47 research outputs found
Two-magnon Raman scattering in insulating cuprates: Modifications of the effective Raman operator
Calculations of Raman scattering intensities in spin 1/2 square-lattice
Heisenberg model, using the Fleury-Loudon-Elliott theory, have so far been
unable to describe the broad line shape and asymmetry of the two magnon peak
found experimentally in the cuprate materials. Even more notably, the
polarization selection rules are violated with respect to the
Fleury-Loudon-Elliott theory. There is comparable scattering in and
geometries, whereas the theory would predict scattering in only
geometry. We review various suggestions for this discrepency and
suggest that at least part of the problem can be addressed by modifying the
effective Raman Hamiltonian, allowing for two-magnon states with arbitrary
total momentum. Such an approach based on the Sawatzsky-Lorenzana theory of
optical absorption assumes an important role of phonons as momentum sinks. It
leaves the low energy physics of the Heisenberg model unchanged but
substantially alters the Raman line-shape and selection rules, bringing the
results closer to experiments.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures, revtex. Contains some minor revisions from
previous versio
Defect-induced condensation and central peak at elastic phase transitions
Static and dynamical properties of elastic phase transitions under the
influence of short--range defects, which locally increase the transition
temperature, are investigated. Our approach is based on a Ginzburg--Landau
theory for three--dimensional crystals with one--, two-- or three--dimensional
soft sectors, respectively. Systems with a finite concentration of
quenched, randomly placed defects display a phase transition at a temperature
, which can be considerably above the transition temperature
of the pure system. The phonon correlation function is calculated in
single--site approximation. For a dynamical central peak
appears; upon approaching , its height diverges and its width
vanishes. Using an appropriate self--consistent method, we calculate the
spatially inhomogeneous order parameter, the free energy and the specific heat,
as well as the dynamical correlation function in the ordered phase. The
dynamical central peak disappears again as the temperatur is lowered below
. The inhomogeneous order parameter causes a static central
peak in the scattering cross section, with a finite width depending on the
orientation of the external wave vector relative to the soft sector.
The jump in the specific heat at the transition temperatur of the pure system
is smeared out by the influence of the defects, leading to a distinct maximum
instead. In addition, there emerges a tiny discontinuity of the specific heat
at . We also discuss the range of validity of the mean--field
approach, and provide a more realistic estimate for the transition temperature.Comment: 11 pages, 11 ps-figures, to appear in PR
Strongly focused light beams interacting with single atoms in free space
We construct 3-D solutions of Maxwell's equations that describe Gaussian
light beams focused by a strong lens. We investigate the interaction of such
beams with single atoms in free space and the interplay between angular and
quantum properties of the scattered radiation. We compare the exact results
with those obtained with paraxial light beams and from a standard input-output
formalism. We put our results in the context of quantum information processing
with single atoms.Comment: 9 pages, 9 figure
Revival of the spin-Peierls transition in Cu_xZn_(1-x)GeO_3 under pressure
Pressure and temperature dependent susceptibility and Raman scattering
experiments on single crystalline Cu_xZn_(1-x)GeO_3 have shown an unusually
strong increase of the spin-Peierls phase transition temperature upon applying
hydrostatic pressure. The large positive pressure coefficient (7.5 K/GPa) -
almost twice as large as for the pure compound (4.5 K/GPa) - is interpreted as
arising due to an increasing magnetic frustration which decreases the spin-spin
correlation length, and thereby weakens the influence of the non-magnetic
Zn-substitution.Comment: LaTeX, 15 pages, 5 eps figures, Phys. Rev. B, to appea
Magnetic and Charge Correlations in La{2-x-y}Nd_ySr_xCuO_4: Raman Scattering Study
Two aspects in connection with the magnetic properties of
La_{2-x-y}Nd_ySr_xCuO_4 single crystals are discussed. The first is related to
long wavelength magnetic excitations in x = 0, 0.01, and 0.03 La_{2-x}Sr_xCuO_4
detwinned crystals as a function of doping, temperature and magnetic field. Two
magnetic modes were observed within the AF region of the phase diagram. The one
at lower energies was identified with the spin-wave gap induced by the
antisymmetric DM interaction and its anisotropic properties in magnetic field
could be well explained using a canonical form of the spin Hamiltonian. A new
finding was a magnetic field induced mode whose dynamics allowed us to discover
a spin ordered state outside the AF order which was shown to persist in a 9 T
field as high as 100 K above the N\'eel temperature T_N for x = 0.01. For these
single magnon excitations we map out the Raman selection rules in magnetic
fields and demonstrate that their temperature dependent spectral weight is
peaked at the N\'eel temperature. The second aspect is related to phononic and
magnetic Raman scattering in La_{2-x-y}Nd_ySr_xCuO_4 with three doping
concentrations: x = 1/8, y = 0; x = 1/8, y = 0.4; and x = 0.01, y = 0. We
observed that around 1/8 Sr doping and independent of Nd concentration there
exists substantial disorder in the tilt pattern of the CuO_6 octahedra in both
the orthorhombic and tetragonal phases which persist down to 10 K and are
coupled to bond disorder in the cation layers. The weak magnitude of existing
charge/spin modulations in the Nd doped structure did not allow us to detect
specific Raman signatures on lattice dynamics or two-magnon scattering around
2200 cm-1.Comment: 26 pages, 22 figure