949 research outputs found
High multipole transitions in NIXS: valence and hybridization in 4f systems
Momentum-transfer (q) dependent non-resonant inelastic x-ray scattering
measurements were made at the N4,5 edges for several rare earth compounds. With
increasing q, giant dipole resonances diminish, to be replaced by strong
multiplet lines at lower energy transfer. These multiplets result from two
different orders of multipole scattering and are distinct for systems with
simple 4f^0 and 4f^1 initial states. A many-body theoretical treatment of the
multiplets agrees well with the experimental data on ionic La and Ce phosphate
reference compounds. Comparing measurements on CeO2 and CeRh3 to the theory and
the phosphates indicates sensitivity to hybridization as observed by a
broadening of 4f^0-related multiplet features. We expect such strong, nondipole
features to be generic for NIXS from f-electron systems
Two-dimensional superconductor-insulator transition in bulk single-crystal YBa_2Cu_3O_(6.38)
We use a magnetic field to tune a highly anisotropic single crystal of oxygen-deficient YBa_2Cu_3O_(7-δ) with a transition temperature of 2 K through the superconductor-insulator transition. The sheet resistance scales with temperature, 0.05≤T≤1.0 K, and field, 0≤H≤94 kOe, in a manner predicted by a theory for quantum phase transitions in disordered two-dimensional superconductors
The local electronic structure of alpha-Li3N
New theoretical and experimental investigation of the occupied and unoccupied
local electronic density of states (DOS) are reported for alpha-Li3N. Band
structure and density functional theory calculations confirm the absence of
covalent bonding character. However, real-space full-multiple-scattering
(RSFMS) calculations of the occupied local DOS finds less extreme nominal
valences than have previously been proposed. Nonresonant inelastic x-ray
scattering (NRIXS), RSFMS calculations, and calculations based on the
Bethe-Salpeter equation are used to characterize the unoccupied electronic
final states local to both the Li and N sites. There is good agreement between
experiment and theory. Throughout the Li 1s near-edge region, both experiment
and theory find strong similarities in the s- and p-type components of the
unoccupied local final density of states projected onto an orbital angular
momentum basis (l-DOS). An unexpected, significant correspondence exists
between the near-edge spectra for the Li 1s and N 1s initial states. We argue
that both spectra are sampling essentially the same final density of states due
to the combination of long core-hole lifetimes, long photoelectron lifetimes,
and the fact that orbital angular momentum is the same for all relevant initial
states. Such considerations may be generically applicable for low atomic number
compounds.Comment: 34 pages, 7 figures, 1 tabl
Vanishing magnetization relaxation in the high field quantum limit in YBa_2Cu_3O_(7-δ)
We have investigated the magnetic response of untwinned single crystals of YBa_2Cu_3O_(7-δ) at millikelvin temperatures using a Bi thin film magnetometer of micron dimensions. Below T=0.8 K, the magnetization relaxation rate S crosses over from thermally activated to quantum behavior. Above a sharply defined and strongly temperature-dependent threshold field, S disappears altogether. In concert with the vanishing magnetization relaxation, discrete steps appear in the magnetic hysteresis B(H), each of which corresponds to the `'stick-slip'' motion of 10^3 vortices under the magnetometer
A Comparative Study of the Valence Electronic Excitations of N_2 by Inelastic X-ray and Electron Scattering
Bound state, valence electronic excitation spectra of N_2 are probed by
nonresonant inelastic x-ray and electron scattering. Within the usual
theoretical treatments, dynamical structure factors derived from the two probes
should be identical. However, we find strong disagreements outside the dipole
scattering limit, even at high probe energies. This suggests an unexpectedly
important contribution from intra-molecular multiple scattering of the probe
electron from core electrons or the nucleus. These effects should grow
progressively stronger as the atomic number of the target species increases.Comment: Submitted to Physical Review Letters April 27, 2010. 12 pages
including 2 figure pages
- …