524 research outputs found
Electronic and phonon excitations in {\alpha}-RuCl
We report on THz, infrared reflectivity and transmission experiments for wave
numbers from 10 to 8000 cm ( 1 meV - 1 eV) and for temperatures
from 5 to 295 K on the Kitaev candidate material {\alpha}-RuCl. As reported
earlier, the compound under investigation passes through a first-order
structural phase transition, from a monoclinic high-temperature to a
rhombohedral low-temperature phase. The phase transition shows an extreme and
unusual hysteretic behavior, which extends from 60 to 166 K. In passing this
phase transition, in the complete frequency range investigated we found a
significant reflectance change, which amounts almost a factor of two. We
provide a broadband spectrum of dielectric constant, dielectric loss and
optical conductivity from the THz to the mid infrared regime and study in
detail the phonon response and the low-lying electronic density of states. We
provide evidence for the onset of an optical energy gap, which is of order 200
meV, in good agreement with the gap derived from measurements of the DC
electrical resistivity. Remarkably, the onset of the gap exhibits a strong blue
shift on increasing temperatures.Comment: 18 pages, 7 figure
Capability of C-band SAR for operational wetland monitoring at high latitudes
Wetlands store large amounts of carbon, and depending on their status and type, they release specific amounts of methane gas to the atmosphere. The connection between wetland type and methane emission has been investigated in various studies and utilized in climate change monitoring and modelling. For improved estimation of methane emissions, land surface models require information such as the wetland fraction and its dynamics over large areas. Existing datasets of wetland dynamics present the total amount of wetland (fraction) for each model grid cell, but do not discriminate the different wetland types like permanent lakes, periodically inundated areas or peatlands. Wetland types differently influence methane fluxes and thus their contribution to the total wetland fraction should be quantified. Especially wetlands of permafrost regions are expected to have a strong impact on future climate due to soil thawing. In this study ENVISAT ASAR Wide Swath data was tested for operational monitoring of the distribution of areas with a long-term SW near 1 (hSW) in northern Russia (SW = degree of saturation with water, 1 = saturated), which is a specific characteristic of peatlands. For the whole northern Russia, areas with hSW were delineated and discriminated from dynamic and open water bodies for the years 2007 and 2008. The area identified with this method amounts to approximately 300,000 km2 in northern Siberia in 2007. It overlaps with zones of high carbon storage. Comparison with a range of related datasets (static and dynamic) showed that hSW represents not only peatlands but also temporary wetlands associated with post-forest fire conditions in permafrost regions. Annual long-term monitoring of change in boreal and tundra environments is possible with the presented approach. Sentinel-1, the successor of ENVISAT ASAR, will provide data that may allow continuous monitoring of these wetland dynamics in the future complementing global observations of wetland fraction
Optical conductivity in multiferroic GaVS and GeVS: Phonons and electronic transitions
We report on optical spectroscopy on the lacunar spinels GaVS and
GeVS in the spectral range from 100 to 23000 cm and for
temperatures from 5 to 300 K. These multiferroic spinel systems reveal
Jahn-Teller driven ferroelectricity and complex magnetic order at low
temperatures. We study the infrared-active phonon modes and the low-lying
electronic excitations in the cubic high-temperature phase, as well as in the
orbitally and in the magnetically ordered low-temperature phases. We compare
the phonon modes in these two compounds, which undergo different
symmetry-lowering Jahn-Teller transitions into ferroelectric and orbitally
ordered phases, and exhibit different magnetic ground states. We follow the
splitting of the phonon modes at the structural phase transition and detect
additional splittings at the onset of antiferromagnetic order in GeVS.
We observe electronic transitions within the -derived bands of the V
clusters and document a significant influence of the structural and magnetic
phase transitions on the narrow electronic band gaps.Comment: 12 pages, 10 figure
Motion Sickness Treatment Apparatus and Method
Methods and apparatus are disclosed for treating motion sickness. In a preferred embodiment a method of the invention comprises operating eyewear having shutter lenses to open said shutter lenses at a selected operating frequency ranging from within about 3 Hz to about 50 Hz. The shutter lenses are opened for a short duration at the selected operating frequency wherein the duration is selected to prevent retinal slip. The shutter lenses may be operated at a relatively slow frequency of about 4 Hz when the user is in passive activity such as riding in a boat or car or in limited motion situations in a spacecraft. The shutter lenses may be operated at faster frequencies related to motion of the user's head when the user is active
Magnetic Excitations and Continuum of a Field-Induced Quantum Spin Liquid in -RuCl
We report on terahertz spectroscopy of quantum spin dynamics in
-RuCl, a system proximate to the Kitaev honeycomb model, as a
function of temperature and magnetic field. An extended magnetic continuum
develops below the structural phase transition at K. With the onset
of a long-range magnetic order at K, spectral weight is transferred to
a well-defined magnetic excitation at meV, which is
accompanied by a higher-energy band at meV. Both
excitations soften in magnetic field, signaling a quantum phase transition at
T where we find a broad continuum dominating the dynamical response.
Above , the long-range order is suppressed, and on top of the continuum,
various emergent magnetic excitations evolve. These excitations follow clear
selection rules and exhibit distinct field dependencies, characterizing the
dynamical properties of the field-induced quantum spin liquid
Sub-gap optical response across the structural phase transition in van der Waals layered \alpha-RuCl
We report magnetic, thermodynamic, thermal expansion, and on detailed optical
experiments on the layered compound -RuCl focusing on the THz and
sub-gap optical response across the structural phase transition from the
monoclinic high-temperature to the rhombohedral low-temperature structure,
where the stacking sequence of the molecular layers is changed. This type of
phase transition is characteristic for a variety of tri-halides crystallizing
in a layered honeycomb-type structure and so far is unique, as the
low-temperature phase exhibits the higher symmetry. One motivation is to
unravel the microscopic nature of spin-orbital excitations via a study of
temperature and symmetry-induced changes. We document a number of highly
unusual findings: A characteristic two-step hysteresis of the structural phase
transition, accompanied by a dramatic change of the reflectivity. An electronic
excitation, which appears in a narrow temperature range just across the
structural phase transition, and a complex dielectric loss spectrum in the THz
regime, which could indicate remnants of Kitaev physics. Despite significant
symmetry changes across the monoclinic to rhombohedral phase transition, phonon
eigenfrequencies and the majority of spin-orbital excitations are not strongly
influenced. Obviously, the symmetry of the single molecular layers determine
the eigenfrequencies of most of these excitations. Finally, from this combined
terahertz, far- and mid-infrared study we try to shed some light on the so far
unsolved low energy (< 1eV) electronic structure of the ruthenium
electrons in -RuCl.Comment: 22 pages, 9 figure
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