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Protected by the interplay of on-site Coulomb interactions and spin-orbit coupling, Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ at high pressure is a rare example of a Mott insulator with a paramagnetic ground state. Here, using optical Raman scattering, we measure both the phonon and magnon evolution in Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ under pressure, and identify three different magnetically-ordered phases, culminating in a spin-disordered state beyond 18 GPa. A strong first-order structural phase transition drives the magnetic evolution at $\sim$10 GPa with reduced structural anisotropy in the IrO$_6$ cages, leading to increasingly isotropic exchange interactions between the Heisenberg spins and a spin-flip transition to $c$-axis-aligned antiferromagnetic order. In the disordered phase of Heisenberg $J_\mathrm{eff}=1/2$ pseudospins, the spin excitations are quasi-elastic and continuous to 10 meV, potentially hosting a gapless quantum spin liquid in Sr$_2$IrO$_4$.

Metal-insulator transitions involve a mix of charge, spin, and structural degrees of freedom, and when strongly-correlated, can underlay the emergence of exotic quantum states. Mott insulators induced by the opening of a Coulomb gap are an important and well-recognized class of transitions, but insulators purely driven by spin correlations are much less common, as the reduced energy scale often invites competition from other degrees of freedom. Here we demonstrate a clean example of a spin-correlation-driven metal-insulator transition in the all-in-all-out pyrochlore antiferromagnet Cd2Os2O7, where the lattice symmetry is fully preserved by the antiferromagnetism. After the antisymmetric linear magnetoresistance from conductive, ferromagnetic domain walls is carefully removed experimentally, the Hall coefficient of the bulk reveals four Fermi surfaces, two of electron type and two of hole type, sequentially departing the Fermi level with decreasing temperature below the N\'eel temperature, T_N. Contrary to the common belief of concurrent magnetic and metal-insulator transitions in Cd2Os2O7, the charge gap of a continuous metal-insulator transition opens only at T~10K, well below T_N=227K. The insulating mechanism resolved by the Hall coefficient parallels the Slater picture, but without a folded Brillouin zone, and contrasts sharply with the behavior of Mott insulators and spin density waves, where the electronic gap opens above and at T_N, respectively., Comment: Three figures

We investigate the low temperature complex impedance of disordered insulating thin TiN and NbTiN films in the frequency region 400 Hz–1MHz in close proximity to the superconductor-insulator transition. The frequency, temperature, and magnetic field dependence of the real and imaginary parts of the impedance indicate the response of superconducting droplets resulting from self-induced electronic granularity. The impedance crosses over from capacitive to inductive behavior as the sample is driven through the transition, characterized by a divergent dielectric response.

We investigate the low-temperature complex impedance of disordered insulating thin TiN and NbTiN films in the frequency region 400 Hz–1 MHz in close proximity to the superconductor–insulator transition (SIT). The frequency, temperature, and magnetic field dependencies of the real and imaginary parts of the impedance indicate that in full accord with the theoretical predictions and earlier observations, the films acquire self-induced electronic granularity and become effectively random arrays of superconducting granules coupled via Josephson links. Accordingly, the inductive component of the response is due to superconducting droplets, while the capacitive component results from the effective Josephson junctions capacitances. The impedance crosses over from capacitive to inductive behavior as films go across the transition.

We directly measure the low energy excitation modes of the quantum Ising magnet LiHoF$_4$ using microwave spectroscopy. Instead of a single electronic mode, we find a set of collective electronuclear modes, in which the spin-$1/2$ Ising electronic spins hybridize with the bath of spin-$7/2$ Ho nuclear spins. The lowest-lying electronuclear mode softens at the approach to the quantum critical point, even in the presence of disorder. This softening is rapidly quenched by a longitudinal magnetic field. Similar electronuclear structures should exist in other spin-based quantum Ising systems., 12 pages, 5 figures. Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. Lett

The application of giga-Pascal scale pressures has been widely used as a tool to systematically tune the properties of materials in order to access such general questions as the driving mechanisms underlying phase transitions. While there is a large and growing set of experimental tools successfully applied to high-pressure environments, the compatibility between diamond anvil cells and optical probes offers further potential for examining lattice, magnetic, and electronic states, along with their excitations. Here, we describe the construction of a highly efficient optical Raman spectrometer that enables measurements of magnetic excitations in single crystals down to energies of 9 cm−1 (1.1 meV or 13 K) at cryogenic temperatures and under pressures of tens of GPa.

