Photostimulated phenomena in relaxors

The action of illumination on the conducting and dielectric properties of lead magnoniobate was investigated. The photostimulated currents were examined and the spectral dependence of photoconductivity in the region of diffuse phase transition was obtained. It was found that the illumination affects the dielectric properties and that its action is memorized at temperatures below room temperature. The role of defect states in the formation of relaxor properties is discussed on the basis of the obtained data.     

Measurement of the spin and temperature dependence of ddµ molecule formation rate in solid and liquid deuterium

The ddµ molecule formation rate is experimentally measured for the two hyperfine states of the dµ-atom in the temperature range of 5–30 K. Results are consistent with a preliminary measurement by the TRIUMF group and contradict theoretical predictions. The work has been performed on the JINR phasotron (Dubna).     

Magnetic birefringence of sound and magnetoacoustic oscillations in hematite

An experimental study of the magnetic birefringence of sound in the α-Fe₂O₃ easy-plane antiferromagnet is reported. The amplitude of transverse sound transmitted through the crystal along the C₃ trigonal axis was found to oscillate depending on the magnitude of the magnetic field H applied in the basal plane (H ⊥ C₃). The experiments provide qualitative support for the theory of this phenomenon developed earlier by Turov. Possible reasons for the substantial quantitative disagreement between theory and experiment observed in the field dependence of the sonic-amplitude oscillation period are discussed. Unannealed samples of the hematite revealed a 60° periodic dependence of the position of the intensity oscillation extrema on magnetic field orientation in the basal plane, which is associated with basal anisotropy of higher than second order. The observation of pronounced (～6×10³ Oe) effective magnetic anisotropy fields in the basal plane can be assigned to the existence of large residual strains in such samples.     

Experiments on the search for the effect of resonant screening on the probability of Mössbauer absorption of <Superscript>119<Emphasis Type="Italic">m</Emphasis></Superscript>Sn gamma rays

Experiments on the search for the effect of resonant screening on the Mössbauer absorption of ^119m Sn γ rays of energy 23.8 keV emitted by a standard Mössbauer Ca^119m SnO₃ γ source in the resonant SnO₂ absorber of natural isotopic composition are described. Intensities of tin γ rays and X-rays that passed through the absorber were measured with and without a resonant cylindrical screen (which was a black absorber for the 23.8-keV Mössbauer γ line) around the absorber and their ratios were calculated for each radiation separately. No difference beyond the experimental error was found between these ratios measured with the γ source both at rest and when oscillating with a frequency and amplitude enough to completely break the conditions for Mössbauer resonant absorption of 23.8-keV γ rays. The upper limit for the relative decrease, due to the influence of the resonant screen, in the intensities of these γ rays after their passing through the resonant absorber was 0.00030.     

Observation of the gamma resonance of a long-lived <Superscript>109<Emphasis Type="Italic">m</Emphasis></Superscript>Ag isomer using a gravitational gamma-ray spectrometer

Experiments confirming the previous data on the small real width of the γ resonance of ^109m Ag have been performed with a gravitational gamma-ray spectrometer. The achieved resolution is eight orders of magnitude higher than that of Mössbauer spectrometers using gamma rays from a ⁵⁷Fe nuclide. The theoretically predicted broadening of the Mössbauer gamma line of ^109m Ag by five orders of magnitude (due to the dipole-dipole interaction between the magnetic moments of neighboring nuclei) has not been observed.     

Low-temperature electrical conductivity of congruent lithium niobate crystals

The electrical conductivity of lithium niobate crystals was investigated at temperatures between 80 and 450 K as a function of the oxidation-reduction annealing conditions. The results are interpreted in terms of polaron electrical conductivity at room temperature and above. A reduction in the measurement temperature leads to “freezing out” of small-radius polarons, and hopping of Heitler-London bipolarons via unfilled Nb_Li sites becomes the main mechanism responsible for the electrical conductivity. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 40, 1307–1309 (July 1998)