85 research outputs found
A cluster model with random anisotropy for hysteresis jumps in CeNiCu alloys
Some Cerium compounds exhibit hysteresis cycles with sharp macroscopic jumps
in the magnetization at very low temperatures. This effect is attributed to the
formation of clusters in which the anisotropy competes with the applied
magnetic field. Here, we present a simple model where a lattice of
ferromagnetically coupled spins is separated in clusters of random sizes and
with random anisotropy. Within this model, we obtain hysteresis cycles
presenting jumps that behave in a similar way that the experimental ones, and
that disappear when increasing the temperature. The results are in good
agreement with the hysteresis cycles measured at very low temperatures in
CeNiCu and the comparison with these experimental results allows
to discriminate the relative importance of the mechanisms driving the thermal
evolution of the cycles.Comment: Accepted in PR
First-order nature of the ferromagnetism in CeIn2 investigated using muon spin rotation and by systematic substitution of La for Ce
he nature of the first-order ferromagnetic transition in binary CeIn2 alloy is investigated by muon spin rotation (μSR) measurements and chemical substitution of Ce by La in the La1−xCexIn2 (0.9 x 1.0) series of alloys. Below 22 K, the analysis of μSR spectra shows two spin precession frequencies associated with the local field at the muon site created by the surrounding ferromagnetic ordered magnetic moments. These frequencies abruptly disappear above TC, indicating the first-order character of this transition, as previously reported. For temperatures between 22 and 24 K, the shape of the μSR spectra indicates the existence of an additional magnetic phase with features of an incommensurate magnetic structure. The presence of this magnetic phase is supported by dc(ac)-magnetic susceptibility and specific-heat results obtained on chemical diluted samples,which also show a magnetic contribution above the ferromagnetic transition. The combined analysis of these results clarifies the first-order character of the ferromagnetic transition in CeIn2, based on the existence of an intermediate magnetic phase between the paramagnetic and ferromagnetic state
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
Structural defects in Hg1−xCdxI2 layers grown on CdTe substrates by vapor phase epitaxy
Hg1−xCdxI2 20–25-μm-thick layers with a uniform composition in the range of x = 0.1–0.2 were grown on CdTe substrates by vapor phase epitaxy (VPE). The growth was carried out using an α-HgI2 polycrystalline source at 200 °C and in the time range of 30–100 h. The layers were studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and high resolution synchrotron x-ray topography (SXRT). The SEM and SXRT images of Hg1−xCdxI2 VPE layers allow one to identify the defects affecting the layer structure. The two main types of structural defects in the layers are subgrain boundaries and densely spaced striations similar to those referred generally to as vapor grown HgI2 bulk crystals. The effect of the growth time on these defects has been analyzed and on the basis of this it has been possible to grow Hg1−xCdxI2 layers with low defect [email protected]
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
Substitutional effects of in by Cu in CeIn2
We have investigated the evolution of the magnetic properties on the Ce(In1'xCux)2 (0 < x ≤ 0.3) series of alloys. The orthorhombic structure of the CeIn2 alloy (Imma) changes into the hexagonal AlB2-type (P6/mmm) for x = 0.05 and, then, into the hexagonal CaIn2-type (P63/mmm) for higher Cu concentrations, up to x = 0.3. The dc (ac) magnetic susceptibility shows an abrupt decrease of the magnetic transition temperature from 22 K to 5.4 K (x = 0.05). The results indicate the influence of the crystallographic type of structure and disorder effects on the magnetic behavior along the series. © Owned by the authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2014
Size-induced superantiferromagnetism with reentrant spin-glass behavior in metallic nanoparticles of TbCu2
An unusual 4f -superantiferromagnetic state characterized by simultaneous antiferromagnetic and spin-glass behaviors induced by particle-size reduction is revealed in metallic nanoparticles (≈ 9 nm) of TbCu 2 . The Néel temperature is 46 K and the glassy freezing is below ≈ 9 K and governed by a critical slowing down process. Neutron diffraction at 1.8 K establishes the superantiferromagnetism. The latter is settled by the nanoparticle moments and the freezing mechanism is provided by the surface spins
El proyecto "ciencia y comarca" (cico) : una experiencia con 25 años de historia
La intención de promover una educación en ciencias sustentada en el propio medio natural no ha pasado de ser un propósito más de las reformas educativas. Las propuestas curriculares no han sido suficientemente precisas en cuanto a la vinculación del aprendizaje al propio entorno, han confundido con frecuencia educación en el medio con educación ambiental, y en ningún caso se han contemplado los requisitos necasarios para implementarla. Los grupos de trabajo, surgidos, como el nuestro, con la aparición de los servicios de perfeccionamiento del profesorado, tratarón de interpretar el espíritu de los objetivos curriculares y llevarlos a la práctica. La descripción de nuestra propuesta y su desarrollo durante los últimos veinticinco años es el objeto de esta comunicación
- …