The random dipolar magnet LiHo$_x$Y$_{1-x}$F$_4$ enters a strongly frustrated regime for small Ho$^{3+}$ concentrations with $x, Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures

The statistics and form of avalanches in a driven system reveal the nature of the underlying energy landscape and dynamics. In conventional metallic ferromagnets, eddy-current back action can dominate the dynamics. Here, we study Barkhausen noise in Li(Ho,Y)F4, an insulating Ising ferromagnet that cannot sustain eddy currents. For large avalanches at temperatures approaching the Curie point, we find a symmetric response free of drag effects. In the low temperature limit, drag effects contribute to the dynamics, which we link to enhanced pinning from local random fields that are enabled by the microscopic dipole-coupled Hamiltonian (the Ising model in transverse field)., 14 pages, 3 figures

Resonant and non-resonant X-ray magnetic diffraction under high pressure (above 40 GPa) is comprehensively discussed and reviewed., Advances in both non-resonant and resonant X-ray magnetic diffraction since the 1980s have provided researchers with a powerful tool for exploring the spin, orbital and ion degrees of freedom in magnetic solids, as well as parsing their interplay. Here, we discuss key issues for performing X-ray magnetic diffraction on single-crystal samples under high pressure (above 40 GPa) and at cryogenic temperatures (4 K). We present case studies of both non-resonant and resonant X-ray magnetic diffraction under pressure for a spin-flip transition in an incommensurate spin-density-wave material and a continuous quantum phase transition of a commensurate all-in–all-out antiferromagnet. Both cases use diamond-anvil-cell technologies at third-generation synchrotron radiation sources. In addition to the exploration of the athermal emergence and evolution of antiferromagnetism discussed here, these techniques can be applied to the study of the pressure evolution of weak charge order such as charge-density waves, antiferro-type orbital order, the charge anisotropic tensor susceptibility and charge superlattices associated with either primary spin order or softened phonons.

The phenomena of antisymmetric magnetoresistance and the planar Hall effect are deeply entwined with ferromagnetism. The intrinsic magnetization of the ordered state permits these unusual and rarely observed manifestations of Onsager’s theorem when time reversal symmetry is broken at zero applied field. Here we study two classes of ferromagnetic materials, rare-earth magnets with high intrinsic coercivity and antiferromagnetic pyrochlores with strongly-pinned ferromagnetic domain walls, which both exhibit antisymmetric magnetoresistive behavior. By mapping out the peculiar angular variation of the antisymmetric galvanomagnetic response with respect to the relative alignments of the magnetization, magnetic field, and electrical current, we experimentally distinguish two distinct underlying microscopic mechanisms: namely, spin-dependent scattering of a Zeeman-shifted Fermi surface and anomalous electron velocities. Our work demonstrates that the anomalous electron velocity physics typically associated with the anomalous Hall effect is prevalent beyond the ρxy(Hz) channel, and should be understood as a part of the general galvanomagnetic behavior., Magnetoresitance (MR) is a tool to study electronic transport and spin order in metals. Here, the authors demonstrate two different microscopic origins of antisymmetric linear MR from both Zeeman-split Fermi surface and anomalous electron velocity.

The surface topography of carbon fiber reinforced plastic composites after machining processes like milling or grinding has a complex character due to the inhomogeneous material structure. The usual procedure to evaluate the surface topography is given with the usage of parameters that describe one or more specific features of the surface. In mechanical engineering, for example, the roughness parameters Ra, Rz, Rmax and Rt have been established with tactile-based roughness measurement devices. However, the applicability of several parameters is not always suitable for composites. In this work the influence of the measurement positions, the distribution of the measured values and the behavior of these values in respect to the machined surface structure are analyzed by means of optical as well as tactile surface measurements. This work results in recommendations for the measurability of machined surfaces of carbon fiber reinforced plastics by using tactile profile methods and an assessment of the derived roughness parameters.

