Orbital magnetism in disordered mesoscopic metals

The theory of orbital magnetism in disordered metals is reviewed and extended to include a broad range of temperatures and fields. Sample-to-sample fluctuations in the orbital magnetic susceptibility are studied. In a given sample these fluctuations manifest themselves in aperiodic sample-specific oscillations of susceptibility and magnetization, when the strength of the magnetic field is changed.     

Orbital magnetism of 2D chaotic lattices

We study the orbital magnetism of 2D lattices with chaotic motion of electrons within a primitive cell. Using the temperature diagrammatic technique, we evaluate the averaged value and rms fluctuation of the magnetic response in the diffusive regime within the model of noninteracting electrons. The fluctuations of the magnetic susceptibility turn out to be large and at low temperature can be of the order of χL(k _Fl)^3/2, where k _F is the Fermi wave vector, l is the mean free path, and χL is the Landau susceptibility. In a certain region of magnetic fields the paramagnetic contribution to the averaged response is field-independent and larger than the absolute value of the Landau response. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 63, No. 12, 979–983 (25 June 1996) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Edited by Steve Torstveit.     

Study of the ferrodistorsive orbital ordering in NaNiO2 by neutron diffraction and submillimeter wave ESR

NaNiO₂ has been studied by neutron-powder diffraction, magnetic susceptibility and submillimeter wave ESR. The monoclinic structure at room temperature is characterised by a ferrodistorsive orbital ordering due to the Jahn-Teller (JT) effect of the Ni³⁺ ions in the low spin state. NaNiO₂ undergoes a structural transition at around 480 K, above which the orbital ordering disappears. The high temperature phase is rhombohedral with the layered -NaFeO₂ structure ( space group). The magnetic susceptibility exhibits hysteresis and we observe a change of the Curie-Weiss law parameters above the JT transition. The anisotropy of the g-factor at 200 K can be attributed to the JT effect which favours the orbital occupation. Finally, the interplay between the magnetic and structural properties of NaNiO₂ and Li_1-xNi_1+xO₂ is discussed. Received 29 May 2000     

A quantitative determination of magnetic fluctuations in CuGeO3

A polarised neutron scattering investigation has been carried out on a powder sample of CuGeO₃ within the temperature range of 1.5 K to 600 K. The magnetic scattering has been separated from all other contributions by using polarised neutrons and polarisation analysis and placed onto an absolute scale. At low temperatures the long wavelength components of the paramagnetic response are suppressed consistent with the formation of Cu dimers in which the magnetic moments are correlated antiferromagnetically. This form of the scattering persists to temperatures well above the dimerisation temperature T _sp ∼ 14 K. However as the temperature is raised the intensity of the long wavelength spin fluctuations increases and above ∼150 K they are the dominant feature in the wave vector dependence of the response. At all temperatures the observed scattering extrapolates smoothly to the Q = 0 value given by the uniform susceptibility. Consequently the thermal variation of the uniform susceptibility arises from the evolution of the long wavelength magnetic fluctuations. At large wave vectors the energy dependence of the scattering revealed that the response occurs below 16 meV in agreement with the reported maximum magnetic excitation energy at the zone boundary in the ground state. However the total magnetic scattering is significantly less than that expected for a local moment system suggesting that the spectrum of thermal and quantum fluctuations overlap. Received 30 May 2000 and Received in final form 22 March 2001     

Renormalization of Competing Interactions and Superconductivity on Small Scales

The interaction-induced orbital magnetic response of a nanoscale ring is evaluated for a diffusive system which is a superconductor in the bulk. The interplay of the renormalized Coulomb and Fröhlich interactions is crucial. The magnetic susceptibility which results from the fluctuations of the uniform superconducting order parameter is diamagnetic (paramagnetic) when the renormalized combined interaction is attractive (repulsive). Above the transition temperature of the bulk the total magnetic susceptibility has contributions from many wave-vector- and (Matsubara) frequency-dependent order parameter fluctuations. Each of these contributions results from a different renormalization of the relevant coupling energy, when one integrates out the fermionic degrees of freedom. The total diamagnetic response of the large superconductor may become paramagnetic when the system’s size decreases.     

