2,614 research outputs found
Neutron Diffuse Scattering from Polar Nanoregions in the Relaxor Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3
We have studied the neutron diffuse scattering in the relaxor PMN. The
diffuse scattering appears around the Burns temperature (~620K), indicating its
origin from the polar nanoregions (PNR). While the relative diffuse intensities
are consistent with previous reports, they are entirely different from those of
the lowest-energy TO phonon. Because of that, it has been considered that this
TO mode could not be the ferroelectric soft mode. Recently, a neutron
scattering study has unambiguously shown that the TO mode does soften on
cooling. If the diffuse scattering in PMN originates from the soft mode
condensation, then the atomic displacements must satisfy the center of mass
condition. But, the atomic displacements determined from diffuse scattering
intensities do not fulfill this condition. To resolve this contradiction, we
propose a simple model in which the total atomic displacement consists of two
components: is created by the soft mode condensation, satisfying
the center of mass condition, and, represents a uniform
displacement of the PNR along their polar direction relative to the surrounding
(unpolarized) cubic matrix. Within this framework, we can successfully describe
the neutron diffuse scattering intensities observed in PMN.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures (Revised: 11-16-2001
Quantum Impurities in the Two-Dimensional Spin One-Half Heisenberg Antiferromagnet
The study of randomness in low-dimensional quantum antiferromagnets is at the
forefront of research in the field of strongly correlated electron systems, yet
there have been relatively few experimental model systems. Complementary
neutron scattering and numerical experiments demonstrate that the spin-diluted
Heisenberg antiferromagnet La2Cu(1-z)(Zn,Mg)zO4 is an excellent model material
for square-lattice site percolation in the extreme quantum limit of spin
one-half. Measurements of the ordered moment and spin correlations provide
important quantitative information for tests of theories for this complex
quantum-impurity problem.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures. NOTE: possible errors in PDF version of Fig. 1.
View postscript version of figure if possibl
Soft Mode Dynamics Above and Below the Burns Temperature in the Relaxor Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O_3
We report neutron inelastic scattering measurements of the lowest-energy
transverse optic (TO) phonon branch in the relaxor Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O_3 from 400
to 1100 K. Far above the Burns temperature T_d ~ 620 K we observe well-defined
propagating TO modes at all wave vectors q, and a zone center TO mode that
softens in a manner consistent with that of a ferroelectric soft mode. Below
T_d the zone center TO mode is overdamped. This damping extends up to, but not
above, the waterfall wave vector q_wf, which is a measure of the average size
of the PNR.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures; modified discussion of Fig. 3, shortened
captions, added reference, corrected typos, accepted by Phys. Rev. Let
Density matrix renormalisation group study of the correlation function of the bilinear-biquadratic spin-1 chain
Using the recently developed density matrix renormalization group approach,
we study the correlation function of the spin-1 chain with quadratic and
biquadratic interactions. This allows us to define and calculate the
periodicity of the ground state which differs markedly from that in the
classical analogue. Combining our results with other studies, we predict three
phases in the region where the quadratic and biquadratic terms are both
positive.Comment: 13 pages, Standard Latex File + 5 PostScript figures in separate (New
version with SUBSTANTIAL REVISIONS to appear in J Phys A
Dynamical effects of the nanometer-sized polarized domains in Pb(Zn1/3Nb2/3)O3
Recent neutron scattering measurements performed on the relaxor ferroelectric
Pb[(Zn1/3Nb2/3)0.92Ti0.08]O3 (PZN-8%PT) in its cubic phase at 500 K, have
revealed an anomalous ridge of inelastic scattering centered ~0.2 A-1 from the
zone center (Gehring et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 84, 5216 (2000)). This ridge of
scattering resembles a waterfall when plotted as a phonon dispersion diagram,
and extends vertically from the transverse acoustic (TA) branch near 4 meV to
the transverse optic (TO) branch near 9 meV. No zone center optic mode was
found. We report new results from an extensive neutron scattering study of pure
PZN that exhibits the same waterfall feature. We are able to model the dynamics
of the waterfall using a simple coupled-mode model that assumes a strongly
q-dependent optic mode linewidth Gamma1(q) that increases sharply near 0.2 A-1
as one approaches the zone center. This model was motivated by the results of
Burns and Dacol in 1983, who observed the formation of a randomly-oriented
local polarization in PZN at temperatures far above its ferroelectric phase
transition temperature. The dramatic increase in Gamma1 is believed to occur
when the wavelength of the optic mode becomes comparable to the size of the
small polarized micro-regions (PMR) associated with this randomly-oriented
local polarization, with the consequence that longer wavelength optic modes
cannot propagate and become overdamped. Below Tc=410 K, the intensity of the
waterfall diminishes. At lowest temperatures ~30 K the waterfall is absent, and
we observe the recovery of a zone center transverse optic mode near 10.5 meV.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures (one color). Submitted to Physical Review
Coexistence and competition of local- and long-range polar orders in a ferroelectric relaxor
We have performed a series of neutron diffuse scattering measurements on a
single crystal of the solid solution Pb(ZnNb)O (PZN) doped
with 8% PbTiO (PT), a relaxor compound with a Curie temperature T K, in an effort to study the change in local polar orders from the polar
nanoregions (PNR) when the material enters the ferroelectric phase. The diffuse
scattering intensity increases monotonically upon cooling in zero field, while
the rate of increase varies dramatically around different Bragg peaks. These
results can be explained by assuming that corresponding changes occur in the
ratio of the optic and acoustic components of the atomic displacements within
the PNR. Cooling in the presence of a modest electric field oriented
along the [111] direction alters the shape of diffuse scattering in reciprocal
space, but does not eliminate the scattering as would be expected in the case
of a classic ferroelectric material. This suggests that a field-induced
redistribution of the PNR has taken place
X-ray scattering study of two length scales in the critical fluctuations of CuGeO3
The critical fluctuations of CuGeO have been measured by synchrotron
x-ray scattering, and two length scales are clearly observed. The ratio between
the two length scales is found to be significantly different along the
axis, with the axis along the surface normal direction. We believe that
such a directional preference is a clear sign that surface random strains,
especially those caused by dislocations, are the origin of the long length
scale fluctuations.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, submitted to PR
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