Solution of the Holstein polaron anisotropy problem

We study Holstein polarons in three-dimensional anisotropic materials. Using a variational exact diagonalization technique we provide highly accurate results for the polaron mass and polaron radius. With these data we discuss the differences between polaron formation in dimension one and three, and at small and large phonon frequency. Varying the anisotropy we demonstrate how a polaron evolves from a one-dimensional to a three-dimensional quasiparticle. We thereby resolve the issue of polaron stability in quasi-one-dimensional substances and clarify to what extent such polarons can be described as one-dimensional objects. We finally show that even the local Holstein interaction leads to an enhancement of anisotropy in charge carrier motion.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures; extended version accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Polarons and slow quantum phonons

We describe the formation and properties of Holstein polarons in the entire parameter regime. Our presentation focuses on the polaron mass and radius, which we obtain with an improved numerical technique. It is based on the combination of variational exact diagonalization with an improved construction of phonon states, providing results even for the strong coupling adiabatic regime. In particular we can describe the formation of large and heavy adiabatic polarons. A comparison of the polaron mass for the one and three dimensional situation explains how the different properties in the static oscillator limit determine the behavior in the adiabatic regime. The transport properties of large and small polarons are characterized by the f-sum rule and the optical conductivity. Our calculations are approximation-free and have negligible numerical error. This allows us to give a conclusive and impartial description of polaron formation. We finally discuss the implications of our results for situations beyond the Holstein model.Comment: Final version, 10 pages, 10 figure

Nonlinear high-temperature superconducting terahertz metamaterials

We report the observation of a nonlinear terahertz response of split-ring resonator arrays made of high-temperature superconducting films. Intensity-dependent transmission measurements indicate that the resonance strength decreases dramatically (i.e. transient bleaching) and the resonance frequency shifts as the intensity is increased. Pump–probe measurements confirm this behaviour and reveal dynamics on the few-picosecond timescale.Los Alamos National Laboratory. Laboratory Directed Research and Development ProgramUnited States. Office of Naval Research (Grant N00014-09-1-1103)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (American Competitiveness in Chemistry Fellowship 1041979

Magnetic, electronic, and optical properties of double perovskite Bi2FeMnO6

Double perovskite Bi2FeMnO6 is a potential candidate for the single-phase multiferroic system. In this work, we study the magnetic, electronic, and optical properties in BFMO by performing the density functional theory calculations and experimental measurements of magnetic moment. We also demonstrate the strain dependence of magnetization. More importantly, our calculations of electronic and optical properties reveal that the onsite local correlation on Mn and Fe sites is critical to the gap opening in BFMO, which is a prerequisite condition for the ferroelectric ordering. Finally, we calculate the x-ray magnetic circular dichroism spectra of Fe and Mn ions (L2 and L3 edges) in BFMO