Study of the peak effect phenomenon in single crystals of 2H-NbSe2

The weakly pinned single crystals of the hexagonal 2H-NbSe₂ compound have emerged as prototypes for determining and characterizing the phase boundaries of the possible order-disorder transformations in the vortex matter. We present here a status report based on the ac and dc magnetization measurements of the peak effect phenomenon in three crystals of 2H-NbSe₂, in which the critical current densities vary over two orders of magnitude. We sketch the generic vortex phase diagram of a weakly pinned superconductor, which also utilizes theoretical proposals. We also establish the connection between the metastability effects and pinning.     

Shaping Solid-State Supramolecular Cavities: Chemically Induced Accordionlike Movement of gamma-Zirconium Phosphate Containing Polyethylenoxide Pillars

The hydrophilic oxygen atoms of polyethylenoxide chains inserted as pillars in gamma-zirconium phosphate form hydrogen bonds with the acid groups of the host. As a result the pillars are almost perpendicular to the gamma layers. Upon changing the pH level of the supernatant solution the hydrogen bonds are broken and the pillars become almost perpendicular to the layers (shown schematically). Thus there is a reversible enlargement-shortening of the interlayer space.     

Molecular Size and Electronic Structure Combined Effects on the Electrogenerated Chemiluminescence of Sulfurated Pyrene‐Cored Dendrimers

The electrochemistry, photophysics, and electrochemically generated chemiluminescence (ECL) of a family of polysulfurated dendrimers with a pyrene core have been thoroughly investigated and complemented by theoretical calculations. The redox and luminescence properties of dendrimers are dependent on the generation number. From low to higher generation it is both easier to reduce and oxidize them and the emission efficiency increases along the family, with respect to the polysulfurated pyrene core. The analysis of such data evidences that the formation of the singlet excited state by cation–anion annihilation is an energy‐deficient process and, thus, the ECL has been justified through the triplet–triplet annihilation pathway. The study of the dynamics of the ECL emission was achieved both experimentally and theoretically by molecular mechanics and quantum chemical calculations. It has allowed rationalization of a possible mechanism and the experimental dependence of the transient ECL on the dendrimer generation. The theoretically calculated Marcus electron‐transfer rate constant compares very well with that obtained by the finite element simulation of the whole ECL mechanism. This highlights the role played by the thioether dendrons in modulating the redox and photophysical properties, responsible for the occurrence and dynamics of the electron transfer involved in the ECL. Thus, the combination of experimental and computational results allows understanding of the dendrimer size dependence of the ECL transient signal as a result of factors affecting the annihilation electron transfer.     

Mechanical forces acting within non-polar fluid dielectrics

We compare Kelvin's polarization theory with Helmholtz's energy method for calculating forces in non-polar fluid dielectrics and show that in general they give different results and that only Helmholtz's method stands on firm foundations. We also discuss these results in connection with experiments and conclude that further experiments are needed to clarify the situation.     

Finite-temperature transitions in dipolar spin ice in a large magnetic field

We use Monte Carlo simulations to identify the mechanism that allows for phase transitions in dipolar spin ice to occur and survive for an applied magnetic field H much larger in strength than that of the spin-spin interactions. In the most generic and highest symmetry case, the spins on one out of four sublattices of the pyrochlore decouple from the total local exchange+dipolar+applied field. In the special case where H is aligned perfectly along the [110] crystallographic direction, spin chains perpendicular to H show a transition to q=X long-range order, which proceeds via a one- to three-dimensional crossover. We propose that these transitions are relevant to the origin of specific heat features observed in powder samples of the Dy2Ti2O7 spin ice material for H above 1 Tesla.     

Dipolar interactions and origin of spin ice in ising pyrochlore magnets

Recent experiments suggest that the Ising pyrochlore magnets Ho2Ti2O7 and Dy2Ti2O7 display qualitative properties of the nearest-neighbor "spin ice" model. We discuss the dipolar energy scale present in both these materials and discuss how spin-ice behavior can occur despite the presence of long-range dipolar interactions. We present results of numerical simulations and a mean field analysis of Ising pyrochlore systems. Based on our quantitative theory, we suggest that the spin-ice behavior in these systems is due to long-range dipolar interactions, and that the nearest-neighbor exchange in Dy2Ti2O7 is antiferromagnetic.