Spin fluctuations and Curie temperature in the compounds R2M17 with nonmagnetic elements

The magnetic properties of materials for permanent magnets based on binary compounds R₂M₁₇ (R=Y, Sm; M=Fe, Co), also including additions of the nonmagnetic elements N, Al, and Si, are investigated a the theory of dynamical fluctuations of the electronic spin density. It is shown that the Curie temperature is determined by the ratio of the exchange splitting energy (proportional to the magnetization at T=0) and the rms value of the fluctuations (proportional to the local spin susceptibility). The fluctuations are much larger in iron compounds than in cobalt alloys. This results not only in quantitative differences in their characteristics but also in a qualitatively different change in the properties of these materials on nitriding. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 41, 77–83 (January 1999)     

Spin fluctuations and electronic semiconductor-metal transitions in iron monosilicide

This paper discusses the effect of dynamic zero-point and thermal spin-density fluctuations (SDF) on the electronic spectrum of the nearly-ferromagnetic semiconductor FeSi. It is shown that near T=0° zero-point SDF can lead to so much splitting of the electron states of the valence and conduction band that a “gapless” ground state arises. As the temperature increases, the forbidden gap in the spectrum of d electrons first reappears due to suppression of zero-point fluctuations and then disappears again, as the amplitude of thermal spin fluctuations increases. It is these transformations of the electronic spectrum that are the reason for the anomalous changes in the magnetic susceptibility with temperature observed experimentally. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 40, 1437–1441 (August 1998)     

Thermodynamic properties of the spin-1/2 antiferromagnetic ladder under magnetic field

Specific heat (C_V) measurements in the spin-1/2 Cu₂(C₂H₁₂N₂)₂Cl₄ system under a magnetic field up to H =8.25 T are reported and compared to the results of numerical calculations based on the 2-leg antiferromagnetic Heisenberg ladder. While the temperature dependences of both the susceptibility and the low-field specific heat are accurately reproduced by this model, deviations are observed above the critical field H_C1 at which the spin gap closes. In this Quantum High Field phase, the contribution of the low-energy quantum fluctuations are stronger than in the Heisenberg ladder model. We argue that this enhancement can be attributed to dynamical lattice fluctuations. Finally, we show that such a Heisenberg ladder, for H > H C1, is unstable, when coupled to the 3D lattice, against a lattice distortion. These results provide an alternative explanation for the observed low temperature ( K-0.8 K) phase (previously interpreted as a 3D magnetic ordering) as a new type of incommensurate gapped state. Received: 23 July 1998 / Accepted: 24 August 1998     

Magnetic properties of electrons in metal-ammonia solutions

A theoretical approach is proposed to describe the concentration and temperature dependence of the static magnetic susceptibility of a metal-ammonia solution. A mechanism is also suggested to explain the transition of the system from the paramagnetic to the diamagnetic state. The theory is based on the assumption that both single-particle and two-electron bound singlet formations of the bipolar type exist in the solution. It is shown that diamagnetism is due to the electron orbital motion and to the relative motion of the quasiparticles. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 67, 1–13 (August 1997)     

