High-precision measurement of the half-life of 62^{62}Ga

The beta-decay half-life of 62Ga has been studied with high precision using on-line mass separated samples. The decay of 62Ga which is dominated by a 0+ to 0+ transition to the ground state of 62Zn yields a half-life of T_{1/2} = 116.19(4) ms. This result is more precise than any previous measurement by about a factor of four or more. The present value is in agreement with older literature values, but slightly disagrees with a recent measurement. We determine an error weighted average value of all experimental half-lives of 116.18(4) ms.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in PR

Flow Induced Organization and Memory of a Vortex Lattice

We report on experiments probing the evolution of a vortex state in response to a driving current in 2H-NbSe$_2$ crystals. By following the vortex motion with fast transport measurements we find that the current enables the system to reorganize and access new configurations. During this process the system exhibits a long-term memory: if the current is turned off the vortices freeze in place remembering their prior motion. When the current is restored the motion resumes where it stopped. The experiments provide evidence for a dynamically driven structural change of the vortex lattice and a corresponding dynamic phase diagram that contains a previously unknown regime where the critical current can be either $increased$ or $decreased$ by applying an appropriate driving current.Comment: 5 pages, 4figure

Assessing simulations of daily temperature and precipitation variability with global climate models for present and enhanced greenhouse climates

The enhanced greenhouse climates of five different global climate models are examined with reference to the ability of the models to characterize the frequency of extreme events on both a regional and global scale. Ten years of model output for both control and enhanced greenhouse conditions are utilized to derive return periods for extreme temperature and precipitation events and to characterize the variability of the model climate at both regional and global scales. Under enhanced greenhouse conditions, return periods for extreme precipitation events are shorter and there is a general increase in the intensity of precipitation and number of wet spells in most areas. There is a decrease in frequency of cold temperature extremes and an increase in hot extremes in many areas. The results show a reasonable level of agreement between the models in terms of global scale variability, but the difference between model simulations of precipitation on a regional scale suggests that model derived estimates of variability changes must be carefully justified

Comparison of different measures for quantum discord under non-Markovian noise

Two geometric measures for quantum discord were recently proposed by Modi et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 080501 (2010)] and Dakic et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 190502 (2010)]. We study the similarities and differences for total quantum correlations of Bell-diagonal states using these two geometry-based quantum discord and the original quantum discord. We show that, under non-Markovian dephasing channels, quantum discord and one of the geometric measures stay constant for a finite amount of time, but not the other geometric measure. However, all the three measures share a common sudden change point. Our study on critical point of sudden transition might be useful for keeping long time total quantum correlations under decoherence.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures submitted for publicatio

Periodic Mesoporous Hydridosilica-Synthesis of an "Impossible" Material and its Thermal Transformation into Brightly Photoluminescent Periodic Mesoporous Nanocrystal Silicon-Silica Composite

Cataloged from PDF version of article.There has always been a fascination with "impossible" compounds, ones that do not break any rules of chemical bonding or valence but whose structures are unstable and do not exist. This instability can usually be rationalized in terms of chemical or physical restrictions associated with valence electron shells, multiple bonding, oxidation states, catenation, and the inert pair effect. In the pursuit of these "impossible" materials, appropriate conditions have sometimes been found to overcome these instabilities and synthesize missing compounds, yet for others these tricks have yet to be uncovered and the materials remain elusive. In the scientifically and technologically important field of periodic mesoporous silicas (PMS), one such "impossible" material is periodic mesoporous hydridosilica (meso-HSiO1.5). It is the archetype of a completely interrupted silica open framework material: its pore walls are comprised of a three-connected three-dimensional network that should be so thermodynamically unstable that any mesopores present would immediately collapse upon removal of the mesopore template. In this study we show that meso-HSiO1.5 can be synthesized by template-directed self-assembly of HSi(OEt)3 under aqueous acid-catalyzed conditions and after template extraction remains stable to 300 °C. Above this temperature, bond redistribution reactions initiate a metamorphic transformation which eventually yields periodic mesoporous nanocrystalline silicon-silica, meso-ncSi/SiO2, a nanocomposite material in which brightly photoluminescent silicon nanocrystallites are embedded within a silica matrix throughout the mesostructure. The integration of the properties of silicon nanocrystallinity with silica mesoporosity provides a wealth of new opportunities for emerging nanotechnologies. © 2011 American Chemical Society

