Dendritic and eutectic growth in Sb<Subscript>60</Subscript>Ag<Subscript>20</Subscript>Cu<Subscript>20</Subscript> ternary alloy

The rapid solidification of Sb60Ag20Cu20 ternary alloy was realized by high undercooling method, and the maximum undercooling is up to 142 K (0.18TL). Within the wide undercooling range of 40-142 K, the solidified microstructures are composed of (Sb), θand ε phases. High undercooling enlarges the solute solubility of (Sb) phase, which causes its crystal lattice to expand and its crystal lattice constants to increase. Primary (Sb) phase grows in two modes at small undercoolings non-faceted dendrite growth is the main growth form; whereas at large undercoolings faceted dendrite growth takes the dominant place. The remarkable difference of crystal structures between (Sb) and θphases leads to (θ Sb) pseudobinary eutectic hard to form, whereas strips of θform when the alloy melt reaches the (θ Sb) pseudobinary eutectic line. The cooperative growth of θand ε phases contributes to the formation of (ε θ) pseudobinary eutectic easily. In addition, the crystallization route has been determined via microstructural characteristic analysis and DSC experiment.     

Anomalies in the Young modulus at structural phase transitions in rare-earth cobaltites RBaCo<Subscript>4</Subscript>O<Subscript>7</Subscript> (R = Y,Tm-Lu)

The elastic properties of rare-earth cobaltites RBaCo₄O₇ (R = Y, Tm-Lu) have been experimentally studied in the temperature range of 80–300 K. The strong softening of the Young modulus ΔE(T)/E ₀ ≈ −(0.1–0.2) of cobaltites with Lu and Yb ions has been revealed, which is due to the instability of the crystal structure upon cooling and is accompanied by an inverse jump at the second-order structural phase transition. The softening of the Young modulus and the jump at the phase transition decrease by an order of magnitude and the transition temperature T _s and hysteresis ΔT _s increase from a compound with Lu to that with Tm. A large softening of the Young modulus at the structural transition in Lu- and Yb cobaltites indicates that the corresponding elastic constant goes to zero, whereas this constant in Tm cobaltite is not a “soft” mode of the phase transition. It has been found that the structural phase transition in Lu- and Yb cobaltites is accompanied by a large absorption maximum at the phase transition point and an additional maximum in the low-temperature phase and absorption anomalies in Tm cobaltite is an order of magnitude smaller.     

Phase transitions in the (NH<Subscript>4</Subscript>)<Subscript>2</Subscript>NbOF<Subscript>5</Subscript> oxyfluoride

The thermal and dielectric properties of the (NH₄)₂NbOF₅ oxyfluoride have been investigated. It has been established that the structural phase transitions Cmc2₁ → C2 → Ia observed at the temperatures T ₁ = 258.0 K and T ₂ = 218.9 K exhibit a nonferroelectric nature. The hydrostatic pressure, which stabilizes the initial phase and destabilizes the low-temperature phase, hardly affects the temperature range of stability of the intermediate phase. The model of sequential ordering of the structural elements due to phase transitions has been analyzed using experimental data on the entropies of the phase transitions.     

Unraveling the f<Subscript>0</Subscript> nature by connecting KLOE and BABAR data through analyticity

We define a general procedure, based on analyticity and dispersion relations, to estimate low-energy amplitudes for processes like: φ→e ⁺ e ^- M and φ→γM, starting from cross-section data on e ⁺ e ^-→φM, where M is a generic light scalar or pseudoscalar meson. In particular this procedure is constructed to obtain predictions on the radiative decay rate which are crucially linked on the assumed quark structure for the meson M under consideration. Three cases are analyzed: M = η, M = f ₀(qˉ) and M = f ₀(qqˉ). While in the η case the estimate of the branching fraction for the radiative decay φ→ηγ is in agreement with the data, in the case of f ₀, such agreement is obtained only under the hypothesis of a tetraquark scalar meson.     

Effect of ionizing radiation on the dielectric characteristics of TlInSe<Subscript>2</Subscript> and TlGaTe<Subscript>2</Subscript> single crystals

The temperature dependences of the electrical conductivity and the permittivity of TlInSe₂ and TlGaTe₂ crystals unirradiated and irradiated with 4-MeV electrons at a doze of 10¹⁶ cm⁻² have been investigated. It has been established that electron irradiation leads to a decrease in the electrical conductivity σ and the permittivity ɛ over the entire temperature range under study (90–320 K). It has been revealed that the TlInSe₂ and TlGaTe₂ single crystals undergo a sequence of phase transitions characteristic of crystals of this type, which manifest themselves as anomalies in the temperature dependences σ = f(T) and ɛ = f(T). Electron irradiation at a doze of 10¹⁶ cm⁻² does not affect the phase transition temperatures of the crystals under investigation.     

