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Colloids dispersed in a binary solvent mixture experience long-ranged solvent-mediated interactions (critical Casimir forces) upon approaching the critical demixing point of the solvent mixture. The range of the interaction is set by the bulk correlation length of the solvent mixture, which diverges upon approaching the critical point. This presents a great opportunity to realize the reversible self-assembly of colloids by tuning the proximity to the critical point of the solvent. Here, we develop a rejection-free geometric cluster algorithm to study the full ternary mixture of colloidal hard spheres suspended in an explicit three-dimensional lattice model for the solvent mixture using extensive Monte Carlo simulations. The phase diagram displays stable colloidal gas, liquid, and crystal phases, as well as broad gas-liquid and gas-crystal phase coexistence, and pronounced fractionation of the solvent in the coexisting colloid phases. The topology of the phase diagram in our three-dimensional study shows striking resemblance to that of our previous studies carried out in two dimensions.

International audience; A new oxyphosphate, PbFe3O(PO4)3, has been discovered and its structure has been characterized by single-crystal XRD between 293 and 973 K (monoclinic, space groupP21/m, a = 7.5826 Å, b = 6.3759 Å, c = 10.4245 Å, β = 99.956°, Z = 2, at r.t.). Direct-current (DC) magnetic susceptibility and specific heat measurements performed on single crystals revealed an unusual sequence of second-order ferromagnetic-like phase transitions at Tc1 = 31.8 K, Tc2 = 23.4 K and Tc3 ≈ 10 K. Alternating-current (AC) magnetic susceptibility measurements suggest glass-like dynamics between ca. 20 K and Tc3.

The coupling between local composition fluctuations in binary lipid membranes and curvatureaffects the lateral membrane structure. We propose an efficient method to compute the composition-curvature coupling in molecular simulations and apply it to two coarse-grained membrane models—aminimal, implicit-solvent model and the MARTINI model. Both the weak-curvature behavior that istypical for thermal fluctuations of planar bilayer membranes as well as the strong-curvature regimecorresponding to narrow cylindrical membrane tubes are studied by molecular dynamics simulation.The simulation results are analyzed by using a phenomenological model of the thermodynamics ofcurved, mixed bilayer membranes that accounts for the change of the monolayer area upon bending.Additionally the role of thermodynamic characteristics such as the incompatibility between thetwo lipid species and asymmetry of composition are investigated. Fil: Barragán Vidal, I. A.. Georg August Universität, Gottingen; Alemania Fil: Rosetti, Carla Mariana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba. Centro de Investigaciones en Química Biológica de Córdoba. Universidad Nacional de Córdoba. Facultad de Ciencias Químicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Química Biológica de Córdoba; Argentina Fil: Pastorino, Claudio. Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica. Centro Atómico Constituyentes; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina Fil: Müller, M.. Georg August Universität, Gottingen; Alemania

