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Nanomaterials can intensively scatter and/or reflect radiation. Such processes and materials are of theoretical and practical interest. Here, we study the quasi-specular reflections (QSRs) of cold neutrons (CNs) and the reflections of very cold neutrons (VCNs) from nanodiamond (ND) powders. The fluorination of ND increased its efficiency by removing/replacing hydrogen, which is otherwise the dominant cause of neutron loss due to incoherent scattering. The probability of the diffuse reflection of VCNs increased for certain neutron wavelengths by using appropriate ND sizes. Based on model concepts of the interaction of CNs with ND, and in reference to our previous work, we assume that the angular distribution of quasi-specularly reflected CNs is narrower, and that the probability of QSRs of longer wavelength neutrons increases if we increase the characteristic sizes of NDs compared to standard detonation nanodiamonds (DNDs). However, the probability of QSRs of CNs with wavelengths below the cutoff of ~4.12 Å decreases due to diffraction scattering on the ND crystal lattice. We experimentally compared the QSRs of CNs from ~4.3 nm and ~15.0 nm ND. Our qualitative conclusions and numerical estimates can help optimize the parameters of ND for specific practical applications based on the QSRs of CNs.

The triangular lattice with Ising magnetic moments is an archetypical example of geometric frustration. In the case of dipolar-coupled out-of-plane moments, the geometric frustration results in a disordered classical spin-liquid state at higher temperatures while the system is predicted to transition to an anti-ferromagnetic stripe ground state at low temperatures. In this work we fabricate artificial triangular Ising spin systems without and with uniaxial in-plane compression to tune the nature and temperature of the correlations. We probe the energy scale and nature of magnetic correlations by grazing-incidence small-angle neutron scattering. In particular, we apply a newly-developed empirical structure-factor model to describe the measured short-range correlated spin-liquid state, and find good agreement with theoretical predictions. We demonstrate that grazing-incidence neutron scattering on our high-quality samples, in conjunction with detailed modeling of the scattering using the Distorted Wave Born Approximation, can be used to experimentally quantify the spin-liquid-like correlations in highly-frustrated artificial spin systems., Nanoscale Horizons, 6 (6), ISSN:2055-6756, ISSN:2055-6764

Topologically non trivial spin textures host great promise for future spintronic applications. Skyrmions in particular are of burgeoning interest owing to their nanometric size, topological protection, and high mobility via ultra-low current densities. It has been previously reported through magnetic susceptibility, microscopy, and scattering techniques that Co$_{8}$Zn$_{8}$Mn$_{4}$ forms an above room temperature triangular skyrmion lattice. Here we report the synthesis procedure and characterization of a polycrystalline Co$_{8}$Zn$_{8}$Mn$_{4}$ bulk sample. We employ powder x-ray diffraction, backscatter Laue diffraction, and neutron diffraction as characterization tools of the crystallinity of the samples, while magnetic susceptibility and Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS) measurements are performed to study the skyrmion phase. Magnetic susceptibility measurements show a dip anomaly in the magnetization curves which persists over a range of approximately 305 K- 315 K. SANS measurements reveal a rotationally disordered polydomain skymrion lattice. Applying a recently developed symmetry-breaking magnetic field sequence, we were able to orient and order the previously jammed state to yield the prototypical hexagonal diffraction patterns, with secondary diffraction rings., 7 pages, 8 figures

Significance Extensive interest has been placed on the techniques to prepare and characterize optical and matter wave orbital angular momentum (OAM) beams and spin correlated OAM beams. They have been shown to be useful in a wide range of applications such as microscopy, quantum information processing, material characterization, and communication protocols. Here we demonstrate an observation of spin-orbit beams and lattices of spin-orbit beams with neutrons. Neutrons, which do not possess a charge and have significant mass, are probes of nature that are complementary to photons and electrons. The techniques shown here enable neutron OAM applications in material characterization and fundamental physics., Spin-orbit coupling of light has come to the fore in nanooptics and plasmonics, and is a key ingredient of topological photonics and chiral quantum optics. We demonstrate a basic tool for incorporating analogous effects into neutron optics: the generation and detection of neutron beams with coupled spin and orbital angular momentum. The 3He neutron spin filters are used in conjunction with specifically oriented triangular coils to prepare neutron beams with lattices of spin-orbit correlations, as demonstrated by their spin-dependent intensity profiles. These correlations can be tailored to particular applications, such as neutron studies of topological materials.

Topologically nontrivial spin textures host great promise for future spintronic applications. Skyrmions in particular are of burgeoning interest owing to their nanometric size, topological protection, and high mobility via ultra-low current densities. It has been previously reported through magnetic susceptibility, microscopy, and scattering techniques that Co8Zn8Mn4 forms an above room temperature triangular skyrmion lattice. Here, we report the synthesis procedure and characterization of a polycrystalline Co8Zn8Mn4 disordered bulk sample. We employ powder X-ray diffraction and backscatter Laue diffraction as characterization tools of the crystallinity of the samples, while magnetic susceptibility and Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS) measurements are performed to study the skyrmion phase. Magnetic susceptibility measurements show a dip anomaly in the magnetization curves, which persists over a range of approximately 305 K–315 K. SANS measurements reveal a rotationally disordered polydomain skyrmion lattice. Applying a symmetry-breaking magnetic field sequence, we were able to orient and order the previously jammed state to yield the prototypical hexagonal diffraction patterns with secondary diffraction rings. This emergence of the skyrmion order serves as a unique demonstration of the fundamental interplay of structural disorder and anisotropy in stabilizing the thermal equilibrium phase.

