X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy study of disordering in Gd2(Ti1-xZrx)2O7 pyrochlores

The dramatic increases in ionic conductivity in Gd2(Ti1-xZrx)2O7 solid solution are related to disordering on the cation and anion lattices. Disordering in Gd2(Ti1-xZrx)2O7 was characterized using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). As Zr substitutes for Ti in Gd2Ti2O7 to form Gd2(Ti1-xZrx)2O7 (0.25 < x < or =0.75), the corresponding O 1s XPS spectrum merges into a single symmetric peak. This confirms that the cation antisite disorder occurs simultaneously with anion disorder. Furthermore, the O 1s XPS spectrum of Gd2Zr2O7 experimentally suggests the formation of a split vacancy.     

Multiple field-induced phase transitions in the geometrically frustrated dipolar magnet: Gd(2) Ti(2)O(7)

Field-driven phase transitions generally arise from competition between Zeeman energy and exchange or crystal-field anisotropy. Here we present the phase diagram of a frustrated pyrochlore magnet Gd(2)Ti(2)O(7), where crystal-field splitting is small compared to the dipolar energy. We find good agreement between zero-temperature critical fields and those obtained from a mean-field model. Here, dipolar interactions couple real space and spin space, so the transitions in Gd(2)Ti(2)O(7) arise from field-induced "cooperative anisotropy," reflecting the broken spatial symmetries of the pyrochlore lattice.     

Magnetic order in hybrid frustrated magnets Gd(2-x)Tb(x)Ti2O7 (x = 0.2 and 0.5)

We report on the specific heat, magnetization and ac susceptibility measurements of single crystals of hybrid frustrated magnets Gd(1.8)Tb(0.2)Ti(2)O(7) and Gd(1.5)Tb(0.5)Ti(2)O(7). The analysis of experimental data revealed that, although partial replacing of the Gd(3+) ions by the Tb(3+) ions in the Gd(2)Ti(2)O(7) host lattice slightly enhances antiferromagnetic coupling, as inferred from the evolution of the paramagnetic Curie-Weiss temperature, the ordering temperature gradually decreases. Paramagnetic correlations introduced by the Tb(3+) ions cause this perturbation, altering the effective further neighbor interactions and destabilizing the ground state in Gd(2)Ti(2)O(7). In addition, the low-energy states of Gd(2-x)Tb(x)Ti(2)O(7) are suggested to possess a nature different from those in parent members Tb(2)Ti(2)O(7) and Gd(2)Ti(2)O(7). Finally, the frequency-dependent magnetic susceptibility behavior in Gd(1.5)Tb(0.5)Ti(2)O(7) is consistent with the formation of a spin-glass-like state indicating a pronounced slowing down of the dynamical response of the studied hybrid magnets.     

燃烧法合成La_2Zr_2O_7粉及其光谱性能

以La_2O_3,Zr(NO_3)_4和甘氨酸为原料,采用燃烧法合成La_2Zr_2O_7粉。分别用发射光谱法(ICPAES)、能谱法(EDAX)、X衍射法(XRD)、红外光谱法(IR)和热重-差热法(TG-DTA)等对La_2Zr_2O_7粉进行表征。分别研究了热处理温度对La_2Zr_2O_7粉的X衍射谱和红外光谱的影响。La_2Zr_2O_7粉的ICP-AES和EDAX分析结果表明,用燃烧法可合成出La_2Zr_2O_7粉。不同温度热处理后La_2Zr_2O_7粉的XRD分析结果表明,当热处理温度为600℃时,出现一个衍射峰,且衍射峰较宽,该结构为半晶型结构;提高热处理温度,衍射峰逐渐尖锐,峰形变窄,衍射峰逐渐增多;热处理温度在750~800℃范围,可得到烧绿石结构的La_2Zr_2O_7粉。在650~750℃热处理后La_2Zr_2O_7粉的红外光谱分析结果与XRD分析结果相同,热处理温度为750℃时,可得到烧绿石结构的La_2Zr_2O_7粉。La_2Zr_2O_7粉的TG-DTG分析结果表明,在120~1 600℃范围,La_2Zr_2O_7粉的结构稳定。     

Evidence for gapped spin-wave excitations in the frustrated Gd2Sn2O7 pyrochlore antiferromagnet from low-temperature specific heat measurements

We have measured the low-temperature specific heat of the geometrically frustrated pyrochlore Heisenberg antiferromagnet Gd2Sn2O7 in zero magnetic field. The specific heat is found to drop exponentially below approximately 350 mK. This provides evidence for a gapped spin-wave spectrum due to an anisotropy resulting from single-ion effects and long-range dipolar interactions. The data are well fitted by linear spin-wave theory, ruling out unconventional low-energy magnetic excitations in this system, and allowing a determination of the pertinent exchange interactions in this material.     

Geometric frustration, electronic instabilities, and charge singlets in Y2Nb2O7

Pyrochlore Y2Nb2O7 is studied with density functional calculations. In the ideal pyrochlore structure, no magnetism is found, consistent with experiments, but the band structure is metallic. The phonon dispersions show unstable modes corresponding to charge instabilities. These frustrated instabilities lead to a metal-insulator transition with the formation of "charge singlets". Partial substitution of Ti for Nb results in moment formation due to the occurrence of Ti3+.     