A new oxyphosphate compound PbFe3O(PO4)3 has been discovered. Its crystal structure was characterized by single crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) between 293 and 973 K (monoclinic symmetry P 21/m, a = 7.5826 Å, b = 6.3759 Å, c = 10.4245 Å and  = 99.956 °, Z = 2, at room temperature). DC magnetic susceptibility and specific heat measurements performed on single crystals unveiled an unusual sequence of second order ferromagnetic-like phase transitions at Tc1 = 31.8 K, T2 = 23.4 K and Tc3 ~ 10 K. AC magnetic susceptibility suggests a glassy-like dynamics between ~ 20 K and Tc3. A first extraction of the critical exponents (β,γ,δ) was performed by ac magnetic susceptibility in both PbFe3O(PO4)3 powders and single crystals and the values were found to be consistent with mean-field theory.AFe3O(PO4)3 (A= Ca, Sr and Pb) powder compounds were studied by means of X-Ray diffraction (XRD), from 300 to 6 K in the case of A=Pb, electron-probe microanalysis (EPMA) coupled with wavelength dispersion spectroscopy (WDS), Raman and diffuse reflectance spectroscopies, specific heat and magnetic properties measurements. Magnetization, magnetic susceptibility and specific heat measurements carried out on AFe3O(PO4)3 (A= Ca, Sr and Pb) powders firmly establish a series of three ferromagnetic (FM)-like second order phase transitions spanned over the 32 – 8 K temperature range. Diffuse reflectance measurements reveal two broad absorption bands at 1047 and 837 nm, in both PbFe3O(PO4)3 and SrFe3O(PO4)3 powders, with peak cross sections ~10-20 cm2 typical of spin-forbidden and forced electric dipole transitions.Further exploration of the PbO-Fe2O3-P2O5 system led to the discovery of a new langbeinite phase, Pb3Fe4(PO4)6, the crystal structure of which was solved by room temperature single crystal XRD (P 21 3, Z=4, a=9,7831(2) Å). This phase does not undergo any structural phase transition down to 6 K nor any kind of long range ordering down to 2 K., Dans ce travail nous avons découvert un nouvel oxyphosphate PbFe3O(PO4)3 dont nous avons déterminé la structure par diffraction des rayons X sur monocristal entre 293 K et 973 K (monoclinique, groupe d’espace P21/m, a = 7,55826 Å, b = 6,3759 Å, c = 10,4245 Å et β = 99,956°, Z = 2, à température ambiante). La mesure de la susceptibilité magnétique statique et les mesures de chaleur spécifiques effectuées sur monocristaux révèlent l’existence d’une séquence inhabituelle de transitions de phase de type ferromagnétiques à Tc1 = 31,8 K, T2 = 23,4 K et Tc3 = 10 K. La mesure de la susceptibilité alternative suggère l’existence d’une dynamique type vitreuse entre ~20 K et Tc3. Nous avons réussi une première extraction des valeurs des exposants critiques (β, γ et δ) par les mesures de la susceptibilité magnétique alternative à la fois sur les poudres et les monocristaux de PbFe3O(PO4)3 et nous avons trouvé des valeurs compatibles avec celles prédites par la théorie du champ moyen.Nous avons aussi étudié et caractérisé les poudres de la série des composés AFe3O(PO4)3 (A=Ca, Sr, Pb) par la diffraction des rayons X, la microsonde Castaing (EPMA) couplée avec spectroscopie à dispersion de longueur d’onde (WDS), la spectroscopie optique et Raman, les mesures calorimétriques (DSC et chaleur spécifique) et les mesures magnétiques. Les mesures d’aimantation, de susceptibilité magnétique et de chaleur spécifique effectuées sur les poudres de la série des composés AFe3O(PO4)3 (A=Ca, Sr, Pb) ont confirmé la succession des trois transitions du second ordre de type ferromagnétique s’étendant sur l’intervalle de température 32 – 8 K. Les mesures de la réflexion diffuse révèlent l’existence de deux bandes d’absorption à 1047 et 837 nm dans les poudres de PbFe3O(PO4)3 et de SrFe3O(PO4)3, avec des sections efficaces ~10-20 cm2 typiques des transitions intraconfigurationnelles interdites de spin et dipolaire électrique forcée.L’exploration du système PbO-Fe2O3-P2O5 a conduit à la découverte d’une nouvelle phase de type Langbeinite et de composition chimique Pb3Fe4(PO4)6, dont la structure cristalline est déterminée par diffraction des rayons X à température ambiante sur monocristaux (P 21 3, Z=4, a=9,7831(2) Å). Cette phase ne subit aucune transition de phase sur la gamme de température 350 – 6 K et ne présente aucun type d’ordre à longue portée jusqu’à 2 K.

For certain hierarchical structures, one can study the percolation problem using the renormalization-group method in a very precise way. We show that the idea can be also applied to two-dimensional planar lattices by regarding them as hierarchical structures. Either a lower bound or an exact critical probability can be obtained with this method and the correlation-length critical exponent is approximately estimated as $\nu \approx 1$., Comment: 7 pages, 9 figures

The master asymptotic behavior of the usual parachor correlations, expressing surface tension sigma as a power law of the density difference rho(L)-rho(V) between coexisting liquid and vapor, is analyzed for a series of pure compounds close to their liquid-vapor critical point, using only four critical parameters (beta(c))-1 , alpha(c) , Z(c) , and Y(c) , for each fluid. This is accomplished by the scale dilatation method of the fluid variables where, in addition to the energy unit (beta(c))-1 and the length unit alpha(c) , the dimensionless numbers Z(c) and Y(c) are the characteristic scale factors of the ordering field along the critical isotherm and of the temperature field along the critical isochore, respectively. The scale dilatation method is then formally analogous to the basic system-dependent formulation of the renormalization theory. Accounting for the hyperscaling law delta-1/delta+1=eta-2/2d , we show that the Ising-like asymptotic value pi(a) of the parachor exponent is unequivocally linked to the critical exponents eta or delta by pi(a)/d-1=2/d-(2-eta)=delta+1/d (here d=3 is the space dimension). Such mixed hyperscaling laws combine either the exponent eta or the exponent delta , which characterizes bulk critical properties of d dimension along the critical isotherm or exactly at the critical point, with the parachor exponent pi(a) which characterizes interfacial properties of d-1 dimension in the nonhomogeneous domain. Then we show that the asymptotic (symmetric) power law [abstract; see text] is the two-dimensional critical equation of state of the liquid-gas interface between the two-phase system at constant total (critical) density rho(c) . This power law complements the asymptotic (antisymmetric) form [abstract; see text] of the three-dimensional critical equation of state for a fluid of density rho not equal to rho_(c) and pressure p not equal to p_(c) , maintained at constant (critical) temperature T=T_(c)} [mu_(rho)(mu_(rho,c)) is the specific (critical) chemical potential; p_(c) is the critical pressure; and T_(c) is the critical temperature]. We demonstrate the existence of the related universal amplitude combination [abstract; see text] = universal constant, constructed with the amplitudes D_(rho)(sigma) and D_(rho)(c) , separating then the respective contributions of each scale factor Y_(c) and Z_(c) , characteristic of each thermodynamic path, i.e., the critical isochore and the critical isotherm (or the critical point), respectively. The main consequences of these theoretical estimations are discussed in light of engineering applications and process simulations where parachor correlations constitute one of the most practical methods for estimating surface tension from density and capillary rise measurements.

