489 research outputs found
Coherent Modulation of the YBa2Cu3O6+x Atomic Structure by Displacive Stimulated Ionic Raman Scattering
We discuss the mechanism of coherent phonon generation by Stimulated Ionic
Raman Scattering, a process different from conventional excitation with near
visible optical pulses. Ionic Raman scattering is driven by anharmonic coupling
between a directly excited infrared-active phonon mode and other Raman modes.
We experimentally study the response of YBa2Cu3O6+x to the resonant excitation
of apical oxygen motions at 20 THz by mid-infrared pulses, which has been shown
in the past to enhance the interlayer superconducting coupling. We find
coherent oscillations of four totally symmetric (Ag) Raman modes and make a
critical assessment of the role of these oscillatory motions in the enhancement
of superconductivity.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figure
Neutron spin-echo study of the critical dynamics of spin-5/2 antiferromagnets in two and three dimensions
We report a neutron spin-echo study of the critical dynamics in the
antiferromagnets MnF and RbMnF with three-dimensional (3D) and
two-dimensional (2D) spin systems, respectively, in zero external field. Both
compounds are Heisenberg antiferromagnets with a small uniaxial anisotropy
resulting from dipolar spin-spin interactions, which leads to a crossover in
the critical dynamics close to the N\'eel temperature, . By taking
advantage of the energy resolution of the spin-echo
spectrometer, we have determined the dynamical critical exponents for both
longitudinal and transverse fluctuations. In MnF, both the characteristic
temperature for crossover from 3D Heisenberg to 3D Ising behavior and the
exponents in both regimes are consistent with predictions from the
dynamical scaling theory. The amplitude ratio of longitudinal and transverse
fluctuations also agrees with predictions. In RbMnF, the critical
dynamics crosses over from the expected 2D Heisenberg behavior for
to a scaling regime with exponent , which has not been predicted
by theory and may indicate the influence of long-range dipolar interactions
Exciton doublet in the Mott-Hubbard LiCuVO insulator identified by spectral ellipsometry
Spectroscopic ellipsometry was used to study the dielectric function of
LiCuVO, a compound comprised of chains of edge-sharing CuO
plaquettes, in the spectral range (0.75 - 6.5) eV at temperatures (7-300) K.
For photon polarization along the chains, the data reveal a weak but
well-resolved two-peak structure centered at 2.15 and 2.95 eV whose spectral
weight is strongly enhanced upon cooling near the magnetic ordering
temperature. We identify these features as an exciton doublet in the
Mott-Hubbard gap that emerges as a consequence of the Coulomb interaction
between electrons on nearest and next-nearest neighbor sites along the chains.
Our results and methodology can be used to address the role of the long-range
Coulomb repulsion for compounds with doped copper-oxide chains and planes.Comment: 4 pages with 4 figures and EPAPS supplementary online material (3
pages with 4 figures), accepted in Phys. Rev. Let
Magnetic structure of the edge-sharing copper oxide chain compound NaCu2O2
Single-crystal neutron diffraction has been used to determine the
incommensurate magnetic structure of NaCu2O2, a compound built up of chains of
edge-sharing CuO4 plaquettes. Magnetic structures compatible with the lattice
symmetry were identified by a group-theoretical analysis, and their magnetic
structure factors were compared to the experimentally observed Bragg
intensities. In conjunction with other experimental data, this analysis yields
an elliptical helix structure in which both the helicity and the polarization
plane alternate among copper-oxide chains. This magnetic ground state is
discussed in the context of the recently reported multiferroic properties of
other copper-oxide chain compounds
Lifetimes of antiferromagnetic magnons in two and three dimensions: experiment, theory, and numerics
A high-resolution neutron spectroscopic technique is used to measure
momentum-resolved magnon lifetimes in the prototypical two- and
three-dimensional antiferromagnets Rb2MnF4 and MnF2, over the full Brillouin
zone and a wide range of temperatures. We rederived theories of the lifetime
resulting from magnon-magnon scattering, thereby broadening their applicability
beyond asymptotically small regions of wavevector and temperature.
Corresponding computations, combined with a small contribution reflecting
collisions with domain boundaries, yield excellent quantitative agreement with
the data.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Dynamical decoherence of the light induced interlayer coupling in YBaCuO
Optical excitation of apical oxygen vibrations in
YBaCuO has been shown to enhance its c-axis
superconducting-phase rigidity, as evidenced by a transient blue shift of the
equilibrium inter-bilayer Josephson plasma resonance. Surprisingly, a transient
c-axis plasma mode could also be induced above T by the same apical
oxygen excitation, suggesting light activated superfluid tunneling throughout
the pseudogap phase of YBaCuO. However, despite the
similarities between the above T transient plasma mode and the
equilibrium Josephson plasmon, alternative explanations involving high mobility
quasiparticle transport should be considered. Here, we report an extensive
study of the relaxation of the light-induced plasmon into the equilibrium
incoherent phase. These new experiments allow for a critical assessment of the
nature of this mode. We determine that the transient plasma relaxes through a
collapse of its coherence length rather than its carrier (or superfluid)
density. These observations are not easily reconciled with quasiparticle
interlayer transport, and rather support transient superfluid tunneling as the
origin of the light-induced interlayer coupling in
YBaCuO.Comment: 27 pages (17 pages main text, 10 pages supplementary), 5 figures
(main text
Signatures of Electronic Correlations in Optical Properties of LaFeAsOF
Spectroscopic ellipsometry is used to determine the dielectric function of
the superconducting LaFeAsOF ( = 27 K) and undoped LaFeAsO
polycrystalline samples in the wide range 0.01-6.5 eV at temperatures 10 350 K. The free charge carrier response in both samples is heavily
damped with the effective carrier density as low as 0.0400.005 electrons
per unit cell. The spectral weight transfer in the undoped LaFeAsO associated
with opening of the pseudogap at about 0.65 eV is restricted at energies below
2 eV. The spectra of superconducting LaFeAsOF reveal a
significant transfer of the spectral weight to a broad optical band above 4 eV
with increasing temperature. Our data may imply that the electronic states near
the Fermi surface are strongly renormalized due to electron-phonon and/or
electron-electron interactions.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, units in Fig.2 adde
Magnetic excitations and phonons in the spin-chain compound NaCu2O2
We report an inelastic light scattering study of single-crystalline
NaCuO, a spin-chain compound known to exhibit a phase with helical
magnetic order at low temperatures. Phonon excitations were studied as a
function of temperature and light polarization, and the phonon frequencies are
compared to the results of ab-initio lattice dynamical calculations, which are
also reported here. The good agreement between the observed and calculated
modes allows an assignment of the phonon eigenvectors. Two distinct high-energy
two-magnon features as well as a sharp low-energy one-magnon peak were also
observed. These features are discussed in terms of the magnon modes expected in
a helically ordered state. Their polarization dependence provides evidence of
substantial exchange interactions between two closely spaced spin chains within
a unit cell. At high temperatures, the spectral features attributable to
magnetic excitations are replaced by a broad, quasielastic mode due to
overdamped spin excitations
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