Changing times of feminism and higher education: From community to employability

This article discusses the creation of space and time for feminist approaches in higher education in the context of shifting community and employment relations and the restructuring of higher education space-time. It draws on the reflections of three feminist academics concerning aspects of their work biographies in two very different higher education settings. It explores the shift from working in an academic department concerned with community studies to one concerned with education and related employment. The article focuses on the attempt to sustain feminist practices through these changing times and settings and is informed by the work on time and space by Barbara Adam, Henri Lefebvre and Doreen Massey. © 2011 Taylor & Francis

Green's function theory of quasi-two-dimensional spin-half Heisenberg ferromagnets: stacked square versus stacked kagom\'e lattice

We consider the thermodynamic properties of the quasi-two-dimensional spin-half Heisenberg ferromagnet on the stacked square and the stacked kagom\'e lattices by using the spin-rotation-invariant Green's function method. We calculate the critical temperature $T_C$, the uniform static susceptibility $\chi$, the correlation lengths $\xi_\nu$ and the magnetization $M$ and investigate the short-range order above $T_C$. We find that $T_C$ and $M$ at $T>0$ are smaller for the stacked kagom\'e lattice which we attribute to frustration effects becoming relevant at finite temperatures.Comment: shortened version as published in PR

Absence of long-range order in a spin-half Heisenberg antiferromagnet on the stacked kagome lattice

We study the ground state of a spin-half Heisenberg antiferromagnet on the stacked kagome lattice by using a spin-rotation-invariant Green's-function method. Since the pure two-dimensional kagome antiferromagnet is most likely a magnetically disordered quantum spin liquid, we investigate the question whether the coupling of kagome layers in a stacked three-dimensional system may lead to a magnetically ordered ground state. We present spin-spin correlation functions and correlation lengths. For comparison we apply also linear spin wave theory. Our results provide strong evidence that the system remains short-range ordered independent of the sign and the strength of the interlayer coupling

The spin-1/2 square-lattice J_1-J_2 model: The spin-gap issue

We use the coupled cluster method to high orders of approximation in order to calculate the ground-state energy, the ground-state magnetic order parameter, and the spin gap of the spin-1/2 J_1-J_2 model on the square lattice. We obtain values for the transition points to the magnetically disordered quantum paramagnetic phase of J_2^{c1}=0.454J_1 and J_2^{c2}= 0.588 J_1. The spin gap is zero in the entire parameter region accessible by our approach, i.e. for J_2 \le 0.49J_1 and J_2 > 0.58J_1. This finding is in favor of a gapless spin-liquid ground state in this parameter regime.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, accepted versio

Thermodynamics of the frustrated J1J_1-J2J_2 Heisenberg ferromagnet on the body-centered cubic lattice with arbitrary spin

We use the spin-rotation-invariant Green's function method as well as the high-temperature expansion to discuss the thermodynamic properties of the frustrated spin-$S$ $J_{1}$-$J_{2}$ Heisenberg magnet on the body-centered cubic lattice. We consider ferromagnetic nearest-neighbor bonds $J_1 < 0$ and antiferromagnetic next-nearest-neighbor bonds $J_2 \ge 0$ and arbitrary spin $S$. We find that the transition point $J_2^c$ between the ferromagnetic ground state and the antiferromagnetic one is nearly independent of the spin $S$, i.e., it is very close to the classical transition point $J_2^{c,{\rm clas}}= \frac{2}{3}|J_1|$. At finite temperatures we focus on the parameter regime $J_2<J_2^c$ with a ferromagnetic ground-state. We calculate the Curie temperature $T_{C}(S,J_{2})$ and derive an empirical formula describing the influence of the frustration parameter $J_{2}$ and spin $S$ on $T_C$. We find that the Curie temperature monotonically decreases with increasing frustration $J_2$, where very close to $J_2^{c,{\rm clas}}$ the $T_C(J_2)$-curve exhibits a fast decay which is well described by a logarithmic term $1/\textrm{log}(\frac{2}{3}|J_1|-J_{2})$. To characterize the magnetic ordering below and above $T_C$, we calculate the spin-spin correlation functions $\langle {\bf S}_{\bf 0} {\bf S}_{\bf R} \rangle$, the spontaneous magnetization, the uniform static susceptibility $\chi_0$ as well as the correlation length $\xi$. Moreover, we discuss the specific heat $C_V$ and the temperature dependence of the excitation spectrum. As approaching the transition point $J_2^c$ some unusual features were found, such as negative spin-spin correlations at temperatures above $T_C$ even though the ground state is ferromagnetic or an increase of the spin stiffness with growing temperature.Comment: 19 pages, 10 figures, version as in EPJ

High-Order Coupled Cluster Calculations Via Parallel Processing: An Illustration For CaV4_4O9_9

The coupled cluster method (CCM) is a method of quantum many-body theory that may provide accurate results for the ground-state properties of lattice quantum spin systems even in the presence of strong frustration and for lattices of arbitrary spatial dimensionality. Here we present a significant extension of the method by introducing a new approach that allows an efficient parallelization of computer codes that carry out ``high-order'' CCM calculations. We find that we are able to extend such CCM calculations by an order of magnitude higher than ever before utilized in a high-order CCM calculation for an antiferromagnet. Furthermore, we use only a relatively modest number of processors, namely, eight. Such very high-order CCM calculations are possible {\it only} by using such a parallelized approach. An illustration of the new approach is presented for the ground-state properties of a highly frustrated two-dimensional magnetic material, CaV$_4$O$_9$. Our best results for the ground-state energy and sublattice magnetization for the pure nearest-neighbor model are given by $E_g/N=-0.5534$ and $M=0.19$, respectively, and we predict that there is no N\'eel ordering in the region $0.2 \le J_2/J_1 \le 0.7$. These results are shown to be in excellent agreement with the best results of other approximate methods.Comment: 4 page