Spectroscopic ellipsometry was used to investigate the optical properties of an InSb film grown on a GaAs (100) substrate, and to compare the optical properties of InSb film with those of bulk InSb. The film was grown by molecular beam epitaxy under conditions intended to form 90° misfit dislocations at the InSb-GaAs interface. The complex dielectric function obtained in a wide spectroscopic range from 0.06–4.6 eV shows the critical point transitions E 0, E 1, E 1 + Δ1, E′0 , and E 2. The amplitudes, energy transitions, broadenings, and phase angles have been determined using a derivative analysis. Comparing film and bulk critical point results reveal that the epitaxial film is nearly relaxed and has bulk-like optical characteristics. Published version

We give simple expressions for the mean of the max and min bounds of the critical-to-classical crossover functions previously calculated [Bagnuls and Bervillier, Phys. Rev. E 65, 066132 (2002)] within the massive renormalization scheme of the F 4 d (n) model in three dimensions (d = 3) and scalar order parameter (n = 1) of the Ising-like universality class. Our main motivation is to get efficient theoretical expressions to coherently account for many measurements performed in systems where the approach to the critical point is limited but yield data which are still reproducible by the F 4 d (n) model (like in the subclass of one-component fluids).

In very compressible fluids, such as fluids near their critical point, the bulk fluid is adiabatically thermalized by the expansion of a hot boundary layer. Thanks to this thermomechanical process (the so-called piston effect) the fluid velocity at the edge of the boundary layer can become very high when the heating power is concentrated in a fissure. Spectacular jets are then observed in $\mathrm{S}{\mathrm{F}}_{6}$ and $\mathrm{C}{\mathrm{O}}_{2}$. Data obtained under weightlessness (in order to remove convection) and data obtained under earth gravity are compared and analyzed. They emphasize the key role of the boundary layer expansion for thermal phenomena in compressible fluids and the hydrodynamic nature of the piston effect.

International audience; The dynamics of a system of point vortices is considered in the plane and on the sphere. Particular attention is given to the formation of vortex clusters and to global vortex dynamics, especially in the spherical case. For integrable systems and systems with given symmetries, we show the existence of a critical energy above or below which (depending on the geometry of the surface) the system splits into clusters and vortex dynamics is confined to a particular region. The case of nonidentical vortices is of particular interest since we observe quite different global dynamics depending on the energy and the initial conditions. Furthermore we identify all the relative equilibria configurations as critical points of the reduced energy and we give an instability criterion to deduce instability for certain configurations.

We have performed high-pressure Fourier transform infrared reflectance measurements on a freestanding InN thin film to determine the refractive index of wurtzite InN and its high-pressure rocksalt phase as a function of hydrostatic pressure. From a fit to the experimental refractive-index curves including the effect of the high-energy optical gaps, phonons, free carriers, and the direct (fundamental) band-gap in the case of wurtzite InN, we obtain pressure coefficients for the lowfrequency (electronic) dielectric constant e1 . Negative pressure coefficients of -8.8 × 10-2 GPa-1 and -14.8 × 10-2 GPa-1 are obtained for the wurtzite and rocksalt phases, respectively. The results are discussed in terms of the electronic band structure and the compressibility of both phases., The work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) under Project Nos. MAT2010-16116, MAT2012-38664-C02-2, and MALTA-CONSOLIDER INGENIO 2010 CSD2007-00045

In this work we study the critical behavior of the absorbing state phase transition exhibited by the contact process in a linear chain with power-law diluted long-range connections. Each pair of sites is connected with a probability P ( r ) that decays with the distance between the sites r as 1 / r α . The model allows for a continuous tuning between a standard one-dimensional chain with only nearest neighbor couplings ( α → ∞ ) to a fully connected network ( α = 0 ). We develop a finite-size scaling analysis to obtain the critical point and a set of dynamical and stationary critical exponents for distinct values of the decay exponent α > 2 corresponding to finite average bond lengths and low average site connectivity. Data for the order parameter collapse over a universal curve when plotted after a proper rescaling of parameters. We show further that the critical exponents depend on α in the regime of diverging bond-length fluctuations ( α 3 ).

Measurements of the spontaneous polarization of KH(2)PO(4) within 1 K if the ferroelectric transition are reported. the measurement employed the electrocaloric effect, allowing simultaneous determination of the polarization and its temperature derivative. The derivative computed from polarization measurements compares well with direct determinations of (OP/OT)e, demonstrating thermodynamic consistency of the measurements. The transition is first order with a discontinuous jump in the polarization of 1.87 uc/cm(2) at the transition. Laudau theory allows separate calculation at specific heat contributions of the lattice and polarization and thus the total specific heat, which agrees very well with direct calorimetric determinations, although the decomposition differs from that previously assumed. This indicates that Landau theory provides a good description of the transition in KH(2)PO(4) and that there is a calorimetric anomaly not directly associated with the polarization. The free energy expansion best fitting the data contains P(4) and P(8) terms and no P(6) term. http://archive.org/details/measurementsofsp1094515086 Lieutenant Commander, United States Navy Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.