Voltage-induced modification in magnetic coercivity of patterned Co50Fe50 thin film on piezoelectric substrate

A controlled modulation of magnetic properties through the inverse piezoelectric (PE) effect was investigated by means of the magneto-optical Kerr effect magnetometry in a periodic array of ferromagnetic (FM) Co₅₀Fe₅₀ stripes patterned on a commercial PE substrate. The coercive field (_Hc)$(H_{\mathrm{c}})$ rise (up to 80% in virgin cycle and 25% in subsequent cycles) when a DC electric field (up to 75 kV/cm) is applied on the PE substrate manifests a magnetoelectric coupling between the PE substrate and adjacent FM layer. The electric field dependence of _Hc$H_{\mathrm{c}}$ resembles the shear strain response to electric field of the PE constituent. The differences in the hysteresis loops shape when the magnetic field is oriented parallel and perpendicular to the stripes, reveal the interplay of the shape and stress anisotropy of the ferromagnet. Besides the inherent difficulties on constructing, an epitaxial hybrid system is a promising candidate of future random access memories designation.     

Vibrational and rotational bound states in floppy triatomic systems: The distributed Gaussian functions approach

A variational method based on the use of bond coordinates and of a basis set expansion described by distributed Gaussian functions (DGF) is reviewed for its applications to the study of weakly bound triatomic clusters. This approach will be shown to be particularly well suited to treat very diffuse states as those presented by Noble gas (Ng) containing systems like the Ng₃, and Ng₂X, with X being also a very weakly bound atomic impurity. Several statistical properties such as radial distributions, sizes and dominance of triangular configurations for the corresponding bound states are shown to be directly obtained with this method over the whole spectrum of the floppy cluster bound states, in both the rotationless case and also when special care is taken to define rotational constants to yield rovibrational states and their energy levels.     

Photoemission and coincidence studies on gas-phase molecules

This article describes Young’s double-slit experiment using high-energy core-level photoemission from N₂ molecules and experimental identification of interatomic Coulombic decay in Ar₂ dimers after Auger decay using k-resolved electron–ion–ion coincidence spectroscopy, aiming to illustrate the leading edge of gas-phase experiments using synchrotron radiation.     

Magnetism of Fe,Co, and Ni nanowires encapsulated in carbon nanotubes

We have investigated the electronic and magnetic properties of Fe, Co, and Ni nanowires encapsulated in carbon nanotubes (CNTs) using spin polarized ab initio calculation. The incorporated systems with hollow region between the nanowire and the C shell have the enhanced magnetic moments compared to the ferromagnetic nanowires tightly wrapped by CNTs. The Co nanowire encapsulated in CNTs is a strong ferromagnet and has high spin polarization regardless of the distance between the nanowire and the C shell. The results show that the Co-filled CNTs are useful for spin polarized transport nanodevice.     

Thermodynamics of the small clusters: The Gibbs free-energy derivation for the Honmura–Kaneyoshi method

A cluster density matrix is proposed for calculation of the thermodynamic averages in the effective field theory with correlations. On this basis, derivation of the Gibbs free-energy for the Honmura–Kaneyoshi method is made.     

Quantum critical behaviour in Ce3Pd20Si6?

The cage compound Ce₃Pd₂₀Si₆ has recently been shown to undergo two successive low-temperature phase transitions which are strongly affected by an applied magnetic field. Here we show that, as the lower, probably antiferromagnetic transition is suppressed to zero in a field slightly above 1 T, the electrical resistivity shows a non-Fermi-liquid-like linear-in-T   temperature dependence while it follows the usual Fermi liquid T²$T^2$ temperature dependence both at smaller and larger fields. This suggests that a field-induced quantum critical point exists in Ce₃Pd₂₀Si₆.     

Magnetism of Co overlayers and nanostructures on W(0 0 1): A first-principles study

The magnetic properties of Co nanostructures and a Co monolayer on W(0 0 1) have been studied in the framework of density functional theory. Different geometries such as planar and three-dimensional clusters have been considered, with cluster sizes varying between 2 and 13 atoms. The calculations were performed using the real-space linear muffin-tin orbital method (RS-LMTO-ASA). With respect to the stability of the magnetic state, we predict an antiferromagnetic (AFM) structure for the ground state of the planar Co clusters and a ferromagnetic (FM) state for the three-dimensional clusters. For the three-dimensional clusters, one of the AFM arrangements leads to frustration due to the competing FM and AFM exchange interactions between different atoms in the cluster, and gives rise to a non-collinear state with energy close to that of the FM ground state. The relative role of the Co–Co and Co–W exchange interactions is also investigated.     