Continuous quantum phase transitions involving all-in-all-out (AIAO) antiferromagnetic order in strongly spin-orbit-coupled 5d compounds could give rise to various exotic electronic phases and strongly-coupled quantum critical phenomena. Here we experimentally trace the AIAO spin order in Sm2Ir2O7 using direct resonant x-ray magnetic diffraction techniques under high pressure. The magnetic order is suppressed at a critical pressure Pc=6.30 GPa, while the lattice symmetry remains in the cubic Fd-3m space group across the quantum critical point. Comparing pressure tuning and the chemical series R2Ir2O7 reveals that the suppression of the AIAO order and the approach to the spin-disordered state is characterized by contrasting evolutions of both the pyrochlore lattice constant a and the trigonal distortion x. The former affects the 5d bandwidth, the latter the Ising anisotropy, and as such we posit that the opposite effects of pressure and chemical tuning lead to spin fluctuations with different Ising and Heisenberg character in the quantum critical region. Finally, the observed low-pressure scale of the AIAO quantum phase transition in Sm2Ir2O7 identifies a circumscribed region of P-T space for investigating the putative magnetic Weyl-semimetal state.

Charge ordering in metals is a fundamental instability of the electron sea, occurring in a host of materials and often linked to other collective ground states such as superconductivity. What is difficult to parse, however, is whether the charge order originates among the itinerant electrons or whether it arises from the ionic lattice. Here we employ high-resolution X-ray diffraction, combined with high-pressure and low-temperature techniques and theoretical modelling, to trace the evolution of the ordering wavevector Q in charge and spin density wave systems at the approach to both thermal and quantum phase transitions. The non-monotonic behaviour of Q with pressure and the limiting sinusoidal form of the density wave point to the dominant role of the itinerant instability in the vicinity of the critical points, with little influence from the lattice. Fluctuations rather than disorder seem to disrupt coherence.

A half-century after the discovery of the superconductor-insulator transition (SIT), one of the fundamental predictions of the theory, the charge Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) transition that is expected to occur at the insulating side of the SIT, has remained unobserved. The charge BKT transition is a phenomenon dual to the vortex BKT transition, which is at the heart of the very existence of two-dimensional superconductivity as a zero-resistance state appearing at finite temperatures. The dual picture points to the possibility of the existence of a superinsulating state endowed with zero conductance at finite temperature. Here, we report the observation of the charge BKT transition on the insulating side of the SIT, identified by the critical behavior of the resistance. We find that the critical temperature of the charge BKT transition depends on the magnetic field exhibiting first the fast growth and then passing through the maximum at fields much less than the upper critical field. Finally, we ascertain the effects of the finite electrostatic screening length and its divergence at the magnetic field-tuned approach to the superconductor-insulator transition., Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures

Significance Magnetoresistance has a history of revealing key electronic characteristics of materials. From early measurements on noble metals to definitive characterization of localization effects in semiconductors to recent studies of topological materials, the magnetoresistive response provides an experimental technique to explore the Fermi surface in detail, and to predict and craft physical properties through its sign, functional form, and potential quantum character. Linear magnetoresistance in density-wave systems has eluded clear explanation for over half a century. Here, we present measurements that lead to a general explanation based on unusual current paths tied to the formation of long-range charge or spin order. This mechanism potentially extends to the large magnetoresistance observed in semimetals like Bi, graphite, and WTe2., The magnetoresistance (MR) of a material is typically insensitive to reversing the applied field direction and varies quadratically with magnetic field in the low-field limit. Quantum effects, unusual topological band structures, and inhomogeneities that lead to wandering current paths can induce a cross-over from quadratic to linear MR with increasing magnetic field. Here we explore a series of metallic charge- and spin-density-wave systems that exhibit extremely large positive linear MR. By contrast to other linear MR mechanisms, this effect remains robust down to miniscule magnetic fields of tens of Oersted at low temperature. We frame an explanation of this phenomenon in a semiclassical narrative for a broad category of materials with partially gapped Fermi surfaces due to density waves.

Traditional simulated annealing uses thermal fluctuations for convergence in optimization problems. Quantum tunneling provides a different mechanism for moving between states, with the potential for reduced time scales and different outcomes. Thermal and quantum annealing are compared in two concentration regimes of a model disordered magnet, where the effects of quantum mechanics can be tuned both by varying an applied magnetic field and by controlling the strength of thermal coupling between the magnet and an external heat bath. The results indicate that quantum annealing hastens convergence to the final state, and that the quantum character of the final state can be engineered thermodynamically.

