156 research outputs found
Physics of Polymorphic Transitions in CeRuSn
We report a detailed study of the polymorphic transitions in ternary stannide
CeRuSn on high quality single crystals through a combination of X-ray
diffraction experiments conducted at 300, 275 and 120 K, and measurements of
the thermal expansion, magnetization, and resistivity, along main
crystallographic axes. In addition, the transition was followed as a function
of pressure up to 0.8 GPa. The present X-ray diffraction data show that the
room temperature polymorph consists of the lattice doubled along the c axis
with respect to the CeCoAl-type structure consistent with previous reports.
Upon cooling, the compound undergoes two successive transitions, first to a
quintuple (290 K) and than to a triple CeCoAl superstructure at 225 K. The
transitions are accompanied by a tremendous volume change due to a strong
shrinking of the lattice along the c axis, which is clearly observed in thermal
expansion. We advance arguments that the volume collapse originates from an
increasing number of crystallographically inequivalent Ce sites and the change
of ratio between the short and long Ce-Ru bonds. The observed properties of the
polymorphic transition in CeRuSn are reminiscent of the transition in
elementary Cerium, suggesting that similar physics, i.e., a Kondo influenced
transition and strong lattice vibrations might be the driving forces
Non Fermi Liquid behavior in the under-screened Kondo model
Using the Schwinger boson spin representation, we reveal a new aspect to the
physics of a partially screened magnetic moment in a metal, as described by the
spin Kondo model. We show that the residual ferromagnetic interaction
between a partially screened spin and the electron sea destabilizes the Landau
Fermi liquid, forming a singular Fermi liquid with a divergence in the low temperature specific heat coefficient
. A magnetic field tunes this system back into Landau Fermi liquid
with a Fermi temperature proportional to . We discuss a
possible link with field-tuned quantum criticality in heavy electron materials.Comment: References corrected. Minor changes to tex
Effect of Autologous Conditioned Plasma Injections in Patients With Knee Osteoarthritis
Background: Autologous conditioned plasma (ACP) is a commercially available platelet concentrate with promising results from clinical trials. Purpose: To evaluate the clinical outcome after 3 consecutive injections of ACP in patients with knee osteoarthritis (OA) and study the influence of ACP composition and different patient factors as predictors of treatment effect. Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: This prospective case series included 260 patients (307 knees) who received ACP treatment for knee OA. The mean patient age was 51 ± 10 years. Improvement up to 12 months’ follow-up was measured using the Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS). ACP composition was analyzed in 100 patients. The predictive value of age, sex, history of knee trauma, Kellgren-Lawrence OA grade, body mass index, and ACP composition was evaluated using generalized estimating equations. Results: The mean overall KOOS improved from 38 ± 14 at baseline to 45 ± 18 at 3 months, 45 ± 18 at 6 months, and 43 ± 18 at 12 months (all P <.05); 40% of patients achieved an improvement above the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) of 8 after 6 months and 33% after 12 months. The variation in ACP composition did not correlate with KOOS (P >.05). Older age led to a greater clinical benefit (β = 0.27; P =.05), whereas bilateral treatment predicted worse outcomes (β = –5.6; P <.05). Conclusion: The improvement in KOOS after treatment with ACP did not reach the MCID in most study patients. Older age was a predictor for better outcomes. The composition of ACP varied between patients but did not predict outcomes within the evaluated range. The study findings show the limited benefit of ACP treatment for knee OA and call for caution with routine use in clinical practice.</p
Topological crossovers near a quantum critical point
We study the temperature evolution of the single-particle spectrum
and quasiparticle momentum distribution of homogeneous
strongly correlated Fermi systems beyond a point where the necessary condition
for stability of the Landau state is violated, and the Fermi surface becomes
multi-connected by virtue of a topological crossover. Attention is focused on
the different non-Fermi-liquid temperature regimes experienced by a phase
exhibiting a single additional hole pocket compared with the conventional
Landau state. A critical experiment is proposed to elucidate the origin of NFL
behavior in dense films of liquid He.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure
Break up of heavy fermions at an antiferromagnetic instability
We present results of high-resolution, low-temperature measurements of the
Hall coefficient, thermopower, and specific heat on stoichiometric YbRh2Si2.