Semi-Inclusive Deep Inelastic Scattering processes from small to large P<Subscript>T</Subscript>

We consider the azimuthal and P_T-dependence of hadrons produced in unpolarized Semi-Inclusive Deep Inelastic Scattering (SIDIS) processes, within the factorized QCD parton model. It is shown that at small P_T values, P _T ≲ 1GeV/c, lowest-order contributions, coupled to unintegrated (transverse-momentum-dependent) quark distribution and fragmentation functions, describe all data. At larger P_T values, P _T ≳ 1GeV/c, the usual pQCD higher-order collinear contributions dominate. Having explained the full P_T range of available data, we give new detailed predictions concerning the azimuthal and P_T-dependence of hadrons which could be measured in ongoing or planned experiments by HERMES, COMPASS and JLab Collaborations.     

Semileptonic B<Subscript>s</Subscript>→D<Subscript>sJ</Subscript>(2460)lν decay in QCD

Using three point QCD sum rule methods, the form factors relevant to semileptonic B_s→D_sJ(2460)ℓν decay are calculated. The q² dependences of these form factors are evaluated and compared with the heavy quark effective theory predictions. The dependence of the asymmetry parameter α, characterizing the polarization of the D_sJ meson, on q² is studied. The branching ratio of this decay is also estimated, and it is shown that it can easily be detected at LHC.     

Low-temperature structural anomalies in Pr<Subscript>0.5</Subscript>Sr<Subscript>0.5</Subscript>CoO<Subscript>3</Subscript>

The magnetic and crystal structures of the Pr_0.5Sr_0.5CoO₃ metallic ferromagnet have been studied by the neutron diffraction technique. It is demonstrated that below 150 K, the compound is mesoscopically separated into two crystalline phases with different spatial symmetries and with different directions of the magnetic anisotropy. The phase separation exists down to 1.5 K, and at temperatures below 90 K, the low-symmetry phase occupies about 80% of the sample volume. The main structural difference between the phases is the configuration of oxygen atoms around praseodymium and, to a certain extent, around cobalt. The ferromagnetic structure with the magnetic moment lying in the basal plane of the structure (μ_Co ≈ 1.7 μ _B at 1.5 K) arises at 234 K, whereas the component directed along the long axis of the unit cell appears at 130 K. The formation of the new structural phase and change in the orientation of the magnetic moment give rise to the anomalies of the physical and magnetic characteristics of this compound observed earlier at temperatures about 120 K.     

Structural and magnetic phase transitions in Pr<Subscript>0.15</Subscript>Sr<Subscript>0.85</Subscript>MnO<Subscript>3</Subscript> at high pressure

The crystal and magnetic structures of Pr_0.15Sr_0.85MnO₃ manganite have been studied by means of powder X-ray and neutron diffraction in the temperature range 10–400 K at high external pressures up to 55 and 4 GPa, respectively. A structural phase transition from cubic to tetragonal phase upon compression was observed, with large positive pressure coefficient of transition temperature dT _ct /dP = 28(2) K/GPa. The C-type antiferromagnetic (AFM) ground state is formed below T _N ≈ 260 K at ambient pressure. While at ambient pressure the structural and magnetic transition temperatures are close, T _ct ~ T _N , upon compression they become decoupled with T _N ≪ T _ct due to much weaker T _N pressure dependence with coefficient dT _N /dP = 3.8(1) K/GPa.     

Dielectric and polar order behaviors of BaTiO<Subscript>3</Subscript>-Bi(Mg<Subscript>1/2</Subscript>Ti<Subscript>1/2</Subscript>)O<Subscript>3</Subscript> ceramics

New perovskite solid solution ceramics of (1−x)BaTiO₃-xBi(Mg_1/2Ti_1/2)O₃ ((1−x)BT-xBMT, x≤0.09) were synthesized by the solid-state reaction technique. X-ray diffraction studies have revealed a stable single perovskite structure for all samples. Dielectric measurements were carried out at different frequencies and temperatures. The polarization evolutions with temperatures were measured to investigate the ferroelectric properties. All the compositions show features of ferroelectrics with diffuse phase transition, though the temperature T _m of their dielectric constant maximum ε _m is frequency dependent. The dielectric constant peak ε(T) of (1−x)BT-xBMT ceramics become broad with increasing BMT content. During the temperature range of ε(T) peak summit, (1−x)BT-xBMT ceramics present quasi-linear dielectric phenomenon under high electric field with very high dielectric constant.     

