{1.5}$S$_2$, which has a semiconducting ground state. The implied relationship between stripe/block antiferromagnetism and superconductivity in these materials as well as a strategy for further investigation is discussed in this paper.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

Universal magnetic and structural behaviors in the iron arsenides

Commonalities among the order parameters of the ubiquitous antiferromagnetism present in the parent compounds of the iron arsenide high temperature superconductors are explored. Additionally, comparison is made between the well established two-dimensional Heisenberg-Ising magnet, K$_2$NiF$_4$ and iron arsenide systems residing at a critical point whose structural and magnetic phase transitions coincide. In particular, analysis is presented regarding two distinct classes of phase transition behavior reflected in the development of antiferromagnetic and structural order in the three main classes of iron arsenide superconductors. Two distinct universality classes are mirrored in their magnetic phase transitions which empirically are determined by the proximity of the coupled structural and magnetic phase transitions in these materials.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure

Antiferromagnetic Critical Fluctuations in BaFe2_2As2_2

Magnetic correlations near the magneto-structural phase transition in the bilayer iron pnictide parent compound, BaFe$_2$As$_2$, are measured. In close proximity to the antiferromagnetic phase transition in BaFe$_2$As$_2$, a crossover to three dimensional critical behavior is anticipated and has been preliminarily observed. Here we report complementary measurements of two-dimensional magnetic fluctuations over a broad temperature range about T$_N$. The potential role of two-dimensional critical fluctuations in the magnetic phase behavior of BaFe$_2$As$_2$ and their evolution near the anticipated crossover to three dimensional critical behavior and long-range order are discussed.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures; Accepted for publication in Physical Review

Magnetic order tuned by Cu substitution in Fe1.1-zCuzTe

We study the effects of Cu substitution in Fe1.1Te, the non-superconducting parent compound of the iron-based superconductor, Fe1+yTe1-xSex, utilizing neutron scattering techniques. It is found that the structural and magnetic transitions, which occur at \sim 60 K without Cu, are monotonically depressed with increasing Cu content. By 10% Cu for Fe, the structural transition is hardly detectable, and the system becomes a spin glass below 22 K, with a slightly incommensurate ordering wave vector of (0.5-d, 0, 0.5) with d being the incommensurability of 0.02, and correlation length of 12 angstrom along the a axis and 9 angstrom along the c axis. With 4% Cu, both transition temperatures are at 41 K, though short-range incommensurate order at (0.42, 0, 0.5) is present at 60 K. With further cooling, the incommensurability decreases linearly with temperature down to 37 K, below which there is a first order transition to a long-range almost-commensurate antiferromagnetic structure. A spin anisotropy gap of 4.5 meV is also observed in this compound. Our results show that the weakly magnetic Cu has large effects on the magnetic correlations; it is suggested that this is caused by the frustration of the exchange interactions between the coupled Fe spins.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures, version as appeared on PR

Heat capacity study of BaFe2_{2}As2_{2}: effects of annealing

Heat-capacity, X-ray diffraction, and resistivity measurements on a high-quality BaFe$_{2}$As$_{2}$ sample show an evolution of the magneto-structural transition with successive annealing periods. After a 30-day anneal the resistivity in the (ab) plane decreases by more than an order of magnitude, to 12 $\mu\Omega$cm, with a residual resistance ratio $\sim$36; the heat-capacity anomaly at the transition sharpens, to an overall width of less than K, and shifts from 135.4 to 140.2 K. The heat-capacity anomaly in both the as-grown sample and after the 30-day anneal shows a hysteresis of $\sim$0.15 K, and is unchanged in a magnetic field $\mu_{0}$H = 14 T. The X-ray and heat-capacity data combined suggest that there is a first order jump in the structural order parameter. The entropy of the transition is reported

Experimental elucidation of the origin of the `double spin resonances' in Ba(Fe1−x_{1-x}Cox_x)2_2As2_2

We report a combined study of the spin resonances and superconducting gaps for underdoped ($T_c=19$ K), optimally doped ($T_c=25$ K), and overdoped ($T_c=19$ K) Ba(Fe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$)$_2$As$_2$ single crystals with inelastic neutron scattering and angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy. We find a quasi two dimensional spin resonance whose energy scales with the superconducting gap in all three compounds. In addition, anisotropic low energy spin excitation enhancements in the superconducting state have been deduced and characterized for the under and optimally doped compounds. Our data suggest that the quasi two dimensional spin resonance is a spin exciton that corresponds to the spin singlet-triplet excitations of the itinerant electrons. However, the intensity enhancements of the anisotropic spin excitations are dominated by the out-of-plane spin excitations of the ordered moments due to the suppression of damping in the superconducting state. Hence we offer a new interpretation of the double energy scales differing from previous interpretations based on anisotropic superconducting energy gaps, and systematically explain the doping-dependent trend across the phase diagram.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures, 1 table. Accepted for publication on Physical Review

Spin dynamics near a putative antiferromagnetic quantum critical point in Cu substituted BaFe2_2As2_2 and its relation to high-temperature superconductivity

We present the results of elastic and inelastic neutron scattering measurements on non-superconducting Ba(Fe${_{0.957}}$Cu${_{0.043}}$)${_2}$As${_2}$, a composition close to a quantum critical point between AFM ordered and paramagnetic phases. By comparing these results with the spin fluctuations in the low Cu composition as well as the parent compound BaFe$_2$As$_2$ and superconducting Ba(Fe$_{1-x}$Ni$_x$)$_2$As$_2$ compounds, we demonstrate that paramagnon-like spin fluctuations are evident in the antiferromagnetically ordered state of Ba(Fe$_{0.957}$Cu$_{0.043}$)$_2$As$_2$, which is distinct from the AFM-like spin fluctuations in the superconducting compounds. Our observations suggest that Cu substitution decouples the interaction between quasiparticles and the spin fluctuations. We also show that the spin-spin correlation length, ${\xi(T)}$, increases rapidly as the temperature is lowered and find ${\omega/T}$ scaling behavior, the hallmark of quantum criticality, at an antiferromagnetic quantum critical point.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figure

Impact of an Extreme Storm Event on River Corridor Bank Erosion and Phosphorus Mobilization in a Mountainous Watershed in the Northeastern United States

Movement of sediment, and associated phosphorus, from stream banks to freshwater lakes is predicted to increase with greater frequency of extreme precipitation events. This higher phosphorus load may accelerate harmful algal blooms in affected water bodies, such as Lake Champlain in Vermont, New York, and Québec. In the Mad River, a subwatershed in central Vermont\u27s Lake Champlain Basin, extreme flooding from Tropical Storm Irene in 2011 caused extensive erosion. We measured stream channel change along the main stem between 2008 and 2011 by digitizing available prestorm and poststorm aerial imagery. Soils were sampled post Irene at six active stream erosion sites, using an experimental design to measure differences in soil texture and phosphorus both with depth (90 cm) and distance from the stream. In addition to total phosphorus (TP), we determined bioavailable (soil test) phosphorus (STP) and the degree of phosphorus saturation (DPS). The six sites represented a 0.87-km length of stream bank that contributed an estimated 17.6 × 10 3 Mg of sediment and 15.8 Mg of TP, roughly the same as average annual watershed export estimates. At four sites, the STP and DPS were low and suggested little potential for short-term phosphorus release. At two agricultural sites where the lateral extent of erosion was high, imagery showed a clear loss of well-established riparian buffer. Present-day near-stream soils were elevated in STP and DPS. An increase in these extreme events will clearly increase sediment loads. There will also be increasing concentration of sediment phosphorus if stream banks continue to erode into actively managed agricultural fields