WNT10B belongs to the family of WNT proteins that are implicated in a range of phenomena that are affected by the Wnt signaling pathway. Recent studies have shown that WNT10B plays a role in colorectal cancer. WNTs have been found to directly affect the stemness of the tumor cells via regulation of ASCL2. Switching off the ASCL2 literally blocks the stemness process of the tumor cells and vice versa. Furthermore, recent findings suggest BVES to be highly suppressed in malignancies and in vitro deletions of BVES show higher Wnt signaling activity to induce stemness. WNT10B was found to be highly expressed in such cases. Often, in biology, we are faced with the problem of exploring relevant unknown biological hypotheses in the form of myriads of combination of factors that might be affecting the pathway under certain conditions. For example, WNT10B-ASCL2 is one such 2nd order combination whose relation needs to be tested under the influence of recently developed porcupine-WNT inhibitor ETC-1922159. The inhibitor is known to suppress PORCN (porcupine) and thus inhibit a range of oncogenes known to be directly or indirectly affected by the Wnts. In a recent unpublished work in bioRxiv, we had the opportunity to rank these unknown biological hypotheses for down regulated genes at 2nd order level after the drug was administered. The in silico observations showed that the combination of WNT10B-ASCL2 was assigned a relatively lower rank, thus validating the pipeline's efficacy with the confirmed wet lab experiment that indicate that both WNT10B and ASCL2 were down regulated after treatment in cancer cells. Here, we take one step further by in silico analysis of the 3rd order combinations of WNT10B-X-X (X can be known or unknown factor), from a range of 100 randomly picked down regulated genes after ETC-1922159 treatment. The pipeline uses the density based HSIC (Hilbert Schmidt Information Criterion) sensitivity index with an rbf (radial basis function) kernel, which is known to be highly effective in sensitivity analysis. Various unknown/unexplored/untested 3rd order biological hypotheses emerge some of which are confirmed in wet lab, while others need to be tested. The potential of such ranking is indispensable in the current era of search in a vast combinatorial forest.

A half-century after the discovery of the superconductor-insulator transition (SIT), one of the fundamental predictions of the theory, the charge Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless (BKT) transition that is expected to occur at the insulating side of the SIT, has remained unobserved. The charge BKT transition is a phenomenon dual to the vortex BKT transition, which is at the heart of the very existence of two-dimensional superconductivity as a zero-resistance state appearing at finite temperatures. The dual picture points to the possibility of the existence of a superinsulating state endowed with zero conductance at finite temperature. Here, we report the observation of the charge BKT transition on the insulating side of the SIT, identified by the critical behavior of the resistance. We find that the critical temperature of the charge BKT transition depends on the magnetic field exhibiting first the fast growth and then passing through the maximum at fields much less than the upper critical field. Finally, we ascertain the effects of the finite electrostatic screening length and its divergence at the magnetic field-tuned approach to the superconductor-insulator transition.

Random magnetic fields, varying from site to site in a magnetic material, are a form of disorder that can determine the local architecture and stability of the magnetic state. In a ferromagnet, the application of an external magnetic field can amplify the effects of the internal random fields and, in principle, harden a magnetic domain, without changing temperature and only for as long as the external field is present. Here, the rare-earth compound Nd 2Fe14B, formed with a granular morphology of random-packed, elongated grains, is an experimental realization of the Random Field Ising Model in a room temperature ferromagnet. The application of magnetic fields transverse to the easy axis tunes the coupling between the structural disorder and the magnetic pinning properties. This material both illuminates the intricacies of tunable disorder and serves as a guidepost along the way to developing increased-density magnetic storage media. Application of a transverse magnetic field can reversibly tune the magnetic hardness of a disordered uniaxial, high anisotropy rare earth magnet at room temperature. Random field effects control the effective strength of the material's intrinsic disorder, providing a convenient control knob for rapidly and isothermally switching between different computationally relevant magnetic characteristics. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Tuning competing ordering mechanisms with hydrostatic pressure in the 4d intermetallic compound Mo_3Sb_7 reveals an intricate interplay of structure, magnetism, and superconductivity. Synchrotron x-ray diffraction and magnetic susceptibility measurements, both employing diamond anvil cell technologies, link a first-order structural phase transition to a doubling of the superconducting transition temperature. In contrast to the spin-dimer picture for Mo_3Sb_7, we deduce from x-ray absorption near-edge structure and dc magnetization measurements at ambient pressure that Mo_3Sb_7 should possess only very small, itinerant magnetic moments. The pressure evolution of the superconducting transition temperature strongly suggests its enhancement is due to a difference in the phonon density-of-states with changed crystal symmetry.

