Near-Boundary and Bulk Regions of a Semi-Infinite Two-Dimensional Heisenberg Antiferromagnet

Using the spin-wave approximation elementary excitations of a semi-infinite two-dimensional $S=\frac12$ Heisenberg antiferromagnet are considered. The spectrum consists of bulk modes -- standing spin waves and a quasi-one-dimensional mode of boundary spin waves. These latter excitations eject bulk modes from two boundary rows of sites, thereby dividing the antiferromagnet into two regions with different dominant excitations. As a result absolute values of nearest-neighbor spin correlations on the edge exceed the bulk value.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figure

Striped phases in two dimensional dipole systems

We prove that a system of discrete 2D in-plane dipoles with four possible orientations, interacting via a 3D dipole-dipole interaction plus a nearest neighbor ferromagnetic term, has periodic striped ground states. As the strength of the ferromagnetic term is increased, the size of the stripes in the ground state increases, becoming infinite, i.e., giving a ferromagentic ground state, when the ferromagentic interaction exceeds a certain critical value. We also give a rigorous proof of the reorientation transition in the ground state of a 2D system of discrete dipoles with six possible orientations, interacting via a 3D dipole-dipole interaction plus a nearest neighbor antiferromagnetic term. As the strength of the antiferromagnetic term is increased the ground state flips from being striped and in-plane to being staggered and out-of-plane. An example of a rotator model with a sinusoidal ground state is also discussed.Comment: 20 pages, 1 figur

Administrative coordination in the implementation of agricultural nonpoint pollution controls

Control strategies for nonpoint source agricultural pollutants rely heavily on federal and state soil conservation agencies. Difficulties in accomplishing pollution control goals result from long standing administrative problems within conservation agencies and from the imposition of new goals that are unfamiliar, sometimes unpopular, difficult to detect, and mandated to soil conservation administrators. Difficulty in detection has caused most states to shy away from major nonpoint control programs. Soil loss has become a major proxy indicator for pollution problems. As a result, soil conservation districts bear the burden of abatement responsibilities. Decreases in federal funding and lack of additional state and local support in many areas raise doubts about district capabilities to carry out these responsibilities. Few states have gone beyond identification and planning activities for abating agricultural nonpoint pollutants. An idealized strategy can be envisioned. A multi-purpose resource management agency would exercise broad authority over land and water problems. State and federal funds would be allocated according to indicators of the severity of local problems. The management agency could require pollution control actions by landowners, with suitable compensation.U.S. Geological SurveyU.S. Department of the InteriorOpe

Magnetostrictive hysteresis of TbCo/CoFe multilayers and magnetic domains

Magnetic and magnetostrictive hysteresis loops of TbCo/CoFe multilayers under field applied along the hard magnetization axis are studied using vectorial magnetization measurements, optical deflectometry and magneto optical Kerr microscopy. Even a very small angle misalignment between hard axis and magnetic field direction is shown to drastically change the shape of magnetization and magnetostrictive torsion hysteresis loops. Two kinds of magnetic domains are revealed during the magnetization: big regions with opposite rotation of spontaneous magnetization vector and spontaneous magnetic domains which appear in a narrow field interval and provide an inversion of this rotation. We show that the details of the hysteresis loops of our exchange-coupled films can be described using the classical model of homogeneous magnetization rotation of single uniaxial films and the configuration of observed domains. The understanding of these features is crucial for applications (for MEMS or microactuators) which benefit from the greatly enhanced sensitivity near the point of magnetic saturation at the transverse applied field.Comment: 10 pages, 11 figure

The Application of Multispectral Techniques to Analytical Electron Microscopy

The York multispectral analytical electron microscope (MULSAM) was the first instrument specifically designed to acquire and process multiple Auger, X-ray, backscattered electron, elastically scattered electron, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and specimen absorption current images simultaneously. Analyzing combinations of these signals with multispectral correlation techniques yields more information than would normally be obtained by treating each image separately. This paper reports some of the multispectral methods we have investigated at York which may be of use to other workers. Included are (1) a method that corrects for beam current fluctuations during long acquisition runs which is based on the anti-correlation between SEM and specimen current images, (2) the classification of topography for crystalline specimens by correlation partitioning of backscattered electron images and (3) the enhancement of surface state contrast in multi spectral scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) images using the Hotelling transform. The last example is intended to demonstrate that these techniques can also be applied to other fields in microscopy

The soil electric potential signature of summer drought

During the period from late April to early August, a timeseries of soil electric potential measurements in the upper 15 cm of mineral soil were collected daily at the University of Michigan Botanical Gardens using an automatic data collection system. These data, after conversion to a surrogate measure of electrolyte concentration, provide a unique record of the 1988 summer drought in a continental location. The effects of rainfall-dewfall electrolyte dilution, evaporation-induced electrolyte concentration and upward-downward soil water advection are well-illustrated in the data. These observations demonstrate that soil electric potential is an easily measured variable of high information content, especially when collected with other system-linked environmental data.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/41671/1/704_2004_Article_BF00866203.pd

Domain wall formation and spin reorientation in finite-size magnetic systems

We investigate the formation of stable one-dimensional N\'eel walls in a ferromagnetic slab with finite thickness and finite width. Taking into account the dipolar, the exchange and the uniaxial anisotropic crystalline field interactions, we derive an approximative analytical self-consistent expression that gives the wall width in terms of ratios between the three different energy scales of the problem. We also show that, even when the crystalline anisotropy does not favour the formation of domain walls, they can yet be formed due to the dipolar interaction and the finiteness of the system. Moreover, using a Stoner-Wohlfarth approach, we study the magnetization reorientation inside the domains under the action of an external magnetic field and obtain the respective hysteresis loops, showing that their shapes change from squared to inclined as the width of the slab varies. Finally, we discuss possible applications of this model to describe qualitatively some recent experimental data on thin films of MnAs grown over GaAs substrates.Comment: 11 pages, 10 eps figure