Mössbauer studies of CoxFe1−xCr2S4

The mixed spinel systems Co_xFe_1−xCr₂S₄ has been studied using the Mössbauer effect. Spectra have been collected over the temperature range 83–300 K. The isomer shifts indicate that the charge states of Fe ions are ferrous in character throughout the series. Absence of quadrupole splitting above the magnetic ordering temperature T_c suggests that iron ions occupy only tetrahedral sites. It is notable that as the temperature decreases below T_c, both quadrupole shift and asymmetrical line-broadening appear and increase with decreasing temperature, suggesting the presence of electric field gradient and accompanying relaxation effects.     

Spin fluctuations of Y(Mn1−xAlx)2 and Y1−xScxMn2

The thermal expansion and low temperature and low temperature specific heat were measured for Y_1−xScxMn2. The results are discussed in terms of spin fluctuations and compared with those of Y(Mn_1−xAl_x)₂, which show al local moment character. It is revealed that Y_1−xSc_xMn₂ is a typical nearly antiferromagnet in which giant spin fluctuations are thermally excited.     

Metal-insulator transition in amorphous Si1−xCrx films

The electrical conductivity of the amorphous Si_1−xCr_x films prepared by vacuum evaporation and sputtering was measured down to 40mK. In both films we observed a continuous metal-insulator transition. The electrical conductivity at low temperatures and the critical behavior are explained in terms of the scaling theory for interacting electrons. Whereas, present results support neither the scaling law proposed by Möbius et al. nor the existance of σ_min reported in the same system.     

Oxygen isotope effect of superconducting (Nd1−xCex)2CuO4−δ system

The effect of oxygen isotope substitution on the transition temperature T_c of a superconducting (Nd_1−xCe_x)₂CuO_4−δ system was studied, where the special synthetic method was taken to minimize ambiguous factors on the oxygen concentration and to guarantee the complete substitution of ¹⁶O by ¹⁸O. The isotope exponent in the relationship of T_c∝1/M was estimated to be less than 0.15 by magnetic susceptibility measurements.     

Linear and nonlinear optical properties of CdSexS1−x microcrystallites

Microcrystals of CdSe_xS_1−x (x≈0.6) with nanometer dimensions have been investigated experimentally by a range of optical techniques. This system of ‘quantum dot’ consists of nanometer sized semiconductor particles embedded within an insulating glass matrix. The existence of microscopic CdSeS crystals within the glass matrix is demonstrated by the observation of Raman scattering from the ‘CdSe-like’ and ‘CdS-like’ LO phonons. The nature of the electronic states within these three dimensionally confined systems is investigated by linear absorption and photoluminescence spectroscopy. The photoluminescence spectra show features which are attributed to direct electron-hole recombination and recombination via states within the ‘blue shifted’ energy gap (which are possibly surface related). Carrier relaxation is also investigated by a pump-probe experiment whereby the absorption is partially bleached by a short pump pulse then probed some variable time later by a delayed probe pulse of much lower intensity. Fast and slow components in the carrier relaxation process are identified, and a relationship is suggested between the carrier relaxation and the features observed in the photoluminescence spectra. The well known ‘photodarkening’ properties of such materials are also investigated by the above techniques.     

Ion scattering studies of strained Si/Si1−xGex superlattices

Helium ion channeling and backscattering experiments have been performed on MBE-grown Si/Si_1−xGe_x superlattices to investigate interdiffusion, defect densities and tetragonal lattice distortion. Rapid Thermal Annealing (RTA) of these structures leads to substantial interdiffusion and strain relaxation. In some cases also relaxation by dislocation formation is observed after RTA, depending on the alloy composition x. Grazing incidence Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy was employed to observe the modulation of the backscattering yield of the superlattices. The modulation decreases due to interdiffusion after RTA. Interdiffusion coefficients were deduced for Ge concentrations between x=0.20 and x=0.70 in the temperature range between 900°C and 1125°C. The diffusivity increases with larger Ge concentrations. The activation energy for interdiffusion is 3.8 ± 0.2 eV.     

Thermoelectric power of Y(Mn1−xAlx)2

Electrical resistivity and thermoelectric power of Y(Mn_1−xAl_x2 and (Y_1−xSc_x)Mn₂ were measured from 2 to room temperature. Anomalous behavior of the thermoelectric power of YMn₂ disappears rapidly with the increase of Al content in Y(Mn_1−xAl_x)₂. Based upon spin fluctuations of the itinerant antiferromagnetism of the samples, the anomaly of the thermoelectric power is discussed.     