Causality and defect formation in the dynamics of an engineered quantum phase transition in a coupled binary Bose-Einstein condensate

Continuous phase transitions occur in a wide range of physical systems, and provide a context for the study of non-equilibrium dynamics and the formation of topological defects. The Kibble-Zurek (KZ) mechanism predicts the scaling of the resulting density of defects as a function of the quench rate through a critical point, and this can provide an estimate of the critical exponents of a phase transition. In this work we extend our previous study of the miscible-immiscible phase transition of a binary Bose-Einstein condensate (BEC) composed of two hyperfine states in which the spin dynamics are confined to one dimension [J. Sabbatini et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 107, 230402 (2011)]. The transition is engineered by controlling a Hamiltonian quench of the coupling amplitude of the two hyperfine states, and results in the formation of a random pattern of spatial domains. Using the numerical truncated Wigner phase space method, we show that in a ring BEC the number of domains formed in the phase transitions scales as predicted by the KZ theory. We also consider the same experiment performed with a harmonically trapped BEC, and investigate how the density inhomogeneity modifies the dynamics of the phase transition and the KZ scaling law for the number of domains. We then make use of the symmetry between inhomogeneous phase transitions in anisotropic systems, and an inhomogeneous quench in a homogeneous system, to engineer coupling quenches that allow us to quantify several aspects of inhomogeneous phase transitions. In particular, we quantify the effect of causality in the propagation of the phase transition front on the resulting formation of domain walls, and find indications that the density of defects is determined during the impulse to adiabatic transition after the crossing of the critical point.Comment: 23 pages, 10 figures. Minor corrections, typos, additional referenc

High-temperature ferromagnetism of spsp electrons in narrow impurity bands: Application to CaB6_6

Ferromagnetism with high Curie temperature $T_c$, well above room temperature, and very small saturation moment has been reported in various carbon and boron systems. It is argued that the magnetization must be very inhomogeneous with only a small fraction of the sample ferromagnetically ordered. It is shown that a possible source of high $T_c$ within the ferromagnetic regions is itinerant electrons occupying a narrow impurity band. Correlation effects do not reduce the effective interaction which enters the Stoner criterion in the same way as in a bulk band. It is also shown how, in the impurity band case, spin wave excitations may not be effective in lowering $T_c$ below its value given by Stoner theory. These ideas are applied to CaB$_6$ and a thorough review of the experimental situation in this material is given. It is suggested that the intrinsic magnetism of the B$_2$ and O$_2$ dimers might be exploited in suitable structures containing these elements.Comment: 26 pages, 2 figure

A composite functional equation from algebraic aspect

In this paper we discuss the composite functional equation f(x+2f(y))=f(x)+y+f(y) on an Abelian group. This equation originates from Problem 10854 of the American Mathematical Monthly. We give an algebraic description of the solutions on uniquely 3-divisible Abelian groups, and then we construct all solutions f of this equation on finite Abelian groups without elements of order 3 and on divisible Abelian groups without elements of order 3 including the additive group of real numbers

Soft spin waves in the low temperature thermodynamics of Pr_{0.7}Ca_{0.3}MnO_{3}

We present a detailed magnetothermal study of Pr(0.7)Ca(0.3)MnO(3), a perovskite manganite in which an insulator-metal transition can be driven by magnetic field, but also by pressure, visible light, x-rays, or high currents. We find that the field-induced transition is associated with an enormous release of energy which accounts for its strong irreversibility. In the ferromagnetic metallic state, specific heat and magnetization measurements indicate a much smaller spin wave stiffness than that seen in any other manganite, which we attribute to spin waves among the ferromagnetically ordered Pr moments. The coupling between the Pr and Mn spins may also provide a basis for understanding the low temperature phase diagram of this most unusual manganite.Comment: 10 pages, LATEX, 5 PDF figures, corrected typo