Dispersion of magnetic excitations in optimally doped superconducting YBa2Cu3O6.95

Detailed neutron scattering measurements of YBa2Cu3O6.95 found that the resonance peak and incommensurate magnetic scattering induced by superconductivity represent the same physical phenomenon: two dispersive branches that converge near 41 meV and the in-plane wave vector q(AF)=(pi/a,pi/a) to form the resonance peak. One branch has a circular symmetry around q(AF) and quadratic downward dispersion from approximately 41 meV to the spin gap of 33+/-1 meV. The other, of lower intensity, disperses from approximately 41 meV to at least 55 meV. Our results exclude a quartet of vertical incommensurate rods in q-omega space expected from spin waves produced by dynamical charge stripes as an origin of the observed incommensurate scattering in optimally doped YBCO.     

New application of high-performance liquid chromatography for analysis of urinary C-peptide

A successful application of high-performance liquid chromatography for analysis of urinary C-peptide is described. Samples (1.0 ml of human urine) were first subjected to gel chromatography to remove interfering substances, and then applied to a reversed-phase column (LiChrosorb RP-18, 7 micron). The detection of C-peptide was performed using a highly specific radioimmunoassay. With the newly developed techniques, at least four forms of immunoreactive C-peptide were detected in human urine. One of these peptides was indistinguishable from authentic C-peptide. The present study has clearly demonstrated the heterogeneity of urinary C-peptide.     

The magnetic phase transition of an amorphous FePC and its alloys containing Ni and Cr

The magnetic phase transition of the amorphous ferromagnetic alloys Fe₈₀P₁₃C₇, Fe₇₀Cr₁₀P₁₃C₇ and Fe₇₀Ni₁₀P₁₃C₇ has been investigated by magnetization and specific heat measurements. From the field dependence of the isothermal magnetization, the critical exponents and the Curie temperature (T_C) of Fe₈₀P₁₃C₇ were obtained to be β = 0.38 ± 0.02, γ = 1.30 ± 0.05, θ = 4.47 ± 0.05 and T_c = 586.55 ± 0.1°K. These exponents sufficiently satisfy the static scaling law. The specific heat of Fe₈₀P₁₃C₇ showed an approximate logarithmic singularity at T_c. The specific heat from Fe₇₀Ni₁₀P₁₃C₇ shows fairly broad peak and the peak almost smears out for Fe₇₀Cr₁₀P₁₃C₇.     

Impact of an irreversibly adsorbed layer on local viscosity of nanoconfined polymer melts

We report the origin of the effect of nanoscale confinement on the local viscosity of entangled polystyrene (PS) films at temperatures far above the glass transition temperature. By using marker x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy with gold nanoparticles embedded in the PS films prepared on solid substrates, we have determined the local viscosity as a function of the distance from the polymer-substrate interface. The results show the impact of a very thin adsorbed layer (~7 nm in thickness) even without specific interactions of the polymer with the substrate, overcoming the effect of a surface mobile layer at the air-polymer interface and thereby resulting in a significant increase in the local viscosity as approaching the substrate interface.     

Commensurate spin dynamics in the superconducting state of an electron-doped cuprate superconductor

We report neutron scattering studies on two single crystal samples of the electron-doped (n-type) superconducting (SC) cuprate Nd2-xCexCuO4 (x=0.15) with T(c)=18 and 25 K. Unlike the hole-doped (p-type) SC cuprates, where incommensurate magnetic fluctuations commonly exist, the n-type cuprate shows commensurate magnetic fluctuations at the tetragonal (1/2 1/2 0) reciprocal points both in the SC and in the normal state. A spin gap opens up when the n-type cuprate becomes SC, as in the optimally doped p-type La2-xSrxCuO4. The gap energy, however, increases gradually up to about 4 meV as T decreases from T(c) to 2 K, which contrasts with the spin pseudogap behavior with a T-independent gap energy in the SC state of p-type cuprates.     

Inelastic neutron scattering study of spin waves in MnO

The dispersion relation E(q) for spin waves in MnO has been measured at 4.2°K by neutron inelastic scattering. The isotropic exchange integrals as well as the anisotropy constants have been determined by fitting the Hamiltonian to the data. It is found that the exchange striction plays main role in the anomaly in the magnetic interactions in MnO and the biquadratic exchange interaction j₁(S₁·S₂)² is almost absent (j₁/J₁ ? 0.002).