Spectroscopic study of BixEu1−xVO4 and BiyGd1−yVO4 mixed oxides

The mixed oxides Bi_xEu_1−xVO₄ and Bi_yGd_1−yVO₄ crystallize in a zircon-type structure, for 0 <x < 0.6 and 0 < y < 0.64, and in a fergusonite-type structure, for 0.94 < x < 1 and 0.93 < y < 1. A process of competition between the dominant and the constrained effects of the lone-pair 6s² of Bi³⁺ is discussed. The diffuse reflectance spectroscopic studies of these mixed oxides are presented. The observed broad bands are attributed to charge transfer processes and the sharp peaks in the Bi_xEu_1−xVO₄ spectra are ascribed to intra-configurational 4f – 4ftransitions of the Eu³⁺ ion. The broad absorption shift in BiLnVO₄ (Ln : Eu and Gd) compounds to the longer wavelengths range, when Bi is introduced in the LnVO₄ lattice, is ascribed to charge transfer processes in a Bi-VO₄ center and are interpreted assuming a Jahn-Teller effect in the excited state of Bi³⁺. The concept of an internal pressure of Bi³⁺ ions is also used to explain the broad A-band shifts.     

Hyperfine fields and magnetic transitions in the low iron concentration range of the crystalline FexNi75−xP25-alloys

The crystalline system Fe_xNi_75−xP₂₅ was studied in the low iron concentration range by ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy and dc-magnetization measurements. From the latter method the magnetic phases were determined to be spin-glass like but on a more local scale, from ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy, it was found that the magnetic phases were rather inhomogeneous, therefore leading to not sharp phase transitions in the investigated samples.     

Itinerant metamagnetic transition in Y(Co1−xFex)2

High field magnetization measurements have been performed to examine the existence of itinerant metamagnetism in exchange-enhanced systems related to YCo₂ together with Fe_1−x Co_xSi. In the Y(Co_−xFe_x)₂ system, the meta magnetism inherent in YCo₂ has been observed in 0.04 x0.07. The transition is not as sharp as in the Y(Co_1−xAl_x)₂ system. Other exchange-enhanced paramagnets Y(Co_−xCu_x)₂ and Y_1−xLa_xCo_x2 and weakly itinerant ferromagnet Fe_1−xCo_xSi exhibit no metamagnetic transition up to 430 kOe.     

The Hall effect in selectively doped strained-layer Ge-Ge1−xSix superlattices superlattices

For the first time, research on the unique galvanomagnetic properties of the hole gas in the channels of selectively doped CVD Ge-Ge_1−XSi_X (X≤0, 2) superlattices with strained Ge layers was carried out. We have obtained a high value of the hole mobility 1.5 × 10⁴ cm²/V s (T = 4, 2 K) at a hole concentrations of (1–5) × 10¹⁷ cm⁻³ in SLs channels. It is shown that the main contribution into the longitudinal conductivity of strained Ge-Ge_1−XSi_X SL due to light hole band splitting under the strains in Ge layers.     

Antiferromagnetism and the Kondo behaviour in Ce(Pt1−xPdx)Ga

We present the results of lattice parameters at room temperature, the static magnetic susceptibility and the magnetic resistivity between 1.8 and 300 K, and the low-temperature specific-heat measurements for the series Ce(Pt_1−xPd_x)Ga, (x=0.0, 0.2, 0.5, 0.8 and 1.0). Two maxima in the temperature dependence of the magnetic resistive curve for each sample are observed, one above 100 K, and another at around 4 K, which due to an interplay between crystal-field effect and the Kondo effect. As determined from the peak values of the temperature dependence of the specific heat data C(T), all samples exhibit antiferromagnetic ordering from 1.3 K for CePdGa to 3.4 K for CePtGa. The large reduction of entropy for each sample below T_N is associated with the Kondo effect.     

Deep impurity states in Hg1−xCdxTe

The chemical trends for the energy level of substitutional defects in narrow-band-gap semiconductor alloy Hg_1-xCd_xTe is studied. A minimal basis set in the empirical tight binding formalism is employed. The calculated trends seem to agree well with previous studies but there are some quantitative differences.     