Structural Fluctuations in the spin-liquid state of Tb2Ti2O7

High-resolution x-ray scattering measurements on single crystal Tb2Ti2O7 reveal finite structural correlations at low temperatures. This geometrically frustrated pyrochlore is known to exhibit a spin-liquid or cooperative paramagnetic state at temperatures below approximately 20 K. Parametric studies of structural Bragg peaks appropriate to the Fd3[over ]m space group of Tb2Ti2O7 reveal substantial broadening and peak intensity reduction in the temperature regime 20 K to 300 mK. We also observe a small, anomalous lattice expansion on cooling below a density maximum at approximately 18 K. These measurements are consistent with the development of fluctuations above a cooperative Jahn-Teller, cubic-tetragonal phase transition at very low temperatures.     

微波法合成红色长余辉发光材料Gd2O2S:Eu,Mg,Ti及其发光特性

用微波辐射法首次合成了Gd2O2S:Eu,Mg,Ti红色磷光化合物,用X射线粉末衍射(XRD)、扫描电镜(SEM)、荧光分光光度计等对合成产物进行了分析和表征.结果表明:材料的晶体结构为六方晶系,与Gd2O2S的相同.颗粒的形貌为类球形,分散性较好,尺寸在1～2 μm之间.Gd2O2S:Eu,Mg,Ti的激发光谱呈带状,激发光谱主峰位于360 nm,另外在400,422,472 nm等处也有激发峰存在;发射光谱为线状光谱,归属于Eu3 的5DJ(J=0,1,2)到7FJ(J=O,1,2,3,4)的跃迁.随着Eu浓度的增加,位于蓝绿区的586,557,541,513,498,471,468 nm处的发射峰逐渐减弱,而主峰位于627 nm处的红光发射明显增强.当Eu浓度为6 mol%时,红光发射最强.Mg,Ti共掺杂可显著改善其余辉性质.     

Nanoscale manipulation of pyrochlore: new nanocomposite ionic conductors

The ionic conductivity of isometric pyrochlore, ideally A2B2O (7), is extremely sensitive to disordering of A- and B-site cations and oxygen anion vacancies. We report the first use of ion beam irradiation-induced disordering in Gd 2Ti 2O (7) to produce a strain-free, buried, disordered defect-fluorite layer approximately 12 nm thick within an ordered pyrochlore matrix. This approach provides a new means of creating nanoscale, mixed ionic-electronic conductors in pyrochlore ceramics, such as those required for solid-state electrochemical cells.     

Oxygen ion conductivity in doped Gd2Ti2O7 with the pyrochlore structure

Materials with the A₂B₂O₇ pyrochlore structure have interesting ionic transport properties because of their crystallographic structure, which can be described as a stable array of corner-shared BO₆ octahedra that is penetrated by a 3-dimensional tunnel configuration that is partly filled by the A₂O sublattice. The pyrochlore stochiometry means that there are built-in intrinsic oxide ion vacancies in the crystal structure in comparison to the related fluorite type structure. These are in the A₂O sublattice, so that the tunnels are only 75% occupied. The presence of these tunnels leads to the possibility of significant changes in the composition, and some ionic species in this sublattice exhibit high mobility. The cubic pyrochlore Gd₂Ti₂O₇ was doped in various ways to change its ionic and electronic transport properties. The total conductivity and partial ionic and electronic contributions were investigated by ac impedance and EMF measurement techniques. The influence of either A or B site doping with aliovalent ions that occupy sites in the A₂O and B₂O₆ sublattices was investigated. The results of these experiments are presented and discussed in relation to the crystal structure and defect chemistry of this family of oxides. Paper presented at the 2nd Euroconference on Solid State Ionics, Funchal, Madeira, Portugal, Sept. 10–16, 1995     

Spin waves and quantum criticality in the frustrated XY pyrochlore antiferromagnet Er2Ti2O7

We report detailed measurements of the low temperature magnetic phase diagram of Er2Ti2O7. Heat capacity and time-of-flight neutron scattering studies of single crystals reveal unconventional low-energy states. Er3+ magnetic ions reside on a pyrochlore lattice in Er2Ti2O7, where local XY anisotropy and antiferromagnetic interactions give rise to a unique frustrated system. In zero field, the ground state exhibits coexisting short and long-range order, accompanied by soft collective spin excitations previously believed to be absent. The application of finite magnetic fields tunes the ground state continuously through a landscape of noncollinear phases, divided by a zero temperature phase transition at micro{0}H{c} approximately 1.5 T. The characteristic energy scale for spin fluctuations is seen to vanish at the critical point, as expected for a second order quantum phase transition driven by quantum fluctuations.     