Dynamical theory of thermal spin fluctuations in metallic ferromagnets

A self-consistent dynamical theory of thermal spin fluctuations is developed which describes their spatial correlation. It is based on the functional integral method and utilizes the quadratic representation for the electron free energy in a fluctuating exchange field with renormalized susceptibilities allowing for the interaction of various spin fluctuation modes. Interpolation between the single-site and homogeneous susceptibilities is used, where these susceptibilities are found self-consistently. The average over fluctuations takes account of both long-wavelength and local excitations. A closed system of equations is formed for both unknown quantities: the magnetization and the mean-square exchange field at a site. The basic characteristics of a specific magnet are the density of electron states and the atomic magnetic moment at T=0. A method is proposed for separating the relatively slow thermal-spin fluctuations from the rapid zero-spin fluctuations forming the ground state of the magnets. At T=0 we have a system of equations of mean field theory. The temperature excites thermal spin fluctuations, which are described by taking account of correlation in time and space. The magnetization, susceptibility, magnitude of the spin fluctuations and their distribution over momenta, and the degree of magnetic short-range order in iron are calculated as functions of the temperature in the ferromagnetic and paramagnetic phases, and also at the transition between them, the Curie temperature. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 40, 90–98 (January 1998)     

Magnetic field effects in the onset of superconductivity

Using the time dependent Ginzburg-Landau theory the influence of a finite and even strong magnetic field on the fluctuations in superconductors aboveT _c is studied. We calculate the dynamical conductivity, the Hall angle, and the static magnetisation from the fluctuations of the charge current associated with the fluctuations of the order parameter. It is found that the magnetic field generally enhances the singular contributions of the fluctuations to the conductivity and the susceptibility. Associated with this enhancement is a reduction of the characteristic frequency scale close toT _c .     

Effect of asymmetry of CuO2 layers in copper oxides on the anomalous neutron scattering near T c

Reasons for critical magnetic scattering of neutrons near T _c in copper oxides with CuO₂ layers whose nearest environment has no “up-down” symmetry are discussed. The intracrystalline electric field, which threads the CuO₂ planes on account of the asymmetry, induces coupling between the spin and momentum of the current carriers. This coupling is shown to result in a manifestation of virtual Cooper pairs in the imaginary part of the spin susceptibility. Thus spin density fluctuations as well as current fluctuations should participate in the scattering. A way of experimentally distinguishing between the two mechanisms is pointed out. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 69, No. 5, 363–368 (10 March 1999) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Edited by Steve Torstveit.     

Anomalous magnetism of small metallic clusters in a weak magnetic field

Anomalous diamagnetism in small magnetic fields may be observed in systems consisting of size-quantized metallic clusters. With the increase of magnetic field the diamagnetic susceptibility decreases until ordinary values χ₀ ～ 10^-5 -10^-6. The conditions for the existence of anomalous paramagnetism and orbital ferromagnetism in such systems are also discussed. An increase of the diamagnetic susceptibility in anisotropic semiconductors due to impurities is predicted.     

Soft X-ray magnetic circular dichroism in Fe and Fe 0.50 Co 0.48 V 0.02 films: quantitative analysis of transmission

Magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) in X-ray absorption has been measured at the L _{2, 3} edges of Fe in ex-situ grown Fe and Fe _0.50 Co _0.48 V _0.02 films by means of the transmission method. A new approach is developed for fitting the observed transmittance, which describes the resonance lineshapes as (generalized) Fano profiles. Analytical integration of each single resonance allows a more reliable determination of the orbital and spin magnetic moments based on the MCD sum rules. The results are consistent with an increase of the Fe spin and orbital magnetic moment in Fe-Co alloys as obtained by other experiments and band structure calculations. Received 15 August 2000 and Received in final form 11 June 2001     

Magnetic and electronic properties of hexairon(III) nanocluster with cyclic structure: a Mössbauer study

A molecular cluster containing a coplanar ring of iron(III) ions with spin 5/2 was investigated by Mössbauer spectroscopy. The iron spins are antiferromagnetically coupled so that the ground state has total spin S=0. Spectra in the absence of an applied magnetic field consisted of a quadrupolar doublet, the linewidth of which monotonically increased with the temperature. A quadrupolar splitting of about 0.35 mm/s was found. Calculations of the ironorbital electronic populations were carried out and the quadrupolar splitting was estimated. Its value was in agreement with the experimental one. In addition, the trend of the linewidth was explained in terms of isotropic spin fluctuations. Spectra in the presence of a 4.5 T longitudinal magnetic field were also collected. The hyperfine field was obtained from their fitting. Differences with respect to the hyperfine field obtained from susceptibility data were also interpreted in terms of spin fluctuations.     

