Nonuniversal ordering of spin and charge in stripe phases

We study the interplay of topological excitations in stripe phases: charge dislocations, charge loops, and spin vortices. In two dimensions these defects interact logarithmically on large distances. Using a renormalization-group analysis in the Coulomb-gas representation of these defects, we calculate the phase diagram and the critical properties of the transitions. Depending on the interaction parameters, spin and charge order can disappear at a single transition or in a sequence of two transitions (spin-charge separation). These transitions are nonuniversal with continuously varying critical exponents. We also determine the nature of the points where three phases coexist.     

Vortex lattice transitions in YNi2B2C

We have performed extensive small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) diffraction studies of the vortex lattice in single crystal YNi₂B₂C for B‖c. High-resolution SANS, combined with a field-oscillation vortex lattice preparation technique, allows us to separate Bragg scattered intensities from two orthogonal domains and accurately determine the unit cell angle, β. The data suggest that upon increasing field there is a finite transition width where both low- and high-field distorted hexagonal vortex lattice phases, mutually rotated by 45°, coexist. The smooth variation of diffracted intensity from each phase through the transition corresponds to a redistribution of populations between the two types of domains.     

Non-local defect interaction in one-dimension: weak versus strong non-locality

Defect interaction (kink-antikink interaction) is studied for a prototypical model for non-local interaction. Mathematically, it is a bistable integrodifferential model, where the non-local interaction is performed due to an integral kernel. The system is able to establish domains where it is in one of its two equilibria, separated by defects. It is shown that the defect interaction depends on the asymptotical behavior of the integral kernel. In the weak non-local regime, when the integral kernel decays faster than an exponential at infinitum, the defect interaction is exponentially weak. Hence, this case is qualitatively similar to the local one. On the other hand, in the strong non-local regime, when the integral kernel decays slower than an exponential at infinitum, the defect interaction is ruled by the asymptotical behavior of the integral kernel. In this case, the defect interaction is stronger, and could be characterized, for instance, by a power law. The effect of this transition (from the weak to strong non-locality) on the domain dynamics is discussed.     

Field-induced phase transitions and reversible field-induced inversion of chirality in tilted smectic phases of bent-core mesogens

Three homologous achiral five-ring bent-core mesogens are presented where 4-chlororesorcinol is the central core and the aromatic rings are linked by ester groups. These compounds form smectic phases with a tilted arrangement of the molecules (tilt angle ≈ 45^°). On cooling the isotropic liquid this phase adopts a fan-like texture which shows for two homologues at relatively high electric fields ( 25-35V μm^-1) an antiferroelectric electro-optical response based on the collective rotation of the molecules around their long axes. At lower temperature the application of a sufficiently high electric field leads to a continuous transition into a non-birefringent texture which exhibits randomly distributed domains of opposite handedness. These domains can be reversibly switched into a state of opposite chirality by reversal of the field polarity. This switching is bistable and shows a current response typical for a ferroelectric ground state. The possible mechanism of the field-induced phase transition, of the ferroelectric switching and of the field-induced inversion of the chirality is discussed on the base of XRD, ¹³C- and ¹H-NMR investigations, dielectric and electro-optical measurements.     

Structural and magnetic dynamics of a laser induced phase transition in FeRh

We use time-resolved x-ray diffraction and magneto-optical Kerr effect to study the laser-induced antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic phase transition in FeRh. The structural response is given by the nucleation of independent ferromagnetic domains (τ(1)~30 ps). This is significantly faster than the magnetic response (τ(2)~60 ps) given by the subsequent domain realignment. X-ray diffraction shows that the two phases coexist on short time scales and that the phase transition is limited by the speed of sound. A nucleation model describing both the structural and magnetic dynamics is presented.     

Intertwined electronic and structural phase transitions in the In/Si(111) interface

The structural (4 x 1) to (8 x 2) transition and the electronic metal to semimetal transition at the In/Si interface are studied with scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy. Both transitions are gradual, resulting in a complex domain structure in the transition temperature regime. At these intermediate temperatures, the metallic (4 x 1) and semimetallic (8 x 2) domains coexist with each other and with new nanophases. By probing the two intertwined but distinguishable transitions at the atomic level, the interaction between different phases is visualized directly.     

