81 research outputs found
Transmission-electron-microscopy study of charge-stripe order in La(1.725)Sr(0.275)NiO(4)
We characterize the local structure and correlations of charge stripes in
La(1.725)Sr(0.275)NiO(4) using transmission-electron microscopy. We present
direct evidence that the stripe modulation is indeed one-dimensional within
each NiO(2) plane. Furthermore, we show that individual stripes tend to be
either site-centered or bond-centered, with a bias towards the former. The
spacing between stripes often fluctuates about the mean, contributing to a
certain degree of frustration of the approximate body-centered stacking along
the c-axis. These results confirm ideas inferred from previous
neutron-diffraction measurements on doped nickelates, and demonstrate that
charge-stripe order is quite different from the conventional concept of
charge-density-wave order.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figures, submitted to PR
Negotiating local versus global needs in the International Long Term Ecological Research Network's socio-ecological research agenda
Over the past decade, Long-Term Socio-Ecological Research (LTSER) has been established to better integrate social science research and societal concerns into the goals and objectives of the International Long Term Ecological Research (ILTER) network, an established global network of long-term ecological monitoring sites. The Horizon 2020 eLTER project, currently underway, includes as one of its key objectives to evaluate the performance of LTSER platforms. This article reflects part of this evaluation: Six LTSER platforms were assessed through site visits of the lead author, coupled with reflections and insights of the platform managers, who are also coauthors. We provide background for the mission and goals of LTSER, and then assess the six international LTSER platforms – Baltimore Ecosystem Study LTER, USA; Braila Islands LTSER, Romania; Cairngorms LTSER, UK; Doñana LTSER, Spain; Omora Ethnobotanical Park Cape Horn LTER, Chile; and Sierra Nevada LTSER, Spain. While based on a strong theoretical foundation in socio-ecological research, there has been a steep learning curve for scientists to apply the concept in practice at LTSER platforms. Key aspects of LTSER platforms have proven challenging, including management, interdisciplinary integration, and stakeholder collaboration. We characterize the tensions between top-down desires for network harmonization, bottom-up demands such as local policy relevance, and platform-level constraints such as time and budget. We discuss challenges, such as local context dominating the character of LTSER platforms, and the fact that scientists are disincentivized from engaging in transdisciplinary work. However, we also show positive impacts that have been achieved, including contributions to policy, land-use planning, and natural resource management. Overall, we conclude that while the international network offers important advantages to its members, a better balance between local and global goals could be achieved, and members may need to temper their expectations of what the network can and cannot offer at the local level
Doping dependence of the resonance peak and incommensuration in high- superconductors
The doping and frequency evolutions of the incommensurate spin response and
the resonance mode are studied based on the scenario of the Fermi surface
topology. We use the slave-boson mean-field approach to the
model and including the antiferromagnetic fluctuation correction in the
random-phase approximation. We find that the equality between the
incommensurability and the hole concentration is reproduced at low frequencies
in the underdoped regime. This equality observed in experiments was explained
{\it only} based on the stripe model before. We also obtain the downward
dispersion for the spin response and predict its doping dependence for further
experimental testing, as well as a proportionality between the low-energy
incommensurability and the resonance energy. Our results suggest a common
origin for the incommensuration and the resonance peak based on the Fermi
surface topology and the d-wave symmetry.Comment: 5 pages, 4 PS figure
DDW Order and its Role in the Phase Diagram of Extended Hubbard Models
We show in a mean-field calculation that phase diagrams remarkably similar to
those recently proposed for the cuprates arise in simple microscopic models of
interacting electrons near half-filling. The models are extended Hubbard models
with nearest neighbor interaction and correlated hopping. The underdoped region
of the phase diagram features density-wave (DDW) order. In a
certain regime of temperature and doping, DDW order coexists with
antiferromagnetic (AF) order. For larger doping, it coexists with
superconductivity (DSC). While phase diagrams of this form
are robust, they are not inevitable. For other reasonable values of the
coupling constants, drastically different phase diagrams are obtained. We
comment on implications for the cuprates.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figure
Big, Fast Vortices in the d-RVB theory of High Temperature Superconductivity
The effect of proximity to a Mott insulating phase on the superflow
properties of a d-wave superconductor is studied using the slave boson-U(1)
gauge theory model. The model has two limits corresponding to superconductivity
emerging either out of a 'renormalized fermi liquid' or out of a
non-fermi-liquid regime. Three crucial physical parameters are identified: the
size of the vortex \textit{as determined from the supercurrent it induces;} the
coupling of the superflow to the quasiparticles and the 'nondissipative time
derivative' term. As the Mott phase is approached, the core size as defined
from the supercurrent diverges, the coupling between superflow and
quasiparticles vanishes, and the magnitude of the nondissipative time
derivative dramatically increases. The dissipation due to a moving vortex is
found to vary as the third power of the doping. The upper critical field and
the size of the critical regime in which paraconductivity may be observed are
estimated, and found to be controlled by the supercurrent length scale
Pair Phase Fluctuations and the Pseudogap
The single-particle density of states and the tunneling conductance are
studied for a two-dimensional BCS-like Hamiltonian with a d_{x^2-y^2}-gap and
phase fluctuations. The latter are treated by a classical Monte Carlo
simulation of an XY model. Comparison of our results with recent scanning
tunneling spectra of Bi-based high-T_c cuprates supports the idea that the
pseudogap behavior observed in these experiments can be understood as arising
from phase fluctuations of a d_{x^2-y^2} pairing gap whose amplitude forms on
an energy scale set by T_c^{MF} well above the actual superconducting
transition.Comment: 5 pages, 6 eps-figure
Evaluating transdisciplinary science to open research-implementation spaces in European social-ecological systems
Researchers in multiple, related fields that address complex social and environmental challenges, have shown ongoing enthusiasm for applying transdisciplinary social-ecological systems (SES) research to promote sustainability. However, few studies have evaluated the effectiveness of SES approach, assessed its achievements, and identified challenges to its implementation toward knowledge production for environmental conservation.