Exciton absorption spectrum of thin CsPbI<Subscript>3</Subscript> and Cs<Subscript>4</Subscript>PbI<Subscript>6</Subscript> films

A method for preparing thin films of CsPbI₃ and Cs₄PbI₆ complex compounds has been developed. Their absorption spectrum is investigated in the energy range of 2–6 eV at temperatures from 90 to 500 K. It is found that the CsPbI₃ compound is unstable and passes to the Cs₄PbI₆ phase upon heating at T ≥ 400 K.     

Multichannel calculation of the very narrow D<Subscript>s0</Subscript><Superscript>*</Superscript>(2317) and the very broad D<Subscript>0</Subscript><Superscript>*</Superscript>(2300-2400)

The narrow D _s0 ^* (2317) and broad D ₀ ^* (2300-2400) charmed scalar mesons and their radial excitations are described in a coupled-channel quark model that also reproduces the properties of the light scalar nonet. All two-meson channels containing ground-state pseudoscalars and vectors are included. The parameters are chosen fixed at published values, except for the overall coupling constant λ, which is fine-tuned to reproduce the D _s0 ^* (2317) mass, and a damping constant α for subthreshold contributions. Variations of λ and D ₀ ^* (2300-2400) pole postions are studied for different α values. Calculated cross-sections for S-wave DK and Dπ scattering, as well as resonance pole positions, are given for the value of α that fits the light scalars. The thus predicted radially excited state D _s0 ^*′(2850), with a width of about 50MeV, seems to have been observed already.     

Structural evolutions of the mechanically alloyed Al<Subscript>70</Subscript>Cu<Subscript>20</Subscript>Fe<Subscript>10</Subscript> powders

Elemental mixtures of Al, Cu, Fe powders with the nominal composition of Al₇₀Cu₂₀Fe₁₀ were mechanically alloyed in a planetary ball mill for 80 h. Subsequent annealing of the as-milled powders were performed at 600–800°C temperature range for 4 h. Structural characteristics of the mechanically alloyed Al₇₀Cu₂₀Fe₁₀ powders with the milling time and the heat treatment were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) and differential thermal analysis (DTA). Mechanical alloying of the Al₇₀Cu₂₀Fe₁₀ did not result in the formation of icosahedral quasicrystalline phase (i-phase) and a long time milling resulted in the formation of β-Al(Cu,Fe) solid solution phase (β-phase). The i-phase was observed only for short-time milled powders after heat treatment above 600°C. The β-phase was one of the major phases in the Al₇₀Cu₂₀Fe₁₀ alloy. The w-Al₇Cu₂Fe₁ phase (w-phase) was obtained only after heat treatment of the short-time milled and unmilled samples. The present investigation indicated that a suitable technique to obtain a large amount of quasicrystalline powders is to use a combination of short-time milling and subsequent annealing.     

Critical behavior of the heat capacity of the manganite La<Subscript>0.87</Subscript>K<Subscript>0.13</Subscript>MnO<Subscript>3</Subscript>

The heat capacity of the manganite La_0.87K_0.13MnO₃ has been measured in the temperature range 80–350 K. The nature of the ferromagnetic phase transition and the critical properties of heat capacity near the Curie temperature have been studied. The regularities of variations in the universal critical parameters near the phase transition point have been established. The calculated critical exponent and amplitudes of the heat capacity with allowance for corrections on the scaling (α = −0.13 and A ⁺/A ⁻ = 1.178) correspond to the critical behavior of the 3D Heizenberg model.     

Paramagnetic-ferromagnetic and insulator-metal phase transitions in La<Subscript>0.88</Subscript>MnO<Subscript>2.95</Subscript>

We present the results a study of structure by neutron diffraction and data on the magnetic properties (linear and nonlinear (second and third order) susceptibilities) of polycrystalline La_0.88MnO_2.95. This compound exhibits an insulator-metal (IM) phase transition at T _IM ≈ 253 K (above the Curie temperature, T _C ≈ 244 K) and reveals colossal magnetoresistance. The crystal structure is found to be rhombohedral, and the space group is R3c. Analysis of magnetic properties shows that at T* ≈ 258 K > T _C , isolated paramagnetic clusters occur in the paramagnetic matrix; their concentration increases upon cooling. We observed no noticeable differences between the temperature evolution of the clustered state of this manganite with its insulator-metal transition and in the insulator La_0.88MnO_2.91. Possible scenarios of the paramagnet-ferromagnet and I-M transitions in a self-organized clustered structure are discussed.     