Materials with strong correlations are prone to spin and charge instabilities, driven by Coulomb, magnetic, and lattice interactions. In materials that have significant localized and itinerant spins, it is not obvious which will induce order. We combine electrical transport, X-ray magnetic diffraction, and photoemission studies with band structure calculations to characterize successive antiferromagnetic transitions in GdSi. GdSi has both sizable local moments and a partially nested Fermi surface, without confounding contributions from orbital effects. We identify a route to incommensurate order where neither type of moment dominates, but is rooted in cooperative feedback between them. The nested Fermi surface of the itinerant electrons induces strong interactions between local moments at the nesting vector, whereas the ordered local moments in turn provide the necessary coupling for a spin-density wave to form among the itinerant electrons. This mechanism echoes the cooperative interactions between electrons and ions in charge-density–wave materials, and should be germane across a spectrum of transition-metal and rare-earth intermetallic compounds.

Because of its role as a model system with tunable quantum fluctuations and quenched disorder, and the desire for optical control and readout of its states, we have used high-resolution optical absorption spectroscopy to measure the crystal-field excitations for Ho^(3+) ions in LiHo_xY_(1−x)F_4 from the terahertz to visible regimes. We show that many of the excitations yield very narrow lines visibly split even by the nuclear hyperfine interaction, making Ho^(3+) in LiHo_xY_(1−x)F_4 a candidate host for optically addressable electronuclear qubits with quality factors as high as Q = 4.7 × 10^5, where the higher-lying levels are electronic singlets. Optical transitions in the easily accessible near- and mid-infrared are narrow enough to allow readout of the ground-state electronuclear qubits responsible for the interesting magnetism of LiHo_xY_(1−x)F_4. While many of the higher-lying states have been observed previously, we also report here detailed spectra of terahertz excitations. The strengths of the electric and magnetic dipole crystal-field transition lines of five of the lowest excited spin-orbit manifolds of dilute LiYF_4:Ho^(3+) were calculated and compared with measurement. The magnitude of the nuclear hyperfine coupling was used to assign the correct upper and lower states to transition lines.

Magnetic and superconducting ground states can compete, cooperate and coexist. MnP provides a compelling and potentially generalizable example of a material where superconductivity and magnetism may be intertwined. Using a synchrotron-based non-resonant X-ray magnetic diffraction technique, we reveal a spiral spin order in MnP and trace its pressure evolution towards superconducting order via measurements in a diamond anvil cell. Judging from the magnetostriction, ordered moments vanish at the quantum phase transition as pressure increases the electron kinetic energy. Spins remain local in the disordered phase, and the promotion of superconductivity is likely to emerge from an enhanced coupling to residual spiral spin fluctuations and their concomitant suppression of phonon-mediated superconductivity. As the pitch of the spiral order varies across the 3d transition metal compounds in the MnP family, the magnetic ground state switches between antiferromagnet and ferromagnet, providing an additional tuning parameter in probing spin-fluctuation-induced superconductivity., The relationship between magnetic order and superconductivity is one of the central issues in unconventional superconductors. Here, Wang et al. report a spiral spin order in MnP and trace its pressure evolution towards superconducting order, suggesting variable spiral pitch as a mechanism to tune spin-fluctuation-induced superconductivity.

