3,810 research outputs found
Evidence of a bond-nematic phase in LiCuVO4
Polarized and unpolarized neutron scattering experiments on the frustrated
ferromagnetic spin-1/2 chain LiCuVO4 show that the phase transition at HQ of 8
Tesla is driven by quadrupolar fluctuations and that dipolar correlations are
short-range with moments parallel to the applied magnetic field in the
high-field phase. Heat-capacity measurements evidence a phase transition into
this high-field phase, with an anomaly clearly different from that at low
magnetic fields. Our experimental data are consistent with a picture where the
ground state above HQ has a next-nearest neighbour bond-nematic order along the
chains with a fluid-like coherence between weakly coupled chains.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures. To appear in Phys. Rev. Let
Energy transfer processes in Er-doped SiO2 sensitized with Si nanocrystals
We present a high-resolution photoluminescence study of Er-doped SiO2
sensitized with Si nanocrystals (Si NCs). Emission bands originating from
recombination of excitons confined in Si NCs and of internal transitions within
the 4f-electron core of Er3+ ions, and a band centered at lambda = 1200nm have
been identified. Their kinetics have been investigated in detail. Based on
these measurements, we present a comprehensive model for energy transfer
mechanisms responsible for light generation in this system. A unique picture of
energy flow between subsystems of Er3+ and Si NCs is developed, yielding truly
microscopic information on the sensitization effect and its limitations. In
particular, we show that most of the Er3+ ions available in the system are
participating in the energy exchange. The long standing problem of apparent
loss of optical activity of majority of Er dopants upon sensitization with Si
NCs is clarified and assigned to appearance of a very efficient energy exchange
mechanism between Si NCs and Er3+ ions. Application potential of SiO2:Er
sensitized by Si NCs is discussed in view of the newly acquired microscopic
insight.Comment: 30 pages 13 figure
Extreme vortex pinning in the non-centrosymmetric superconductor CePtSi
We report on the vortex dynamics of a single crystal of the
non-centrosymmetric heavy-fermion superconductor CePtSi. Decays of the
remnant magnetization display a clean logarithmic time dependence with rates
that follow the temperature dependence expected from the Kim-Anderson theory.
The creep rates are lower than observed in any other centrosymmetric
superconductor and are not caused by high critical currents. On the contrary,
the critical current in CePtSi is considerably lower than in other
superconductors with strong vortex pinning indicating that an alternative
impediment on the flux line motion might be at work in this superconductor.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure
Anisotropic Exchange in LiCuVO probed by ESR
We investigated the paramagnetic resonance in single crystals of LiCuVO
with special attention to the angular variation of the absorption spectrum. To
explain the large resonance linewidth of the order of 1 kOe, we analyzed the
anisotropic exchange interaction in the chains of edge-sharing CuO
octahedra, taking into account the ring-exchange geometry of the
nearest-neighbor coupling via two symmetric rectangular Cu-O bonds. The
exchange parameters, which can be estimated from theoretical considerations,
nicely agree with the parameters obtained from the angular dependence of the
linewidth. The anisotropy of this magnetic ring exchange is found to be much
larger than it is usually expected from conventional estimations which neglect
the bonding geometry. Hence, the data yield the evidence that in copper oxides
with edge-sharing structures the role of the orbital degrees of freedom is
strongly enhanced. These findings establish LiCuVO as one-dimensional
compound at high temperatures.
PACS: 76.30.-v, 76.30.Fc, 75.30.EtComment: 18 pages, 6 figure
Kondo Insulator to Semimetal Transformation Tuned by Spin-Orbit Coupling
Recent theoretical studies of topologically nontrivial electronic states in
Kondo insulators have pointed to the importance of spin-orbit coupling (SOC)
for stabilizing these states. However, systematic experimental studies that
tune the SOC parameter in Kondo insulators remain elusive.
The main reason is that variations of (chemical) pressure or doping strongly
influence the Kondo coupling and the chemical potential --
both essential parameters determining the ground state of the material -- and
thus possible tuning effects have remained unnoticed. Here
we present the successful growth of the substitution series
CeBi(PtPd) () of the archetypal
(noncentrosymmetric) Kondo insulator CeBiPt. The Pt-Pd substitution
is isostructural, isoelectronic, and isosize, and therefore likely to leave
and essentially unchanged. By contrast, the large mass
difference between the element Pt and the element Pd leads to a large
difference in , which thus is the dominating tuning
parameter in the series. Surprisingly, with increasing (decreasing
), we observe a Kondo insulator to semimetal transition,
demonstrating an unprecedented drastic influence of the SOC. The fully
substituted end compound CeBiPd shows thermodynamic signatures of a
recently predicted Weyl-Kondo semimetal.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures plus Supplemental Materia
New high magnetic field phase of the frustrated chain compound LiCuVO
Magnetization of the frustrated chain compound LiCuVO, focusing
on high magnetic field phases, is reported. Besides a spin-flop transition and
the transition from a planar spiral to a spin modulated structure observed
recently, an additional transition was observed just below the saturation
field. This newly observed magnetic phase is considered as a spin nematic
phase, which was predicted theoretically but was not observed experimentally.
The critical fields of this phase and its dM/dH curve are in good agreement
with calculations performed in a microscopic model (M. E. Zhitomirsky and H.
Tsunetsugu, preprint, arXiv:1003.4096v2).Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Ion counting efficiencies at the IGISOL facility
At the IGISOL-JYFLTRAP facility, fission mass yields can be studied at high
precision. Fission fragments from a U target are passing through a Ni foil and
entering a gas filled chamber. The collected fragments are guided through a
mass separator to a Penning trap where their masses are identified. This
simulation work focuses on how different fission fragment properties (mass,
charge and energy) affect the stopping efficiency in the gas cell. In addition,
different experimental parameters are varied (e. g. U and Ni thickness and He
gas pressure) to study their impact on the stopping efficiency. The simulations
were performed using the Geant4 package and the SRIM code. The main results
suggest a small variation in the stopping efficiency as a function of mass,
charge and kinetic energy. It is predicted that heavy fragments are stopped
about 9% less efficiently than the light fragments. However it was found that
the properties of the U, Ni and the He gas influences this behavior. Hence it
could be possible to optimize the efficiency.Comment: 52 pages, 44 figure
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