Direct comparison of the magnetic properties of ordered and disordered Fe3−xPt1+x alloys at low temperatures

The effect of atomic order on the magnetic moment and high field susceptibility of the Fe-Pt system has been investigated. The atomic moment varies linearly with composition and the influence of the atomic ordering is quite weak at low temperatures. By contrast, the high field susceptibility is larger for the order state and shows a minimum at 30 at% Pt.     

Morphology of GaAs1−xPx superlattices grown by MOCVD and chloride VPE

Distorted layer growth manifested by nonuniform etching may occur in GaAs_1−xP_x superlattices grown by MOCVD and VPE. The distortion was found to be more severe for MOCVD growth than for VPE. The distortion is decreased by decreasing the magnitude of the interlayer strain in the superlattice but does not depend upon the layer thickness. The rate of crystal growth, the temperature of growth and the strain rate in the layer supporting the superlattice also influence the distortion. Several possible causes of the effect are discussed, including nonuniform elastic stress and/or compositional nonuniformity.     

Epitaxial growth of MgO on lattice-matched CrxMO1−x(001)

We describe the MBE growth and structural characterization of ultrathin layers of epitaxial MgO on Cr_xMO_1−x (x ≈ 0.65 ). The metal alloy was grown as an epitaxial film on high-quality MgO(001) substrates. This kind of epitaxy produces unstrained MgO surfaces of very high structural quality on a conducting substrate. Such materials will enable definitive investigations of surface structure and reactivity using charged-particle spectroscopy, diffraction, and imaging. The role of lattice matching is discussed and shown to be very important.     

NMR study of nearly itinerant antiferromagnetic Y1−xScxMn2

The NMR investigation of Y_0.97Sc_0.03Mn₂ has revealed that this compound remains paramagnetic down to 4.2 K. The nuclear spin-lattice relaxation rates, 1/T₁, of ⁵⁵Mn and ⁴⁵Sc in Y_0.97Sc_0.03Mn₂ show the T dependence as predicted from the self-consistent renormalization (SCR) theory of spin fluctuations for nearly antiferromagnetic metals.     

Magnetic properties of the intermetallic compounds Gd(Mn1−xNix)2

The magnetic properties of pseudobinary compounds Gd(Mn_1−xNi_x)₂ were studied to understand the type of magnetic interaction among the constituent atoms of the parent binary compound. The Arrott plot for GdMn₂ indicates no spontaneous magnetization. The magnetization and the Curie temperature increase with increasing concentration of Ni on the Mn rich side. The collapse of the Mn moment makes the Gd moment dominant in magnetization with increasing Ni concentration.     

Surface photovoltage investigations of Cd1−xMnxTe for x = 0.01 and 0.10

Surface photovoltage investigations of Cd_1−xMn_xTe monocrystals for x = 0.01 and 0.10 were performed in the temperature range between 100 and 300 K with a modified Kelvin method at a pressure of 10⁻⁵ Pa. The surfaces with orientation (110) were ground, polished with “Gamal”, and rinsed in acetone and alcohol. Three types of effects were observed on the surface spectroscopy curves: A sharp increase in photovoltage, connected with the electron band-to-band transitions for a photon energy equal to the energy gap. Photovoltage quenching attributed to the existence of surface states with energy just above the edge of the valence band. Increase in photovoltage in the range between 0.9 and 1.0 eV resulting from electron transitions between the valence band and energy states connected with manganese ions.     

On the appearance of ferromagnetism in Y(Co1−xAlx)2 alloys

The appearance of ferromagnetism in Y(Co_1−xAl_x)₂ is discussed in terms of a d band model. The approximate d bands for YCo₂ and Y(Co_1−x)₂ are calculated and the decrease in the electronic energy due to magnetization of the spin of estimated. The energy decrease is the largest in YCo₂, and it gradually decreases as the Al content increases, if the lattice constant is fixed, while this energy decrease increases if the lattice constant increases with increasing Al content. These results of calculations give a good account of the appearance of ferromagnetism in Y(Co_1−xAl_x)₂ around x = 0.15. The ferromagnetism in Sc(CO_1−xAl_x)₂ is also discussed, leading to the appearance of ferromagnetism between x = 0.15 and 0.30.