Theory and Simulation of the diffusion of kinks on dislocations in bcc metals

Isolated kinks on thermally fluctuating (1/2) screw, edge and (1/2) edge dislocations in bcc iron are simulated under zero stress conditions using molecular dynamics (MD). Kinks are seen to perform stochastic motion in a potential landscape that depends on the dislocation character and geometry, and their motion provides fresh insight into the coupling of dislocations to a heat bath. The kink formation energy, migration barrier and friction parameter are deduced from the simulations. A discrete Frenkel-Kontorova-Langevin (FKL) model is able to reproduce the coarse grained data from MD at a fraction of the computational cost, without assuming an a priori temperature dependence beyond the fluctuation-dissipation theorem. Analytic results reveal that discreteness effects play an essential r\^ole in thermally activated dislocation glide, revealing the existence of a crucial intermediate length scale between molecular and dislocation dynamics. The model is used to investigate dislocation motion under the vanishingly small stress levels found in the evolution of dislocation microstructures in irradiated materials

Spin-orbit coupling and Berry phase with ultracold atoms in 2D optical lattices

We show how spin-orbit coupling and Berry phase can appear in two-dimensional optical lattices by coupling atoms' internal degrees of freedom to radiation. The Rashba Hamiltonian, a standard description of spin-orbit coupling for two-dimensional electrons, is obtained for the atoms under certain circumstances. We discuss the possibility of observing associated phenomena, such as the anomalous Hall and spin Hall effects, with cold atoms in optical lattices.Comment: 3 figure

Direct observation of size scaling and elastic interaction between nano-scale defects in collision cascades

Using in-situ transmission electron microscopy, we have directly observed nano-scale defects formed in ultra-high purity tungsten by low-dose high energy self-ion irradiation at 30K. At cryogenic temperature lattice defects have reduced mobility, so these microscope observations offer a window on the initial, primary damage caused by individual collision cascade events. Electron microscope images provide direct evidence for a power-law size distribution of nano-scale defects formed in high-energy cascades, with an upper size limit independent of the incident ion energy, as predicted by Sand et al. [Eur. Phys. Lett., 103:46003, (2013)]. Furthermore, the analysis of pair distribution functions of defects observed in the micrographs shows significant intra-cascade spatial correlations consistent with strong elastic interaction between the defects

Correlation effects in the ground state charge density of Mott-insulating NiO: a comparison of ab-initio calculations and high-energy electron diffraction measurements

Accurate high-energy electron diffraction measurements of structure factors of NiO have been carried out to investigate how strong correlations in the Ni 3d shell affect electron charge density in the interior area of nickel ions and whether the new ab-initio approaches to the electronic structure of strongly correlated metal oxides are in accord with experimental observations. The generalized gradient approximation (GGA) and the local spin density approximation corrected by the Hubbard U term (LSDA+U) are found to provide the closest match to experimental measurements. The comparison of calculated and observed electron charge densities shows that correlations in the Ni 3d shell suppress covalent bonding between the oxygen and nickel sublattices.Comment: 6 pages, LaTeX and 5 figures in the postscript forma