They support earlier conclusions of an electronic (Kondo-breakdown) quantum
critical point concurring with a field induced antiferromagnetic one. We also
discuss the detachment of the two instabilities under chemical pressure. Volume
compression/expansion (via substituting Rh by Co/Ir) results in a
stabilization/weakening of magnetic order. Moderate Ir substitution leads to a
non-Fermi-liquid phase, in which the magnetic moments are neither ordered nor
screened by the Kondo effect. The so-derived zero-temperature global phase
diagram promises future studies to explore the nature of the Kondo breakdown
quantum critical point without any interfering magnetism.Comment: minor changes, accepted for publication in JPS
Quasiparticles of strongly correlated Fermi liquids at high temperatures and in high magnetic fields
Strongly correlated Fermi systems are among the most intriguing, best
experimentally studied and fundamental systems in physics. There is, however,
lack of theoretical understanding in this field of physics. The ideas based on
the concepts like Kondo lattice and involving quantum and thermal fluctuations
at a quantum critical point have been used to explain the unusual physics.
Alas, being suggested to describe one property, these approaches fail to
explain the others. This means a real crisis in theory suggesting that there is
a hidden fundamental law of nature. It turns out that the hidden fundamental
law is well forgotten old one directly related to the Landau---Migdal
quasiparticles, while the basic properties and the scaling behavior of the
strongly correlated systems can be described within the framework of the
fermion condensation quantum phase transition (FCQPT). The phase transition
comprises the extended quasiparticle paradigm that allows us to explain the
non-Fermi liquid (NFL) behavior observed in these systems. In contrast to the
Landau paradigm stating that the quasiparticle effective mass is a constant,
the effective mass of new quasiparticles strongly depends on temperature,
magnetic field, pressure, and other parameters. Our observations are in good
agreement with experimental facts and show that FCQPT is responsible for the
observed NFL behavior and quasiparticles survive both high temperatures and
high magnetic fields.Comment: 17 pages, 17 figures. Dedicated to 100th anniversary of A.B.Migdal
birthda
Adaptation of the Landau-Migdal Quasiparticle Pattern to Strongly Correlated Fermi Systems
A quasiparticle pattern advanced in Landau's first article on Fermi liquid
theory is adapted to elucidate the properties of a class of strongly correlated
Fermi systems characterized by a Lifshitz phase diagram featuring a quantum
critical point (QCP) where the density of states diverges. The necessary
condition for stability of the Landau Fermi Liquid state is shown to break down
in such systems, triggering a cascade of topological phase transitions that
lead, without symmetry violation, to states with multi-connected Fermi
surfaces. The end point of this evolution is found to be an exceptional state
whose spectrum of single-particle excitations exhibits a completely flat
portion at zero temperature. Analysis of the evolution of the temperature
dependence of the single-particle spectrum yields results that provide a
natural explanation of classical behavior of this class of Fermi systems in the
QCP region.Comment: 26 pages, 14 figures. Dedicated to 100th anniversary of A.B.Migdal
birthda
Kondo engineering : from single Kondo impurity to the Kondo lattice
In the first step, experiments on a single cerium or ytterbium Kondo impurity
reveal the importance of the Kondo temperature by comparison to other type of
couplings like the hyperfine interaction, the crystal field and the intersite
coupling. The extension to a lattice is discussed. Emphasis is given on the
fact that the occupation number of the trivalent configuration may be the
implicit key variable even for the Kondo lattice. Three phase
diagrams are discussed: CeRuSi, CeRhIn and SmS
Behavior of the Quantum Critical Point and the Fermi-liquid Domain in the Heavy Fermion Superconductor CeCoIn5 studied by resistivity
We report detailed very low temperature resistivity measurements on the heavy
fermion compounds Ce_{1-x}La_{x}CoIn5 (x=0 and x=0.01), with current applied in
two crystallographic directions [100] (basal plane) and [001] (perpendicular to
the basal plane) under magnetic field applied in the [001] or [011] direction.
We found a Fermi liquid (\rho \propto T^{2}) ground state, in all cases, for
fields above the superconducting upper critical field. We discuss the possible
location of a field induced quantum critical point with respect to Hc2(0), and
compare our measurements with the previous reports in order to give a clear
picture of the experimental status on this long debated issue.Comment: 17 pages, 7 figures accepted for publication in JPS
Conforming to accreditation in Iranian hospitals
This paper examines the operation of an accreditation programme for hospitals in Iran. It explores the process of accreditation as a regulatory control system and analyses hospitals’ responses to this type of control. We draw on the notion of steering and argue that the accreditation system is transactional in nature. Our findings show that hospitals conform to the scheme, although they also resist some of its requirements. On a wider policy level, we suggest that accreditations offer the accreditor the opportunity to impact on how activities are undertaken, but hospitals require incentives in order to make the necessary organisational changes
- …