39 research outputs found
SURVEY OF THE DEPENDENCE ON TEMPERATURE OF THE COERCIVITY OF GARNET-FILMS
The temperature dependence of the domain-wall coercive field of epitaxial magnetic garnets films
has been investigated in the entire temperature range of the ferrimagnetic phase, and has been found
to be described by a set of parametric exponents. In subsequent temperature regions different slopes
were observed, with breaking points whose position was found to be sample dependent. A survey
ba.ed on literature Data as well as on a large number of our own samples shows the general
existence of this piecewise exponential dependence and the presence of the breaking points. This
type of domain-wall coercive field temperature dependence was found in all samples in the large
family of the epitaxial garnets (about 30 specimens of more than ten chemical compositionsj and
also in another strongly anisotropic material (TbFeCo)
Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy in MgB2
We present scanning tunneling microscopy measurements of the surface of
superconducting MgB2 with a critical temperature of 39K. In zero magnetic field
the conductance spectra can be analyzed in terms of the standard BCS theory
with a smearing parameter Gamma. The value of the superconducting gap is 5.2
meV at 4.2 K, with no experimentally significant variation across the surface
of the sample. The temperature dependence of the gap follows the BCS form,
fully consistent with phonon-mediated superconductivity in this novel
superconductor. The application of a magnetic field induces strong
pair-breaking as seen in the conductance spectra in fields up to 6 T.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Giant anharmonicity and non-linear electron-phonon coupling in MgB; A combined first-principles calculations and neutron scattering study
We report first-principles calculations of the electronic band structure and
lattice dynamics for the new superconductor MgB. The excellent agreement
between theory and our inelastic neutron scattering measurements of the phonon
density of states gives confidence that the calculations provide a sound
description of the physical properties of the system. The numerical results
reveal that the in-plane boron phonons (with E symmetry) near the
zone-center are very anharmonic, and are strongly coupled to the partially
occupied planar B bands near the Fermi level. This giant anharmonicity
and non-linear electron-phonon coupling is key to explaining the observed high
T and boron isotope effect in MgBComment: In this revised version (to appear in PRL) we also discuss the boron
isotope effect. Please visit http://www.ncnr.nist.gov/staff/taner/mgb2 for
detail
A magnetization and B NMR study of MgAlB superconductors
We demonstrate for the first time the magnetic field distribution of the pure
vortex state in lightly doped MgAlB () powder
samples, by using B NMR in magnetic fields of 23.5 and 47 kOe. The
magnetic field distribution at T=5 K is Al-doping dependent, revealing a
considerable decrease of anisotropy in respect to pure MgB. This result
correlates nicely with magnetization measurements and is consistent with
-band hole driven superconductivity for MgB
B NMR study of pure and lightly carbon doped MgB superconductors
We report a B NMR line shape and spin-lattice relaxation rate
() study of pure and lightly carbon doped MgBC for
, 0.02, and 0.04, in the vortex state and in magnetic field of 23.5 kOe.
We show that while pure MgB exhibits the magnetic field distribution from
superposition of the normal and the Abrikosov state, slight replacement of
boron with carbon unveils the magnetic field distribution of the pure Abrikosov
state. This indicates a considerable increase of with carbon doping
with respect to pure MgB. The spin-lattice relaxation rate
demonstrates clearly the presence of a coherence peak right below in pure
MgB, followed by a typical BCS decrease on cooling. However, at
temperatures lower than K strong deviation from the BCS behavior is
observed, probably from residual contribution of the vortex dynamics. In the
carbon doped systems both the coherence peak and the BCS temperature dependence
of weaken, an effect attributed to the gradual shrinking of the
hole cylinders of the Fermi surface with electron doping.Comment: 8 pages, 6 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Superconducting properties and c-axis superstructure of Mg1-xAlxB2
The superconducting and structural properties of a series of Mg1-xAlxB2
samples have been investigated. X-ray diffraction results confirmed the
existence of a structural transition associated with the significant change in
inter-boron layer distance as reported previously by Slusky et al.
Moreover,transmission-electron-microscopy observations revealed the existence
of a superstructure with doubled lattice constant along the c-axis direction.
We propose that this superstructure is essentially related to the structural
transition. The modifications of superconducting transition temperature Tc, the
normal state resistivity, and the upper critical field Bc2 by Al doping are
discussed in terms of Al-substitution induced changes in the electronic
structure at the Fermi energy.Comment: 15 pages, 7 figure
Electric field gradients in s-, p- and d-metal diborides and the effect of pressure on the band structure and T in MgB
Results of FLMTO-GGA (full-potential linear muffin-tin orbital -- generalized
gradient approximation) calculations of the band structure and boron electric
field gradients (EFG) for the new medium-T superconductor (MTSC), MgB,
and related diborides MB, M=Be, Al, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mo and Ta are reported.
The boron EFG variations are found to be related to specific features of their
band structure and particularly to the M-B hybridization. The strong charge
anisotropy at the B site in MgB is completely defined by the valence
electrons - a property which sets MgB apart from other diborides. The boron
EFG in MgB is weakly dependent of applied pressure: the B p electron
anisotropy increases with pressure, but it is partly compensated by the
increase of core charge assymetry. The concentration of holes in bonding
bands is found to decrease slightly from 0.067 to 0.062 holes/B under
a pressure of 10 GPa. Despite a small decrease of N(E), the Hopfield
parameter increases with pressure and we believe that the main reason for the
reduction under pressure of the superconducting transition temperature, T,
is the strong pressure dependence of phonon frequencies, which is sufficient to
compensate the electronic effects.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figure
Associations between self-reported pest treatments and pesticide concentrations in carpet dust
BACKGROUND: Recent meta-analyses demonstrate an association between self-reported residential pesticide use and childhood leukemia risk. Self-reports may suffer from recall bias and provide information only on broad pesticide categories. We compared parental self-reported home and garden pest treatments to pesticides measured in carpet dust. METHODS: Parents of 277 children with leukemia and 306 controls in Northern and Central California (2001–2007) were asked about insect and weed treatments during the previous year. Carpet dust samples were analyzed for 47 pesticides. We present results for the 7 insecticides (carbaryl, propoxur, chlorpyrifos, diazinon, cyfluthrin, cypermethrin, permethrin), 5 herbicides (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid [2,4-D], chlorthal, dicamba, mecoprop, simazine), and 1 synergist (piperonyl butoxide) that were present in home and garden products during the study period and were detected in ≥25% of carpet dust samples. We constructed linear regression models for the relative change in pesticide concentrations associated with self-reported treatment of pest types in cases and controls separately and combined, adjusting for demographics, housing characteristics, and nearby agricultural pesticide applications. RESULTS: Several self-reported treatments were associated with pesticide concentrations in dust. For example, households with flea/tick treatments had 2.3 (95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 1.4, 3.7) times higher permethrin concentrations than households not reporting this treatment. Households reporting treatment for ants/cockroaches had 2.5 (95% CI: 1.5, 4.2) times higher cypermethrin levels than households not reporting this treatment. Weed treatment by a household member was associated with 1.9 (1.4, 2.6), 2.2 (1.6, 3.1), and 2.8 (2.1, 3.7) times higher dust concentrations of dicamba, mecoprop, and 2,4-D, respectively. Weed treatments by professional applicators were null/inversely associated with herbicide concentrations in dust. Associations were generally similar between cases and controls and were consistent with pesticide active ingredients in these products during the study time period. CONCLUSIONS: Consistency between self-reported pest treatments, concentrations in dust, and pesticides in products lends credibility to the exposure assessment methods and suggests that differential recall by case–control status is minimal. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12940-015-0015-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users