Three layers of neutrinos

In this Letter we point out that in a class of models for spontaneous R-parity breaking based on gauged B−L$B-L$, the spectrum for neutrinos is quite peculiar. We find that those models generally predict three layers of neutrinos: one heavy sterile neutrino, two massive active neutrinos, and three nearly massless (one active and two sterile) neutrinos.     

The phenomenology of Dvali–Gabadadze–Porrati cosmologies

Cosmologists today are confronted with the perplexing reality that the universe is currently accelerating in its expansion. Nevertheless, the nature of the fuel that drives today's cosmic acceleration is an open and tantalizing mystery. There exists the intriguing possibility that the acceleration is not the manifestation of yet another mysterious ingredient in the cosmic gas tank (dark energy), but rather our first real lack of understanding of gravity itself, and even possibly a signal that there might exist dimensions beyond that which we can currently observe. The braneworld model of Dvali, Gabadadze and Porrati (DGP) is a theory where gravity is altered at immense distances by the excruciatingly slow leakage of gravity off our three-dimensional Universe and, as a modified-gravity theory, has pioneered this line of investigation. I review the underlying structure of DGP gravity and those phenomenological developments relevant to cosmologists interested in a pedagogical treatment of this intriguing model.     

Magnetic properties of Co–Si alloy clusters

We have investigated the electronic structure and the magnetic properties of Co–Si alloy clusters using ab initio spin-polarized density functional calculations. The possible CoSi₂, CoSi, and Co₂Si phase clusters with oblique hexagon prism, icosahedron, and cuboctahedron structures are introduced. The CoSi phase cluster with icosahedron structure has the largest binding energy and amount of charge transfer. We found that HOMO-LUMO gap, magnetic moment, and spin polarization for the Co–Si alloy clusters with icosahedron structure increase with Co concentration. The Si atoms in the CoSi phase with icosahedron structure have negative magnetic moment.     

Multiscale modeling of the magneto-mechanical behavior of grain-oriented silicon steels

The prediction of the magnetic and magnetostrictive behavior of grain-oriented (GO) silicon steels is discussed. An experimental procedure for the measurement of the magneto-mechanical quantities is first detailed. Experimental measurements of the anhysteretic magnetization and magnetostriction are compared to results from the literature. A multiscale model, based on an energetic approach and infinite medium hypothesis, is used. Significant discrepancies between experiments and predictions are highlighted. The specimen shape combined to large grain size induces some strong boundary (surface) conditions leading to a change in the definition of the local potential energy. A specific demagnetizing term is introduced in the definition of the potential energy, creating an initial heterogeneous distribution of the magnetic domains and saturating the magnetostriction along the rolling direction. This modification strongly increases the ability of the model to predict the magneto-mechanical behavior of GO steels.     

Single-domain versus two-domain configuration in thin ferromagnetic prisms

Thin ferromagnetic elements in the form of rectangular prisms are theoretically investigated in order to study the transition from single-domain to two-domain state, with changing the in-plane aspect ratio p  . We address two main questions: first, how general is the transition; second, how the critical value _pc$p_{\mathrm{c}}$ depends on the physical parameters. We use two complementary methods: discrete-lattice calculations and a micromagnetic continuum approach. Ultrathin films do not appear to split in two domains. Instead, thicker films may undergo the above transition. We have used the continuum approach to analyze recent magnetic force microscopy observations in 30 nm-thick patterned permalloy elements, finding a good agreement for _pc$p_{\mathrm{c}}$.     

The method of increments—a wavefunction-based ab initio correlation method for solids

An overview of wavefunction-based correlation methods generalised for the application to solids is presented. Those methods based on a preceding Hartree–Fock treatment explicitly calculate the many-body wavefunction in contrast to the density-functional theory which relies on the ground-state density of the system. This review focus on the so-called method of increments where the correlation energy of the solid is expanded in terms of localised orbitals or of a group of localised orbitals. The method of increments is applied to a great variety of materials, from covalent semiconductors to ionic insulators, from large band-gap materials like diamond to the half-metal α$\alpha$-tin, from large molecules like fullerenes over polymers, graphite to three-dimensional solids. Rare-gas crystals where the binding is van der Waals like are treated as well as solid mercury, where the metallic binding is entirely due to correlation. Strongly correlated systems are examined and the correlation driven metal–insulator transition is described at an ab initio level.     