We report the results of a qualitative, participatory evaluation of several SES projects across Europe using an evaluation methodology tailored to transdisciplinary projects. We conducted 66 stakeholder interviews at four designated Long-Term Socio-ecological Research (LTSER) platforms – Danube Delta and Braila Island (Romania); Cairngorms (Scotland); and Doñana (Spain). Using qualitative analysis, we synthesized data from interviews and then returned to the sites to present findings to stakeholders in focus group discussions in order to incorporate their feedback into conclusions.
We conclude that although particular scientists at each platform have taken on entrepreneurial roles to operationalize transdisciplinary science, a business-as-usual attitude tends to dominate institutions, limiting meaningful progress toward transdisciplinary objectives, including: integration of social science research, giving non-researcher stakeholders a more meaningful role in advancing relevant research, and improving knowledge exchange among different stakeholder groups, among other issues. While we found that all the components of transdisciplinary SES research exist at the sites, there is no overarching strategy to link long-term planning and funding, knowledge integration, and priority-setting with stakeholders to ensure the relevance of research for policy and practice. We conclude with reflections about implementing our evaluation methodology, and a call for periodic, participatory evaluation into the future
QED3 theory of underdoped high temperature superconductors
Low-energy theory of d-wave quasiparticles coupled to fluctuating vortex
loops that describes the loss of phase coherence in a two dimensional d-wave
superconductor at T=0 is derived. The theory has the form of 2+1 dimensional
quantum electrodynamics (QED3), and is proposed as an effective description of
the T=0 superconductor-insulator transition in underdoped cuprates. The
coupling constant ("charge") in this theory is proportional to the dual order
parameter of the XY model, which is assumed to be describing the quantum
fluctuations of the phase of the superconducting order parameter. The principal
result is that the destruction of phase coherence in d-wave superconductors
typically, and immediately, leads to antiferromagnetism. The transition can be
understood in terms of the spontaneous breaking of an approximate "chiral"
SU(2) symmetry, which may be discerned at low enough energies in the standard
d-wave superconductor. The mechanism of the symmetry breaking is analogous to
the dynamical mass generation in the QED3, with the "mass" here being
proportional to staggered magnetization. Other insulating phases that break
chiral symmetry include the translationally invariant "d+ip" and "d+is"
insulators, and various one dimensional charge-density and spin-density waves.
The theory offers an explanation for the rounded d-wave-like dispersion seen in
ARPES experiments on Ca2CuO2Cl2 (F. Ronning et. al., Science 282, 2067 (1998)).Comment: Revtex, 20 pages, 5 figures; this is a much extended follow-up to the
Phys. Rev. Lett. vol.88, 047006 (2002) (cond-mat/0110188); improved
presentation, many additional explanations, comments, and references added,
sec. IV rewritten. Final version, to appear in Phys. Rev.
Dispersion of Ordered Stripe Phases in the Cuprates
A phase separation model is presented for the stripe phase of the cuprates,
which allows the doping dependence of the photoemission spectra to be
calculated. The idealized limit of a well-ordered array of magnetic and charged
stripes is analyzed, including effects of long-range Coulomb repulsion.
Remarkably, down to the limit of two-cell wide stripes, the dispersion can be
interpreted as essentially a superposition of the two end-phase dispersions,
with superposed minigaps associated with the lattice periodicity. The largest
minigap falls near the Fermi level; it can be enhanced by proximity to a (bulk)
Van Hove singularity. The calculated spectra are dominated by two features --
this charge stripe minigap plus the magnetic stripe Hubbard gap. There is a
strong correlation between these two features and the experimental
photoemission results of a two-peak dispersion in LaSrCuO, and
the peak-dip-hump spectra in BiSrCaCuO. The
differences are suggestive of the role of increasing stripe fluctuations. The
1/8 anomaly is associated with a quantum critical point, here expressed as a
percolation-like crossover. A model is proposed for the limiting minority
magnetic phase as an isolated two-leg ladder.Comment: 24 pages, 26 PS figure
Spectral and transport properties of doped Mott-Hubbard systems with incommensurate magnetic order
We present spectral and optical properties of the Hubbard model on a
two-dimensional square lattice using a generalization of dynamical mean-field
theory to magnetic states in finite dimension. The self-energy includes the
effect of spin fluctuations and screening of the Coulomb interaction due to
particle-particle scattering. At half-filling the quasiparticles reduce the
width of the Mott-Hubbard `gap' and have dispersions and spectral weights that
agree remarkably well with quantum Monte Carlo and exact diagonalization
calculations. Away from half-filling we consider incommensurate magnetic order
with a varying local spin direction, and derive the photoemission and optical
spectra. The incommensurate magnetic order leads to a pseudogap which opens at
the Fermi energy and coexists with a large Mott-Hubbard gap. The quasiparticle
states survive in the doped systems, but their dispersion is modified with the
doping and a rigid band picture does not apply. Spectral weight in the optical
conductivity is transferred to lower energies and the Drude weight increases
linearly with increasing doping. We show that incommensurate magnetic order
leads also to mid-gap states in the optical spectra and to decreased scattering
rates in the transport processes, in qualitative agreement with the
experimental observations in doped systems. The gradual disappearence of the
spiral magnetic order and the vanishing pseudogap with increasing temperature
is found to be responsible for the linear resistivity. We discuss the possible
reasons why these results may only partially explain the features observed in
the optical spectra of high temperature superconductors.Comment: 22 pages, 18 figure
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