197 research outputs found
Influence of static Jahn-Teller distortion on the magnetic excitation spectrum of PrO2: A synchrotron x-ray and neutron inelastic scattering study
A synchrotron x-ray diffraction study of the crystallographic structure of
PrO2 in the Jahn-Teller distorted phase is reported. The distortion of the
oxygen sublattice, which was previously ambiguous, is shown to be a chiral
structure in which neighbouring oxygen chains have opposite chiralities. A
temperature dependent study of the magnetic excitation spectrum, probed by
neutron inelastic scattering, is also reported. Changes in the energies and
relative intensities of the crystal field transitions provide an insight into
the interplay between the static and dynamic Jahn-Teller effects.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure
Disentangling multipole resonances through a full x-ray polarization analysis
Complete polarization analysis applied to resonant x-ray scattering at the Cr
K-edge in K2CrO4 shows that incident linearly polarized x-rays can be converted
into circularly polarized x-rays by diffraction at the Cr pre-edge (E = 5994
eV). The physical mechanism behind this phenomenon is a subtle interference
effect between purely dipole (E1-E1) and purely quadrupole (E2-E2) transitions,
leading to a phase shift between the respective scattering amplitudes. This
effect may be exploited to disentangle two close-lying resonances that appear
as a single peak in a conventional energy scan, in this way allowing to single
out and identify the different multipole order parameters involved.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figure
Lockin to Weak Ferromagnetism in TbNi2B2C and ErNi2B2C
This article describes a model in which ferromagnetism necessarily
accompanies a spin-density-wave lockin transition in the borocarbide structure
provided the commensurate phase wave vector satisfies Q = (m/n)a* with m even
and n odd. The results account for the magnetic properties of TbNi2B2C, and are
also possibly relevant also for those of ErNi2B2C.Comment: 4 page
Magnetic ordering in GdNi2B2C revisited by resonant x-ray scattering: evidence for the double-q model
Recent theoretical efforts aimed at understanding the nature of
antiferromagnetic ordering in GdNi2B2C predicted double-q ordering. Here we
employ resonant elastic x-ray scattering to test this theory against the
formerly proposed, single-q ordering scenario. Our study reveals a satellite
reflection associated with a mixed-order component propagation wave vector,
viz., (q_a,2q_b,0) with q_b = q_a approx= 0.55 reciprocal lattice units, the
presence of which is incompatible with single-q ordering but is expected from
the double-q model. A (3q_a,0,0) wave vector (i.e., third-order) satellite is
also observed, again in line with the double-q model. The temperature
dependencies of these along with that of a first-order satellite are compared
with calculations based on the double-q model and reasonable qualitative
agreement is found. By examining the azimuthal dependence of first-order
satellite scattering, we show the magnetic order to be, as predicted,
elliptically polarized at base temperature and find the temperature dependence
of the "out of a-b plane" moment component to be in fairly good agreement with
calculation. Our results provide qualitative support for the double-q model and
thus in turn corroborate the explanation for the "magnetoelastic paradox"
offered by this model.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures. Submitted to Phys. Rev.
Mean-field model of the ferromagnetic ordering in the superconducting phase of ErNi_2B_2C
A mean-field model explaining most of the details in the magnetic phase
diagram of ErNi_2B_2C is presented. The low-temperature magnetic properties are
found to be dominated by the appearance of long-period commensurate structures.
