431 research outputs found
Size effects in the magnetic behaviour of TbAl_2 milled alloys
The study of the magnetic properties depending upon mechanical milling of the
ferromagnetic polycrystalline TbAl_2 material is reported. The Rietveld
analysis of the X-ray diffraction data reveals a decrease of the grain size
down to 14 nm and -0.15 % of variation of the lattice parameter, after 300
hours of milling time. Irreversibility in the zero field cooled - field cooled
(ZFC-FC) DC-susceptibility and clear peaks in the AC susceptibility between 5
and 300 K show that the long-range ferromagnetic structure is inhibited in
favour of a disordered spin arrangement below 45 K. This glassy behaviour is
also deduced from the variation of the irreversibility transition with the
field (H^{2/3}) and frequency. The magnetization process of the bulk TbAl_2 is
governed by domain wall thermal activation processes. By contrast, in the
milled samples, cluster-glass properties arise as a result of cooperative
interactions due to the substitutional disorder. The interactions are also
influenced by the nanograin structure of the milled alloys, showing a variation
of coercivity with the grain size, below the crossover between the multi- and
single-domain behaviours.Comment: 23 pages, 11 figures, to appear in J. Phys.: Condens. Ma
Structure peculiarities of cementite and their influence on the magnetic characteristics
The iron carbide is studied by the first-principle density functional
theory. It is shown that the crystal structure with the carbon disposition in a
prismatic environment has the lowest total energy and the highest energy of
magnetic anisotropy as compared to the structure with carbon in an octahedron
environment. This fact explains the behavior of the coercive force upon
annealing of the plastically deformed samples. The appearance of carbon atoms
in the octahedron environment can be revealed by Mossbauer experiment.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, 3 tables. submitted to Phys.Rev.
Projective Ring Line Encompassing Two-Qubits
The projective line over the (non-commutative) ring of two-by-two matrices
with coefficients in GF(2) is found to fully accommodate the algebra of 15
operators - generalized Pauli matrices - characterizing two-qubit systems. The
relevant sub-configuration consists of 15 points each of which is either
simultaneously distant or simultaneously neighbor to (any) two given distant
points of the line. The operators can be identified with the points in such a
one-to-one manner that their commutation relations are exactly reproduced by
the underlying geometry of the points, with the ring geometrical notions of
neighbor/distant answering, respectively, to the operational ones of
commuting/non-commuting. This remarkable configuration can be viewed in two
principally different ways accounting, respectively, for the basic 9+6 and 10+5
factorizations of the algebra of the observables. First, as a disjoint union of
the projective line over GF(2) x GF(2) (the "Mermin" part) and two lines over
GF(4) passing through the two selected points, the latter omitted. Second, as
the generalized quadrangle of order two, with its ovoids and/or spreads
standing for (maximum) sets of five mutually non-commuting operators and/or
groups of five maximally commuting subsets of three operators each. These
findings open up rather unexpected vistas for an algebraic geometrical
modelling of finite-dimensional quantum systems and give their numerous
applications a wholly new perspective.Comment: 8 pages, three tables; Version 2 - a few typos and one discrepancy
corrected; Version 3: substantial extension of the paper - two-qubits are
generalized quadrangles of order two; Version 4: self-dual picture completed;
Version 5: intriguing triality found -- three kinds of geometric hyperplanes
within GQ and three distinguished subsets of Pauli operator
Reduction of the Yb valence in YbAl3 nanoparticles
Measurements of specific heat, dc magnetic susceptibility, and Yb LII and LIII x-ray absorption near-edge
structure XANES and extended x-ray absorption fine structure EXAFS on YbAl3 milled alloys are reported.
X-ray diffraction patterns are consistent with a reduction in particle size down to 10 nm and an increase in the
lattice strain up to 0.4% for 120 h of milling time. A decrease in the mean valence from 2.86 for the unmilled
alloy to 2.70 for 120 h milled YbAl3 is obtained from the analysis of XANES spectra. From the analysis of
spectra in the EXAFS region, an increase in the mean-square disorder of neighbor distance with milling time
is detected in good agreement with the results of x-ray diffraction. Size effects strongly influence the magnetic
and thermal properties. The value for the maximum of the magnetic susceptibility decreases around 30% for
120 h milled alloy and an excess specific heat, with a peak around 40 K in the milled samples, is derived.
These changes in the physical properties along the milled YbAl3 alloys are associated with the reduction in
particle size. Such a reduction leads to the existence of a large number of Yb2+ atoms at the surface with
respect to the bulk affecting the overall electronic state
Observation of energetic terahertz pulses from relativistic solid density plasmas
We report the first experimental observation of terahertz (THz) radiation from the rear surface of a solid target while interacting with an intense laser pulse. Experimental and two-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations show that the observed THz radiation is mostly emitted at large angles to the target normal. Numerical results point out that a large part of the emission originates from a micron-scale plasma sheath at the rear surface of the target, which is also responsible for the ion acceleration. This opens a perspective for the application of THz radiation detection for on-site diagnostics of particle acceleration in laser-produced plasmas
Structural Asymmetries at the Roots of the Eurozone Crisis: What's New for Industrial Policy in the EU?
Magnetic transition in nanocrystalline soft magnetic alloys analyzed via ac inductive techniques
Impaired Spleen Formation Perturbs Morphogenesis of the Gastric Lobe of the Pancreas
Despite the extensive use of the mouse as a model for studies of pancreas development and disease, the development of the gastric pancreatic lobe has been largely overlooked. In this study we use optical projection tomography to provide a detailed three-dimensional and quantitative description of pancreatic growth dynamics in the mouse. Hereby, we describe the epithelial and mesenchymal events leading to the formation of the gastric lobe of the pancreas. We show that this structure forms by perpendicular growth from the dorsal pancreatic epithelium into a distinct lateral domain of the dorsal pancreatic mesenchyme. Our data support a role for spleen organogenesis in the establishment of this mesenchymal domain and in mice displaying perturbed spleen development, including Dh +/−, Bapx1−/− and Sox11−/−, gastric lobe development is disturbed. We further show that the expression profile of markers for multipotent progenitors is delayed in the gastric lobe as compared to the splenic and duodenal pancreatic lobes. Altogether, this study provides new information regarding the developmental dynamics underlying the formation of the gastric lobe of the pancreas and recognizes lobular heterogeneities regarding the time course of pancreatic cellular differentiation. Collectively, these data are likely to constitute important elements in future interpretations of the developing and/or diseased pancreas
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