Inverse photoemission spectroscopy of the unoccupied electronic structure of Na/Cu(110)

The unoccupied electronic states of Na thin films on a Cu(110) substrate have been measured by inverse photoemission spectroscopy (IPES). The IPES spectrum provides the intensity of the unoccupied states, which decreases with increasing Na coverage at off-normal incidence of the electron beam. The IPES spectra at 17 and 19 eV incident electron energies show a shift towards the Fermi level with increasing Na coverage for the peak at ∼7.8 eV.     

Maximum entropy production principle in physics,chemistry and biology

The tendency of the entropy to a maximum as an isolated system is relaxed to the equilibrium (the second law of thermodynamics) has been known since the mid-19th century. However, independent theoretical and applied studies, which suggested the maximization of the entropy production during nonequilibrium processes (the so-called maximum entropy production principle, MEPP), appeared in the 20th century. Publications on this topic were fragmented and different research teams, which were concerned with this principle, were unaware of studies performed by other scientists. As a result, the recognition and the use of MEPP by a wider circle of researchers were considerably delayed. The objectives of the present review consist in summation and analysis of studies dealing with MEPP. The first part of the review is concerned with the thermodynamic and statistical basis of the principle (including the relationship of MEPP with the second law of thermodynamics and Prigogine's principle). Various existing applications of the principle to analysis of nonequilibrium systems will be discussed in the second part.     

Connection between microstructure and magnetic properties of soft magnetic materials

The magnetic behavior of soft magnetic materials is discussed with some emphasis on the connection between macroscopic properties and underlying micromagnetic energy aspects. It is shown that important conceptual gaps still exist in the interpretation of macroscopic magnetic properties in terms of the micromagnetic formulation. Different aspects of hysteresis modeling, power loss prediction and magnetic non-destructive evaluation are discussed in this perspective.     

Electronic structure and anomalous photoemission line-shape of quasi-2D oxide η-Mo4O11

The η-Mo₄O₁₁ compound is a layered two-dimensional (2D) metallic system whose reduced dimensionality originates non-linear properties as charge density wave (CDW) instabilities. We report on synchrotron radiation angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) measurements in order to obtain a detailed picture of the electronic structure of this material. The symmetry of the states near the Fermi level (E_F) has been discussed in relation to the photoemission symmetry selections rules. Our results are in excellent agreement with previous tight-binding calculations and support the hidden nesting concept proposed to explain the CDW instabilities exhibited by this family of compounds. In addition, a very peculiar photoemission line-shape has been found with the presence of localized non-dispersive states. Some possible explanations are discussed.     

Measurements of magnetostriction of paramagnetic Fe–Mo–Cu–B metallic glasses

Magnetostriction of amorphous Fe₇₉Mo₈Cu₁B₁₂, (Fe₁₂Co₁)₇₉Mo₈Cu₁B₁₂ and (Fe₉Co₁)₇₉Mo₈Cu₁B₁₂ prepared by planar flow casting was measured using a direct method. The results indicate that magnetostriction in parallel (_λ∥)$({\lambda }_{\parallel })$ and perpendicular (_λ⊥)$({\lambda }_{\perp })$ directions of applied magnetic field is linearly dependent on magnetic field. In order to determine the influences of chemical composition and the conditions of sample preparation the magnetostriction of pure BCC-Fe, Cu and Mo were also measured. Samples containing Co with Curie temperatures slightly above room temperatures were shown to exhibit a hybrid magnetostriction behaviour with both ferromagnetic and paramagnetic features.     

Comparative photoemission study of the electronic properties of L-CVD SnO2 thin films

In this work we present the results of comparative XPS and PYS studies of electronic properties of the space charge layer of the L-CVD SnO₂ thin films after air exposure and subsequent UHV annealing at 400 °C, with a special emphasis on the interface Fermi level position.From the centre of gravity of binding energy of the main XPS Sn 3d_5/2 line the interface Fermi level position E_F − E_v in the band gap has been determined. It was in a good correlation with the value estimated from the offset of valence band region of the XPS spectrum, as well as from the photoemission yield spectroscopy (PYS) measurements. Moreover, from the valence band region of the XPS spectrum and PYS spectrum two different types of filled electronic band gap states of the L-CVD SnO₂ thin films have been derived, located at 6 and 3 eV with respect to the Fermi level.