Metamagnetic phase transitions induced by static and pulsed fields in (Sm0.5Gd0.5)0.55Sr0.45MnO3 ceramics

It has been found that the magnetic susceptibility of (Sm_0.5Gd_0.5)_0.55Sr_0.45MnO₃ ceramic samples in zero external magnetic field exhibits a sharp peak near the temperature of 48.5 K with a small temperature hysteresis that does not depend on the frequency of measurements and is characteristic of the phase transition to an antiferromagnetic state with a long-range charge orbital ordering, which is accompanied by an increase in the magnetic susceptibility with a decrease in the temperature. The magnetization isotherms in static and pulsed magnetic fields at temperatures below 60 K demonstrate the occurrence of an irreversible metamagnetic transition to a homogeneous ferromagnetic state with a critical transition field independent of the measurement temperature, which, apparently, is associated with the destruction of the insulating state with a long-range charge ordering. In the temperature range 60 K ?? T ?? 150 K, the ceramic samples undergo a magnetic-field-induced reversible phase transition to the ferromagnetic state, which is similar to the metamagnetic transition in the low-temperature phase and is caused by the destruction of local charge/orbital correlations. With an increase in the temperature, the critical transition fields increase almost linearly and the field hysteresis disappears. Near the critical fields of magnetic phase transitions, small ultra-narrow magnetization steps have been revealed in pulsed fields with a high rate of change in the magnetic field of ??400 kOe/??s.     

Theoretical study of magnetic susceptibility of orbitally unquenched compound KCoF3

The effect of residual orbital magnetic moment of Co²⁺ in KCoF₃ on the magnetic susceptibility has been studied. For the calculation for both the ordered state and the paramagnetic state we have applied the correlated effective field approximation developed by Lines. An excellent value of the Néel temperature is obtained and, except near the Néel temperature, the calculated susceptibility agrees well with the experimental results over the whole temperature range.     

Pauli spin paramagnetism in amorphous Fe24Zr76

Results of the magnetic susceptibility, χ, measurements on amorphous Fe₂₄Zr₇₆ presented here when combined with the previously reported photoemission data enable us not only to separate unambiguously the Pauli spin and orbital contributions to χ but also to arrive at a reliable value for the Van Vleck susceptibility of pure Zr.     

KCrF3中的轨道有序及其成因

强关联体系中的轨道有序及其成因一直是凝聚态物理研究的热点问题.轨道有序对于巨磁阻和 超导材料的研究有非常重要的地位.利用第一性原理计算研究了KCrF₃的四方相和立方相中的轨道有序 及其成因.在四方相中, GGA和GGA+U两种方法计算结果都表明其基态是A型反铁磁和G型轨道有序. 对于立方结构, GGA方法得出铁磁半金属态是基态,而GGA+U(U_eff = 3.0 eV)得到的基态是A型 反铁磁绝缘体. 光电导测量是少数能从实验上观察到轨道有序的方法之一,因此计算了其光电导,并结合投影态密度讨论 了KCrF₃中的轨道有序.最后找到了其轨道有序的成因:电子强关联效应,而非电-声子相互作用是其 轨道 有序的物理根源.     

Magnetic properties of the low dimensional spin system (VO)PO:ESR and susceptibility

Experimental results on magnetic resonance (ESR) and magnetic susceptibility are given for single crystalline (VO)₂P₂O₇. The crystal growth procedure is briefly discussed. The susceptibility is interpreted numerically using a model with alternating spin chains. We determine J =51 K and . Furthermore we find a spin gap of meV from our ESR measurements. Using elastic constants no indication of a phase transition forcing the dimerization is seen below 300 K. Received: 22 December 1997 / Accepted: 17 March 1998