Small : nano micro (2104356), (2021). doi:10.1002/smll.202104356, Published by Wiley-VCH, Weinheim

All-oxide-based synthetic antiferromagnets (SAFs) are attracting intense research interest due to their superior tunability and great potentials for antiferromagnetic spintronic devices. In this work, using the La2/3Ca1/3MnO3/CaRu1/2Ti1/2O3 (LCMO/CRTO) superlattice as a model SAF, we investigated the layer-resolved magnetic reversal mechanism by polarized neutron reflectivity. We found that the reversal of LCMO layer moments is mediated by nucleation, expansion, and shrinkage of a magnetic soliton. This unique magnetic reversal process creates a reversed magnetic configuration of the SAF after a simple field cycling. Therefore, it can enable vertical data transfer from the bottom to the top of the superlattice. The physical origin of this intriguing magnetic reversal process could be attributed to the cooperation of the surface spin-flop effect and enhanced uniaxial magnetic anisotropy of the bottom LCMO layer. This work may pave a way to utilize all-oxide-based SAFs for three-dimensional spintronic devices with vertical data transfer and high-density data storage.

Significance Although it is believed that the raft formation in a cell membrane is governed by a selective interaction of different lipids and proteins, mechanisms driving and regulating the lateral membrane heterogeneity remain poorly understood. Here, using multicomponent lipid mixtures and inelastic X-ray scattering, we provide a spatial–temporal window to study lipid–lipid interactions. We show experimental evidence for the formation of dynamic lipid pairs, which are subnanometer in size and have a subnanosecond lifetime. These pairs form transient nanoscopic substructures in the liquid-ordered phase. The presented approach to study membrane heterogeneity is universal and can be applied to more realistic lipid mixtures, offering the possibility to discern differences between the structures of ordered and disordered phases in a cell membrane., Biological membranes exhibit a great deal of compositional and phase heterogeneity due to hundreds of chemically distinct components. As a result, phase separation processes in cell membranes are extremely difficult to study, especially at the molecular level. It is currently believed that the lateral membrane heterogeneity and the formation of domains, or rafts, are driven by lipid–lipid and lipid–protein interactions. Nevertheless, the underlying mechanisms regulating membrane heterogeneity remain poorly understood. In the present work, we combine inelastic X-ray scattering with molecular dynamics simulations to provide direct evidence for the existence of strongly coupled transient lipid pairs. These lipid pairs manifest themselves experimentally through optical vibrational (a.k.a. phononic) modes observed in binary (1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine [DPPC]–cholesterol) and ternary (DPPC–1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine/1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-glycero-3-phosphocholine [DOPC/POPC]–cholesterol) systems. The existence of a phononic gap in these vibrational modes is a direct result of the finite size of patches formed by these lipid pairs. The observation of lipid pairs provides a spatial (subnanometer) and temporal (subnanosecond) window into the lipid–lipid interactions in complex mixtures of saturated/unsaturated lipids and cholesterol. Our findings represent a step toward understanding the lateral organization and dynamics of membrane domains using a well-validated probe with a high spatial and temporal resolution.

International audience; Neutrons can be an instrument or an object in many fields of research. Major efforts all over the world are devoted to improving the intensity of neutron sources and the efficiency of neutron delivery for experimental installations. In this context, neutron reflectors play a key role because they allow significant improvement of both economy and efficiency. For slow neutrons, Detonation NanoDiamond (DND) powders provide exceptionally good reflecting performance due to the combination of enhanced coherent scattering and low neutron absorption. The enhancement is at maximum when the nanoparticle diameter is close to the neutron wavelength. Therefore, the mean nanoparticle diameter and the diameter distribution are important. In addition, DNDs show clustering, which increases their effective diameters. Here, we report on how breaking agglomerates affects clustering of DNDs and the overall reflector performance. We characterize DNDs using small-angle neutron scattering, X-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, neutron activation analysis, dynamical light scattering, infra-red light spectroscopy, and others. Based on the results of these tests, we discuss the calculated size distribution of DNDs, the absolute cross-section of neutron scattering, the neutron albedo, and the neutron intensity gain for neutron traps with DND walls.

International audience; Nanomaterials, which show large reflectivity for external radiation, are of general interest in science and technology. We report a result from our ongoing research on the reflection of low-energy neutrons from powders of detonation diamond nanoparticles. Our previous work showed a large probability for quasispecular reflection of neutrons from this medium. The model of neutron scattering from nanoparticles, which we have developed, suggests two ways to increase the quasispecular reflection probability: (1) the reduction of incoherent scattering by substitution of hydrogen with fluorine inside the nanoparticles, and (2) the sharpening of the neutron optical potential step by removal of amorphous sp2 carbon from the nanoparticle shells. We present experimental results on scattering of slow neutrons from both raw and fluorinated diamond nanoparticles with amorphous sp2 carbon removed by gas-solid fluorination. These results show a clear increase in quasispecular reflection probability.

The passive transport of molecules through a cell membrane relies on thermal motions of the lipids. However, the nature of transmembrane transport and the precise mechanism remain elusive and call for a comprehensive study of phonon excitations. Here we report a high resolution inelastic X-ray scattering study of the in-plane phonon excitations in 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine above and below the main transition temperature. In the gel phase, for the first time, we observe low-frequency transverse modes, which exhibit a phonon gap when the lipid transitions into the fluid phase. We argue that the phonon gap signifies the formation of short-lived nanometre-scale lipid clusters and transient pores, which facilitate the passive molecular transport across the bilayer plane. Our findings suggest that the phononic motion of the hydrocarbon tails provides an effective mechanism of passive transport, and illustrate the importance of the collective dynamics of biomembranes., The molecular transport through bio-membranes of cells heavily relies on the dynamics of lipids, but the related mechanism remains unknown. Here, Zhernenkov et al. observe the propagating transverse phonon mode with a finite band gap and suggest its connection to short-lived local lipid clustering.