Experimental estimation of the cooperative Jahn-Teller energy in orbitally ordered KCu<Subscript>0.8</Subscript>Mg<Subscript>0.2</Subscript>F<Subscript>3</Subscript> perovskite

High resolution synchrotron radiation X-ray powder diffraction was used to investigate the melting of the cooperative Jahn-Teller distortion (cJTd) in a perovskite of composition KCu_0.8Mg_0.2F₃. A first order phase transition relaxing the cJTd is observed at T ∼ 600 K. From the transition temperature, an estimation of kT is derived (kT = 0.05 eV) for the cJTd in the doped compound. This is the very first observation of cJTd melting in a compound of the series KCu_1−x Mg _x F₃. A structural phase diagram for the Cu rich zone of the series is proposed. In principle, the extension of this experimental investigation could be used to disentangle the orbital order (OO) and cJTd energy scales in the parent compound KCuF₃, a test system for OO theories.     

Electrical characterization of the [N(CH<Subscript>3</Subscript>)<Subscript>4</Subscript>][N(C<Subscript>2</Subscript>H<Subscript>5</Subscript>)<Subscript>4</Subscript>]ZnCl<Subscript>4</Subscript> compound

The [N(CH₃)₄][N(C₂H₅)₄]ZnCl₄ compound has been synthesized by a solution-based chemical method. The X-ray diffraction study at room temperature revealed an orthorhombic system with P2₁2₁2 space group. The complex impedance has been investigated in the temperature and frequency ranges 420–520 K and 200 Hz–5 MHz, respectively. The grain interior and grain boundary contribution to the electrical response in the material have been identified. Dielectric data were analyzed using the complex electrical modulus M ^* for the sample at various temperature. The modulus plots can be characterized by full width at half height or in terms of a non-exponential decay function ϕ(t) = exp[(−t/τ) ^β ]. The detailed conductivity study indicated that the electrical conduction in the material is a thermally activated process. The variation of the AC conductivity with frequency at different temperatures obeys the Almond and West universal law.     

Magnetocaloric effect in the Sm<Subscript>0.55</Subscript>Sr<Subscript>0.45</Subscript>MnO<Subscript>3</Subscript> manganite

The magnetocaloric effect ΔT has been studied by a direct method in two samples of the manganite Sm_0.55Sr_0.45MnO₃, namely, a single crystal (sample A) and a ceramic sample (sample C). The temperature dependences of the ΔT effect of both samples exhibit a maximum at T _max = 143.3 K for the sample A and T _max = 143 K for the sample C. In these maxima, the values of the ΔT effect are 0.8 and 0.4 K in the magnetic field H = 14.2 kOe for the samples A and C, respectively. In addition, the ΔT(T) curve of the sample A has a minimum at T _min = 120 K, in which ΔT = −0.1 K. The maximum value of the ΔT effect increases with an increase in the magnetic field H in the range of magnetic fields up to 14.2 kOe, and the rate of this increase at H > 8 kOe is higher than that at H < 8 kOe. These features of the ΔT effect are explained by the presence of ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic A- and CE-type clusters in the samples.     

Two-phase reaction mechanism during chemical lithium insertion into α-MoO<Subscript>3</Subscript>

The phase transition during chemical lithium insertion into α-MoO₃ was investigated by chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction (XRD) and electrochemical characterisation. The samples have been prepared by reaction of various amounts of water-free lithium iodide with fine-particulate orthorhombic molybdenum trioxide in n-hexane (non-aqueous media), which yielded materials with different Li/Mo ratio. XRD investigations of these materials proved that the crystal structure of the layered α-MoO₃ has been changed after the chemical lithiation. The phase transition ranged from 0.25 < x < 0.5 in Li _x MoO₃ upon chemical lithium insertion into α-MoO₃. The XRD lines of lithium inserted phase Li _x MoO₃ grew at the expense of the XRD lines of the pristine α-MoO₃ as lithium ions were chemically inserted until the disappearance of lines related to α-MoO₃. The electrochemical performance of the lithiated samples is improved in comparison with the starting material (non-lithiated α-MoO₃).     

Synthesis,structural and electrical properties of double perovskite Sr<Subscript>2</Subscript>NiMoO<Subscript>6</Subscript> ceramics

The double perovskite Sr₂NiMoO₆ powders and ceramics were prepared by two different (conventional and precursor) solid-state reaction methods. The phase structure was characterized by XRD and TEM techniques. It has been indicated that single-phase perovskite powders were obtained when calcined in air at 1300°C. However, nano-particles of the size 30–60 nm have been found in powders prepared with the precursor method, while those from the conventional route exhibit large irregular shaped particles with aggregation. The dielectric properties (ε _r and tanδ) were also examined in the sintered ceramics. The results showed the transition point at 280°C for conventional route, while no clear phase change was observed in ceramics from the precursor route. These observations clearly indicate that the different starting processes affected the phase formation behavior and the electrical properties of Sr₂NiMoO₆ ceramics.