Martensitic fcc-to-hcp transformation observed in xenon at high pressure

Angle-resolved x-ray diffraction patterns of Xe to 127 GPa indicate that the fcc-to-hcp transition occurs martensitically between 3 and 70 GPa in diamond-anvil cells without an intermediate phase. These data also reveal that the transition occurs by the introduction of stacking disorder in the fcc lattice at low pressure, which grows into hcp domains with increasing pressure. The small energy difference between the hcp and the fcc structures may allow the two phases to coexist over a wide pressure range. Evidence of similar stacking disorder and incipient growth of an hcp phase are also observed in solid Kr.     

Oscillatory dispersion and coexisting stable pulse trains in an excitable medium

For planar wave trains in excitable media, we found a novel type of anomalous dispersion distinguished by bistable domains in the dependence of the propagation velocity on the wavelength. Within one medium alternative stable pulse trains can coexist having the same wavelength but different velocities. The phenomenon is related to oscillatory recovery of excitations, which causes small amplitude oscillations in the refractory tail of pulses. Crucial for the bistability is that the pulses in the trains are locked into one oscillation maximum in the tail of the preceding pulse in the train.     

Mobility edges and reentrant localization in one-dimensional dimerized non-Hermitian quasiperiodic lattice

The mobility edges and reentrant localization transitions are studied in one-dimensional dimerized lattice with nonHermitian either uniform or staggered quasiperiodic potentials.We find that the non-Hermitian uniform quasiperiodic disorder can induce an intermediate phase where the extended states coexist with the localized ones,which implies that the system has mobility edges.The localization transition is accompanied by the PT symmetry breaking transition.While if the non-Hermitian quasiperiodic disorder is staggered,we demonstrate the existence of multiple intermediate phases and multiple reentrant localization transitions based on the finite size scaling analysis.Interestingly,some already localized states will become extended states and can also be localized again for certain non-Hermitian parameters.The reentrant localization transitions are associated with the intermediate phases hosting mobility edges.Besides,we also find that the non-Hermiticity can break the reentrant localization transition where only one intermediate phase survives.More detailed information about the mobility edges and reentrant localization transitions are presented by analyzing the eigenenergy spectrum,inverse participation ratio,and normalized participation ratio.     

Spatial multistability and nonvariational effects

We investigate the phenomenon of spatial multistability of fronts in thin bistable systems and stress the important role played by the absence of a variational principle. Nonvariational effects allow, for instance, two different immobilized fronts to coexist. The morphological instability of the corresponding nucleating solution can then lead, even in the absence of any diffusive instability, to nontrivial patterns in the depth of one-side-fed reactors.     

Opto-electronic bistable devices in real-time optical information processing

An opto-electronic bistable device using a twisted nematic liquid crystal cell is described. The optical bistability characteristics of this device are used in a new liquid crystal light valve with bistability in cellular array structure. Experimental studies demonstrate the applications of such opto-electronic bistable devices in real-time optical information processing such as intensity limiting for contrast improvement and noise elimination, edge enhancement for pattern recognition, linear and nonlinear optical filtering (in spatial and spectral domains).     

Coexistence of ferroelectric and antiferroelectric microregions in the paraelectric phase of NH4H2PO4 (ADP)

Ammonium dihydrogen phosphate NH₄H₂PO₄ (ADP) is an antiferroelectric (AFE) compound belonging to the KDP-type family of hydrogen-bonded ferroelectrics. Recent ab initio results have shown that the optimization of the N–H–O bridges in ADP leads to the stabilization of the AFE state over a FE one. However, electron spin probe measurements have suggested that microregions of both phases may coexist above the critical antiferroelectric–paraelectric transition temperature. We have performed first principles studies of the energetics and relative stability of different AFE and FE defects embedded in a paraelectric (PE) matrix of ADP. Our analysis indicates that FE and AFE clusters are stable and may coexist in the PE phase, thus confirming the above suggestion.     

磁力显微镜对相分离锰氧化物薄膜中反铁磁绝缘相融化的成像

用自制磁力显微镜研究了一个受各向异性应变的锰氧化物薄膜中的相分离以及由磁场导致的从反铁磁绝缘相到铁磁金属相的转变．磁力显微镜图片显示,在0 T这两种竞争的相就已经共存,且两种相 的畴呈非常明显的各向异性的条状分布,这可以定性解释输运上的各向异性．在2.1 T 以上,反铁磁绝缘相逐渐转变为铁磁金属相,并在3.2 T时结束．当去掉磁场时铁磁金属相能够保持．     

Magneto-optical investigations of the domain structure and magnetization of the ferrite-garnet Tb<Subscript>0.2</Subscript>Y<Subscript>2.8</Subscript>Fe<Subscript>5</Subscript>O<Subscript>12</Subscript> in the temperature range of the spontaneous spin-reorientation phase transition