An exact mapping between quantum spins and boson gases provides fresh approaches to the creation of quantum condensates and crystals. Here we report on magnetization measurements on the dimerized quantum magnet SrCu2(BO3)2 at cryogenic temperatures and through a quantum-phase transition that demonstrate the emergence of fractionally filled bosonic crystals in mesoscopic patterns, specified by a sequence of magnetization plateaus. We apply tens of Teslas of magnetic field to tune the density of bosons and gigapascals of hydrostatic pressure to regulate the underlying interactions. Simulations help parse the balance between energy and geometry in the emergent spin superlattices. The magnetic crystallites are the end result of a progression from a direct product of singlet states in each short dimer at zero field to preferred filling fractions of spin-triplet bosons in each dimer at large magnetic field, enriching the known possibilities for collective states in both quantum spin and atomic systems., Spin 1/2 dimer systems in an external magnetic field behave as a lattice gas of hard-core bosons, and can undergo condensation. Here the authors show in SrCu2(BO3)2 that new fractionally crystallized states are not only possible, but also tuneable with hydrostatic pressure.

Dropping a Dimension? In most magnetic materials, the exchange interaction causes the spins on the neighboring sites of a crystal lattice to align. In the absence of exchange interactions, dipolar interactions, which are highly orientation dependent, are also expected to be able to cause magnetism. Kraemer et al. (p. 1416 ) present evidence for antiferromagnetism in a dipolar-coupled material, LiErF 4 . Although a three-dimensional system, its critical behavior was more reminiscent of a two-dimensional material.

The original PDF version of the Article contained an error in the last sentence of the author affiliation information, which incorrectly read ‘Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to T.$.R. (e-mail: tfr@caltech.edu) or to Y.F. (e-mail: yejun@oist.jp)’. The correct version states ‘T.F.R.’ in place of “T.$.R.’. This has been corrected in the PDF version of the Article. The HTML version was correct from the time of publication.

Dimensionality and symmetry play deterministic roles in the laws of Nature. They are important tools to characterize and understand quantum phase transitions, especially in the limit of strong correlations between spin, orbit, charge, and structural degrees of freedom. Here, using newly-developed, high-pressure resonant X-ray magnetic and charge diffraction techniques, we have discovered a quantum critical point in Cd2Os2O7 as the all-in-all-out antiferromagnetic order is continuously suppressed to zero temperature and, concomitantly, the cubic lattice structure continuously changes from space group Fd-3m to F-43m. Surrounded by three phases of different time reversal and spatial inversion symmetries, the quantum critical region anchors two phase lines of opposite curvature, with striking departures from a mean-field form at high pressure. As spin fluctuations, lattice breathing modes, and quasiparticle excitations interact in the quantum critical region, we argue that they present the necessary components for strongly-coupled quantum criticality in this three-dimensional compound., The critical behavior of a continuous phase transition is determined by both symmetry and dimensionality. Wang et al. present evidence that the cubic all-in-all-out spin order in Cd2Os2O7 leads to a realization of a non-mean-field strongly-coupled quantum phase transition in three dimensions.

The intended use of a magnetic material, from information storage to power conversion, depends crucially on its domain structure, traditionally crafted during materials synthesis. By contrast, we show that an external magnetic field applied transverse to the preferred magnetization of a model disordered uniaxial ferromagnet is an isothermal regulator of domain pinning. At elevated temperatures, near the transition into the paramagnet, modest transverse fields increase the pinning, stabilize the domain structure, and harden the magnet, until a point where the field induces quantum tunneling of the domain walls and softens the magnet. At low temperatures, tunneling completely dominates the domain dynamics and provides an interpretation of the quantum phase transition in highly disordered magnets as a localization/delocalization transition for domain walls. While the energy scales of the rare earth ferromagnet studied here restrict the effects to cryogenic temperatures, the principles discovered are general and should be applicable to existing classes of highly anisotropic ferromagnets with ordering at room temperature or above., Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures

