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Biomedical subjects

L Paolasini

Publications and source records attributed to L Paolasini.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

Coherent peaks and minimal probing depth in photoemission spectroscopy of Mott-Hubbard systems.

We have measured hard x-ray photoemission spectra of pure vanadium sesquioxide (V(2)O(3)) across its metal-insulator transition. We show that, in the metallic phase, a clear correlation exists between the shakedown satellites observed in the vanadium 2p and 3p core-level spectra and the coherent peak measured at the Fermi level. Comparing experimental results and dynamical mean-field theory calculations, we estimate the Hubbard energy U in V(2)O(3) (4.20+/-0.05 eV). From our bulk-sensitive photoemission spectra we infer the existence of a critical probing depth for investigating electronic properties in strongly correlated solids.

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Charge density wave dislocation as revealed by coherent x-ray diffraction.

Coherent x-ray diffraction experiments have been performed on high quality crystals of the charge density wave (CDW) system K0.3MoO3. The satellite reflections associated with the CDW have been measured as a function of the 20-microm-diameter beam position. For some positions, regular fringes have been observed. We show that this observation is consistent with the presence of a single CDW dislocation. Beyond charge density wave systems, this experiment shows that coherent x-ray diffraction is a suitable tool to probe topological defects embedded in the bulk.

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Direct determination of the magnetic ground state in the square lattice S = 1/2 antiferromagnet Li2VOSiO4.

Powder neutron diffraction and resonant x-ray scattering measurements from a single crystal have been performed to study the low-temperature state of the 2D frustrated, quantum-Heisenberg system Li2VOSiO4. Both techniques indicate a collinear antiferromagnetic ground state, with propagation vector k=(1 / 2 1 / 2 0), and magnetic moments in the a-b plane. Contrary to previous reports, the ordered moment at 1.44 K, m=0.63(3)micro(B), is very close to the value expected for the square lattice Heisenberg model ( approximately 0.6micro(B)). The magnetic order is three dimensional, with antiferromagnetic a-b layers stacked ferromagnetically along the c axis. Neither x-ray nor neutron diffraction shows evidence for a structural distortion between 1.6 and 10 K.

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Local chiral-symmetry breaking in globally centrosymmetric crystals.

A thorough tensor analysis of the Bragg-forbidden reflection (00.3)(h) in corundum systems having a global center of inversion, such as V2O3 and alpha-Fe2O3, shows that anomalous x-ray resonant diffraction can access chiral properties related to the dipole-quadrupole (E1-E2) channel via an interference with the pure quadrupole-quadrupole (E2-E2) process. This is also confirmed by independent ab initio numerical simulations. In such a way, it becomes possible to detect chiral quantities in systems where dichroic absorption techniques are ineffective.

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Magnetic ground state of pure and doped CeFe2.

A combination of neutron elastic and inelastic, resonant x-ray scattering, and 57Fe Mössbauer experiments are used to determine the unusual magnetic ground state of CeFe2. The complementarities between different time-scale techniques may allow one to understand the dynamic features of the ground state in CeFe2 and its pseudobinary compounds, and how the frustration of Fe tetrahedra leads the appearance of antiferromagnetic fluctuations in the presence of ferrimagnetism. The resulting model can be used to rationalize many of the unusual and conflicting experimental results reported for this material in the literature.

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Direct observation of charge order in an epitaxial NdNiO3 film.

The first direct observation of charge order of Ni(3+delta(')) and Ni(3-delta) by resonant x-ray scattering experiments in an epitaxial film of NdNiO3 is reported. A quantitative value of delta+delta(') = (0.45 +/- 0.04)e was obtained. The temperature dependence of the charge order deviates significantly from those of the magnetic moment and crystallographic structure. This might be an indication of a difference in their fluctuation time scales. These observations are discussed in terms of the temperature-driven metal-insulator transition in the RNiO3 family.

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Coupling between spin and orbital degrees of freedom in KCuF3.

We present the results of resonant x-ray scattering experiments on KCuF3. Structurally forbidden reflections, corresponding to magnetic and 3d-orbital long-range order, have been observed. Integrated intensities have been measured as a function of incident energy, polarization, azimuthal angle, and temperature. The results give evidence for a strong coupling between orbital and spin degrees of freedom. The interplay between magnetic and orbital order parameters is revealed by the temperature dependence of the intensity of orbital Bragg peaks.

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Resonant enhancements at nonmagnetic ions: new possibilities for magnetic X-ray scattering.

Synchrotron experiments with uranium antiferromagnetic compounds have discovered large ( >1000) enhancements of the magnetic scattering intensities at the K edges of nominally nonmagnetic anions, e.g., Ga and As. The width in energy, the position with respect to the white line, and the azimuthal and polarization dependencies permit one to associate the signal with transitions of E1 dipole symmetry from 1s to 4p states. In momentum space, the signal exhibits long-range order at the antiferromagnetic wave vector. We discuss possible channels capable of generating the observed enhancements.

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First observation of nonreciprocal X-Ray gyrotropy

We report the first observation of a nonreciprocal x-ray linear dichroism caused by the time-reversal odd, real part zeta of the complex gyrotropy tensor zeta(*) which is dominated by electric dipole-electric quadrupole E1E2 interference terms. A nonreciprocal transverse anisotropy was observed in the low temperature insulating phase of a Cr doped V2O3 Mott crystal when a single antiferromagnetic domain was grown by magnetoelectric annealing along the hexagonal c axis. This new element (edge) specific spectroscopy could nicely complement x-ray magnetic circular dichroism which is silent for antiferromagnetic materials.

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