The transformation of a domain structure and technical magnetization of the Tb_0.2Y_2.8Fe₅O₁₂ single crystal in the temperature range of the spontaneous orientational phase transition have been investigated by the magneto-optical method. It has been shown that the phase transition is extended in a certain temperature range in which domains of the low-temperature and high-temperature magnetic phases coexist. It has been found that the evolution of the domain configuration in the temperature range of spin reorientation substantially depends on the presence of mechanical stresses in the crystal. Anomalies in the temperature dependences of the coercivity and magneto-optical susceptibility of the crystal due to the transformation of its domain structure during the phase transition have been revealed. The experimental results have been interpreted within the existing theory of orientational phase transitions in cubic crystals.     

Transition to chemical turbulence

Experiments have been conducted on Turing-type chemical spatial patterns and their variants in a quasi-two-dimensional open spatial reactor with a chlorite-iodide-malonic acid reaction. A variety of stationary spatial structures-hexagons, stripes, and mixed states-were observed, and transitions to these states were studied. For conditions beyond those corresponding to the emergence of patterns, a transition was observed from stationary spatial patterns to chemical turbulence, which is marked by a continuous motion of the pattern within a domain and of the grain boundaries between domains. The transition to chemical turbulence was analyzed by measuring the correlation length, the average pattern speed, and the total length of the domain boundaries. The emergence of chemical turbulence is accompanied by a large increase in the defects in the pattern, which suggests that this is an example of defect-mediated turbulence.     

Low‐temperature Raman spectroscopic studies in NaNbO3

Raman spectroscopic measurements were carried out in the temperature range 10–300 K to understand the low‐temperature antiferroelectric (AFE)–ferroelectric (FE) phase transition in NaNbO₃. Several modes in the low wavenumber range were found to disappear, while some new modes appeared across the transition. The temperature dependence of mode wavenumbers suggests that, during cooling, the AFE–FE phase transition begins to occur at 180 K, while the reverse transition starts at 260 K during heating. During cooling, the two phases were found to coexist in the temperature range of 220–160 K. Upon heating, the FE phase is retained up to 240 K and both FE and AFE phases coexist in the temperature range 240–300 K. In contrast to the earlier reports, the present results suggest a different coexistence region and the reverse transition temperature. The reported relaxor‐type FE behaviour over a broad temperature is consistent with the observed coexistence of phases during cooling and heating cycles. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Bistable properties of spatial light modulator with internal feedback

A bistable spatial optical device has been developed on the basis of a spatial light modulator which contains photosensitive and electrooptical liquid crystal layers, where an internal feedback loop is established.     

Phase transition of the baryon-antibaryon plasma in hot and dense nuclear matter

We investigate the presence of thermodynamic instabilities in a hot and dense nuclear medium where a phase transition from a gas of massive hadrons to a nearly massless baryon, antibaryon plasma can take place. The analysis is performed by requiring the global conservation of baryon number and zero net strangeness in the framework of an effective relativistic mean field theory with the inclusion of the Δ(1232)-isobars, hyperons and the lightest pseudoscalar and vector meson degrees of freedom. Similarly to the low density nuclear liquid-gas phase transition, we show that such a phase transition is characterized by both mechanical instability (fluctuations on the baryon density) that by chemical- diffusive instability (fluctuations on the strangeness concentration). It turns out that, in this situation, phases with different values of antibaryon-baryon ratios and strangeness content may coexist.     

Noise-induced coupling and phase transition in initially homogeneous bistable system

We show that a colored spatial noise induces a heterogeneous behavior and coupling of initially uncoupled single bistable units. A formal approximation reduces a non-Markovian stochastic process described by the initial set of equations into Markovian process in terms of Langevin equation, for which a simple piecewise linear emulation was used to represent the nonlinear deterministic force. It turned out that the coupling leads to a phase transition due to the noise-induced diffusive term. As an example, a typical bistable noisy system with symmetric double-well potential was studied.     

Transverse instability of line defects of period-2 spiral waves

Spiral waves that arise in period-2 oscillatory media extended in space generically bear "line defects" along which the local kinetics exhibits a period-1 oscillation. Locally, these defect structures can be viewed as a front separating two period-2 oscillatory domains oscillating 2pi out of phase. Here we show that their shape can become sinusoidal with a transverse instability as in bistable fronts. This instability eventually leads to a line-defect filled spatiotemporal chaotic state having erratic proliferations, annihilations, and regenerations of line defects. The same sequence of phenomena is observed in a model reaction-diffusion system as well as in an experimental system.