The stable structure at low temperatures and zero field is found to have a
period of 40 layers along the a direction, and upon cooling it undergoes a
first-order transition at T_C = 2.3 K to a different 40-layered structure
having a net ferromagnetic component of about 0.4 mu_B/Er. The
neutron-diffraction patterns predicted by the two 40-layered structures, above
and below T_C, are in agreement with the observations of Choi et al.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures (Revtex4
X-ray polarization: General formalism and polarization analysis
The polarization of x-rays plays an outstanding role in experimental
techniques such as non-resonant magnetic x-ray scattering and resonant x-ray
scattering of magnetic and multipolar order. Different instrumental methods
applied to synchrotron light can transform its natural polarization into an
arbitrary polarization state. Several synchrotron applications, in particular
in the field of magnetic and resonant scattering rely on the improvement in the
signal/noise ratio or the deeper insight into the ordered state and the
scattering process made possible through these polarization techniques. Here,
we present the mathematical framework for the description of fully and
partially polarized x-rays, with some applications such as linear x-ray
polarization analysis for the determination of the scattered beam's
polarization, and the Ge K-edge resonant scattering.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures and 1 table. To be published in proceedings of
the workshop "Resonant Elastic X-ray Scattering", Aussois, France (2011
The structure of the Au(111)/methylthiolate interface : new insights from near-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy and X-ray standing waves
The local structure of the Au(111)([square root of]3×[square root of]3)R30°-methylthiolate surface phase has been investigated by S K-edge near-edge s-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) both experimentally and theoretically and by experimental normal-incidence x-ray standing waves (NIXSW) at both the C and S atomic sites. NEXAFS shows not only excitation into the intramolecular sigma* S–C resonance but also into a sigma* S–Au orbital perpendicular to the surface, clearly identifying the local S headgroup site as atop a Au atom. Simulations show that it is not possible, however, to distinguish between the two possible adatom reconstruction models; a single thiolate species atop a hollow-site Au adatom or a dithiolate moiety comprising two thiolate species bonded to a bridge-bonded Au adatom. Within this dithiolate moiety a second sigma* S–Au orbital that lies near parallel to the surface has a higher energy that overlaps that of the sigma* S–C resonance. The new NIXSW data show the S–C bond to be tilted by 61° relative to the surface normal, with a preferred azimuthal orientation in , corresponding to the intermolecular nearest-neighbor directions. This azimuthal orientation is consistent with the thiolate being atop a hollow-site Au adatom, but not consistent with the originally proposed Au-adatom-dithiolate moiety. However, internal conformational changes within this species could, perhaps, render this model also consistent with the experimental data
Small-Angle Neutron Scattering and Magnetization Study of HoNi2B2C
The superconducting and magnetic properties of HoNi2B2C single crystals are
investigated through transport, magnetometry and small-angle neutron scattering
measurements. In the magnetic phases that enter below the superconducting
critical temperature, the small-angle neutron scattering data uncover networks
of magnetic surfaces. These likely originate from uncompensated moments e.g. at
domain walls pinned to crystallographic grain boundaries. The field and
temperature dependent behaviour appears consistent with the metamagnetic
transitions reported in earlier works.Comment: 11 pages , 4 figures, submitted to Low Temperature Physic
Melting of chiral order in terbium manganate (TbMnO3) observed with resonant x-ray Bragg diffraction
Resonant Bragg diffraction of soft, circularly polarized x-rays has been used
to observe directly the temperature dependence of chiral-order melting in a
motif of Mn ions in terbium manganate. The underlying mechanism uses the b-axis
component of a cycloid, which vanishes outside the polar phase. Melting is
witnessed by the first and second harmonics of a cycloid, and we explain why
the observed temperature dependence is different in the two harmonics. Our
direct observation of melting is supported by a solid foundation of evidence,
derived from extensive studies of the azimuthal-angle dependence of intensities
with both linear and circular polarization
A 31T split-pair pulsed magnet for single crystal x-ray diffraction at low temperature
We have developed a pulsed magnet system with panoramic access for
synchrotron x-ray diffraction in magnetic fields up to 31T and at low
temperature down to 1.5 K. The apparatus consists of a split-pair magnet, a
liquid nitrogen bath to cool the pulsed coil, and a helium cryostat allowing
sample temperatures from 1.5 up to 250 K. Using a 1.15MJ mobile generator,
magnetic field pulses of 60 ms length were generated in the magnet, with a rise
time of 16.5 ms and a repetition rate of 2 pulses/hour at 31 T. The setup was
validated for single crystal diffraction on the ESRF beamline ID06
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