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X-ray laser-induced structural changes in silicon undergoing femtosecond melting have been investigated by using an x-ray pump-x-ray probe technique. The experimental results for different initial sample temperatures reveal that the onset time and the speed of the atomic disordering are independent of the initial temperature, suggesting that equilibrium atomic motion in the initial state does not play a pivotal role in the x-ray-induced ultrafast melting. By comparing the observed time-dependence of the atomic disordering and the dedicated theoretical simulations, we interpret that the energy transfer from the excited electrons to ions via electron-ion coupling (thermal effect) as well as a strong modification of the interatomic potential due to electron excitations (non-thermal effect) trigger the ultrafast atomic disordering. Our finding of the interplay of thermal and non-thermal effects in the x-ray-induced melting demonstrates that accurate modeling of intense x-ray interactions with matter is essential to ensure a correct interpretation of experiments using intense x-ray laser pulses.

Transient structural changes of Al$_2$O$_3$ on subatomic length scales following irradiation with an intense x-ray laser pulse (photon energy: 8.70 keV; pulse duration: 6 fs; fluence: 8$\times$10$^2$ J/cm$^{2}$) have been investigated by using an x-ray pump x-ray probe technique. The measurement reveals that aluminum and oxygen atoms remain in their original positions by $\sim$20 fs after the intensity maximum of the pump pulse, followed by directional atomic displacements at the fixed unit cell parameters. By comparing the experimental results and theoretical simulations, we interpret that electron excitation and relaxation triggered by the pump pulse modifies the potential energy surface and drives the directional atomic displacements. Our results indicate that high-resolution x-ray structural analysis with the accuracy of 0.01 \AA is feasible even with intense x-ray pulses by making the pulse duration shorter than the timescale needed to complete electron excitation and relaxation processes, which usually take up to a few tens of femtoseconds.

We have studied the pressure effect on the rattling of tetrahedrite Cu$_{10}$Zn$_{2}$Sb$_{4}$S$_{13\,}$(CZSS) and type-I clathrate Ba$_{8}$Ga$_{16}$Sn$_{30\,}$(BGS) by specific heat and x-ray diffraction measurements. By applying pressure $P$, the rattling energy for CZSS initially decreases and steeply increases for $P$ $\textgreater$ $1$ GPa. By contrast, the energy for BGS increases monotonically with $P$ up to 6.5 GPa. An analysis of the pressure dependent specific heat and x-ray diffraction indicates that the out-of-plane rattling of the Cu atoms in the S$_{3}$ triangle of CZSS originates from the chemical pressure, unlike the rattling of the Ba ions among off-center sites in an oversized cage of BGS. The rattling in CZSS ceases upon further increasing $P$ above 2 GPa, suggesting that Cu atoms escape away from the S$_{3}$ triangle plane., Comment: 16 pages, 3 figures, 1 table

We report a series of layered superconductors, anti-ThCr$_2$Si$_2$-type $RE_2$O$_2$Bi ($RE$ = rare earth), composed of electrically conductive Bi square nets and magnetic insulating $RE_2$O$_2$ layers. The superconductivity was induced by separating Bi square nets as a result of excess oxygen incorporation, irrespective of the presence of magnetic ordering in $RE_2$O$_2$ layers. Intriguingly, the transition temperature of all $RE_2$O$_2$Bi including nonmagnetic Y$_2$O$_2$Bi was approximately scaled by the unit cell tetragonality ($c$/$a$), implying a key role of relative separation of the Bi square nets to induce the superconductivity.

An overview of the crystal structures and physical properties of the recently discovered iron-platinum-arsenide superconductors, Ca10(PtnAs8)(Fe2-xPtxAs2)5 (n = 3 and 4), which have a superconducting transition temperature up to 38 K, is provided. The crystal structure consists of superconducting Fe2As2 layers alternating with platinum-arsenic layers, PtnAs8. The upper critical field Hc2, hydrostatic pressure dependence of superconducting transition temperature Tc, and normal-state magnetic susceptibility are reported., Comment: 7 pages, 6 figures

We report superconductivity in novel iron-based compounds Ca10(PtnAs8)(Fe2-xPtxAs2)5 with n = 3 and 4. Both compounds crystallize in triclinic structures (space group P-1), in which Fe2As2 layers alternate with PtnAs8 spacer layers. Superconductivity with a transition temperature of 38 K is observed in the n = 4 compound with a Pt content of x ~ 0.36 in the Fe2As2 layers. The compound with n = 3 exhibits superconductivity at 13 K., Comment: OPEN SELECT article, 11 pages, 5 figures, 2 tables

Transport and magnetic measurements and structural and NMR studies have been carried out on (Pr1-yR'y)1-xAxCoO3 {R'=(rare earth elements and Y); A=(Ca, Ba and Sr)} at ambient pressure or under high pressure. The system exhibits a phase transition from a nearly metallic to an insulating state with decreasing temperature T, where the low spin (LS) state of Co3+ is suddenly stabilized. For y=0, we have constructed a T-x phase diagram at various values of the external pressure p. It shows that the (T, x) region of the low temperature phase, which is confined to a very narrow region around x=0.5 at ambient pressure, expands as p increases, suggesting that the transition is not due to an order-disorder type one. For the occurrence of the transition, both the Pr and Ca atoms seem to be necessary. The intimate relationship between the local structure around the Co ions and the electronic (or spin) state of Co3+ ions is discussed: For the smaller unit cell volume or the smaller volume of the CoO6 octahedra and for the larger tilting angle of the octahedra, the temperature of the transition becomes higher. The role of the carriers introduced by the doping of the A atoms, is also discussed. By analyzing the data of 59Co-NMR spectra and magnetic susceptibilities of Pr1-xCaxCoO3 the energy separations among the different spin states of Co3+ and Co4+ are roughly estimated., Comment: 15 pages, 15 figures, 2 tables, submitted to J. Phys. Soc. Jpn

A structure analysis of Zn-Mg-Ho icosahedral quasicrystal was carried out by the powder X-ray diffraction method using synchrotron radiation (Lambda=0.73490 A) at SPring-8. The intensity distribution was analyzed by the Rietveld method modified for an icosahedral quasicrystal, in which simplified models were assumed: ellipsoid and spherical windows were assumed at five crystallographic sites in a F-type hypercubic unit cell. The analysis revealed the presence of an almost perfect Penrose tiling with edge length 5.20 A. The vertices are occupied alternatively by Zn and Mg, and almost all of the edge centers of the Penrose rhombohedra are occupied by 0.8Zn and 0.2Mg. Ho and Mg atoms tend to be present on the body diagonal of the prolate rhombohedra. Good agreement between the measured and calculated intensity distribution using the simplified model suggests the applicability and the limitation of structure analysis using the powder X-ray diffraction method., Comment: 10 pages, 3 tables, 3 figures