Effective hyperfine temperature in frustrated Gd 2Sn 2O 7: two level model and 155Gd Mössbauer measurements

Using ¹⁵⁵Gd M?ssbauer spectroscopy down to 27 mK, we show that, in the geometrically frustrated pyrochlore Gd₂Sn₂O₇, the Gd³⁺ hyperfine levels are populated out of equilibrium. From this, we deduce that the hyperfine field, and the correlated Gd³⁺ moments which produce this field, continue to fluctuate as T ↦ 0. With a model of a spin 1/2 system experiencing a magnetic field which reverses randomly in time, we obtain an analytical expression for the steady state probability distribution of the level populations. This distribution is a simple function of the ratio of the nuclear spin relaxation time to the average electronic spin-flip time. In Gd₂Sn₂O₇, we find the two time scales are of the same order of magnitude. We discuss the mechanism giving rise to the nuclear spin relaxation and the influence of the electronic spin fluctuations on the hyperfine specific heat. The corresponding low temperature measurements in Gd₂Ti₂O₇ are presented and discussed. Received 17 October 2001 Published online 6 June 2002     

Pressure-induced disordering and phase transformations in Eu2Zr2O7 pyrochlore

ABSTRACT

The structural properties of pyrochlore Eu₂Zr₂O₇ under high pressure have been studied by using Raman spectroscopy and in situ angle-dispersive X-ray diffraction (ADXRD). The results of Raman spectra indicate that Eu₂Zr₂O₇ undergoes a reversible structural change around 21.2?GPa. The results of Rietveld refinements from in situ ADXRD data indicate that the ordered pyrochlore structure (Fd-3m) transforms to the defect-cotunnite structure (Pnma) at 26.5?GPa. The phase transition is irreversible and the transformation process is mainly induced by the accumulations of anti-site defects of the cation sublattice and Frenkel defects on the anion sublattice. Besides, the <Zr–O> bonds should play a more important role than the <Eu–O> bonds in the process of the phase transformation.     

First-order transition in the spin dynamics of geometrically frustrated Yb2Ti2O7

Using neutron diffraction, 170Yb M?ssbauer and muon spin relaxation spectroscopies, we have examined the pyrochlore Yb2Ti2O7, where the Yb3+S' = 1/2 ground state has planar anisotropy. Below approximately 0.24 K, the temperature of the known specific-heat lambda transition, there is no long range magnetic order. We show that the transition corresponds to a first-order change in the fluctuation rate of the Yb3+ spins. Above the transition temperature, the rate, in the GHz range, follows a thermal excitation law, whereas below, the rate, in the MHz range, is temperature independent, indicative of a quantum fluctuation regime.     

Origin of ferromagnetism and its pressure and doping dependence in Tl2Mn2O7

Using the Nth order muffin-tin obital downfolding technique, we investigate the origin of ferromagnetism in pyrochlore Tl2Mn2O7. It is found to be driven by a hybridization induced spin polarization of delocalized charge carriers derived from Tl-s and O-p states. The mean-field estimate of the ferromagnetic transition temperature Tc estimated using computed exchange integrals are found to be in good agreement with measurements. We find an enhancement of Tc for moderate doping with nonmagnetic Sb and a suppression of Tc upon application of pressure, both in agreement with experimental findings.     

对含Y_2O_3和Gd_2O_3的La_2O_3-B_2O_3-BaO玻璃化学稳定性研究

本文研究了含Ｙ２Ｏ３和Ｇｄ２Ｏ３的Ｌａ２Ｏ３－Ｂ２Ｏ３－ＢａＯ玻璃的耐水性和耐酸性。结果表明，比硅酸盐玻璃化学稳定性差的Ｌａ２Ｏ３－Ｂ２Ｏ３－ＢａＯ玻璃，可以适量的用Ｙ２Ｏ３和Ｇｄ２Ｏ３取代Ｌａ２Ｏ３，可得以改善     

Tb3+离子在固溶体(Y0.9Gd0.1)2O2S和(Gd0.9La0.1)2O2S中的发光

用稀土氧化物硫化法合成了固溶体发光材料(Y0.9Gd0.1)2O2S:Tb和(Gd0.9La0.1)2O2S:Tb,并且用阴极射线和254nm紫外线两种激发方式测试了它们的发光性能.研究了固溶体(Y0.9Gd0.1)2O2S:Tb和(Gd0.9La0.1)2O2S:Tb中Tb3+离子5D3——7FJ和5D4——7FJ的能级跃迁强度随Tb3+离子浓度而变化的关系,以及它们的发光色度随激活剂Tb3+离子浓度的变化,探讨了Tb3+离子的浓度猝灭机理.     

Field-induced transition on a triangular plane in the spin-ice compound Dy2Ti2O7

The origin of the lowest-temperature anomaly reported several years ago using a polycrystalline sample of the spin-ice compound Dy2Ti2O7 has remained unresolved. Here we finally clarify its origin by susceptibility measurements down to 65 mK using single crystals under accurate control of the magnetic fields in two independent directions. We demonstrate that the transition is induced under a subtle field combination that precisely cancels the nearest-neighbor spin interactions acting on the spins on the triangular lattice within the pyrochlore structure. Contrary to the other two field-induced transitions, this transition is driven only by the interactions beyond the nearest neighbors. Our observation thus provides the first qualitative evidence for the essential importance of the dipolar interaction beyond the nearest neighbors in the spin ice.