Advances in solid-state and atomic physics are exposing the hidden relationships between conventional and exotic states of quantum matter. Prominent examples include the discovery of exotic superconductivity proximate to conventional spin and charge order, and the crossover from long-range phase order to preformed pairs achieved in gases of cold fermions and inferred for copper oxide superconductors. The unifying theme is that incompatible ground states can be connected by quantum phase transitions. Quantum fluctuations about the transition are manifestations of the competition between qualitatively distinct organizing principles, such as a long-wavelength density wave and a short-coherence-length condensate. They may even give rise to 'protected' phases, like fluctuation-mediated superconductivity that survives only in the vicinity of an antiferromagnetic quantum critical point. However, few model systems that demonstrate continuous quantum phase transitions have been identified, and the complex nature of many systems of interest hinders efforts to more fully understand correlations and fluctuations near a zero-temperature instability. Here we report the suppression of magnetism by hydrostatic pressure in elemental chromium, a simple cubic metal that demonstrates a subtle form of itinerant antiferromagnetism formally equivalent to the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) state in conventional superconductors. By directly measuring the associated charge order in a diamond anvil cell at low temperatures, we find a phase transition at pressures of approximately 10 GPa driven by fluctuations that destroy the BCS-like state but preserve the strong magnetic interaction between itinerant electrons and holes. Chromium is unique among stoichiometric magnetic metals studied so far in that the quantum phase transition is continuous, allowing experimental access to the quantum singularity and a direct probe of the competition between conventional and exotic order in a theoretically tractable material.

The Random-Field Ising Model (RFIM) has been extensively studied as a model system for understanding the effects of disorder in magnets. Since the late 1970s, there has been a particular focus on realizations of the RFIM in site-diluted antiferromagnets. We observe random-field effects in the dilute dipole-coupled ferromagnet $\mathrm{LiHo}_x\mathrm{Y}_{1-x}\mathrm{F}_4$. In the presence of a magnetic field transverse to the Ising axis ($H_t$), the behavior of $\mathrm{LiHo}_x\mathrm{Y}_{1-x}\mathrm{F}_4$ becomes increasingly dominated by the influence of random-field terms in the effective Hamiltonian. This is seen experimentally in the shape of the ferromagentic-paramagnetic phase boundary and in changes to the critical exponents near the classical critical point. We find that above the classical critical point the magnetic susceptibility diverges as $H_t\to0$, and that the susceptibility both above and below the classical critical point can be collapsed onto a single universal curve using a modified Curie law which explicitly incorporates random-field contributions. The discovery of a ferromagnetic realization of the RFIM opens the door to investigation of the random-field problem with the wide variety of techniques available for probing ferromagnets, including the ability to examine both the statics and dynamics of the random-field problem. It also allows studying the effects of controlled amounts of randomness on the dynamics of domain pinning and the energetics of domain reversal.

We discuss techniques for performing continuous measurements across a wide range of pressure–field–temperature phase space, combining the milli-Kelvin temperatures of a helium dilution refrigerator with the giga-Pascal pressures of a diamond anvil cell and the Tesla magnetic fields of a superconducting magnet. With a view towards minimizing remnant magnetic fields and background magnetic susceptibility, we characterize high-strength superalloy materials for the pressure cell assembly, which allows high fidelity measurements of low-field phenomena such as superconductivity below 100 mK at pressures above 10 GPa. In situ tunability and measurement of the pressure permit experiments over a wide range of pressure, while at the same time making possible precise steps across abrupt phase transitions such as those from insulator to metal.

With sintered needles aligned and a magnetic field applied transverse to its easy axis, the rare-earth ferromagnet Nd_2Fe_(14)B becomes a room-temperature realization of the random field Ising model. The transverse field tunes the pinning potential of the magnetic domains in a continuous fashion. We study the magnetic domain reversal and avalanche dynamics between liquid helium and room temperatures at a series of transverse fields using a Barkhausen noise technique. The avalanche size and energy distributions follow power-law behavior with a cutoff dependent on the pinning strength dialed in by the transverse field, consistent with theoretical predictions for Barkhausen avalanches in disordered materials. A scaling analysis reveals two regimes of behavior: one at low temperature and high transverse field, where the dynamics are governed by the randomness, and the second at high temperature and low transverse field, where thermal fluctuations dominate the dynamics.

The nature of a material's Fermi surface is crucial to understanding its electronic, magnetic, optical, and thermal characteristics. Traditional measurements such as angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and de Haas–van Alphen quantum oscillations can be difficult to perform in the vicinity of a pressure-driven quantum phase transition, although the evolution of the Fermi surface may be tied to the emergence of exotic phenomena. We demonstrate here that magnetic x-ray diffraction in combination with Hall effect measurements in a diamond anvil cell can provide valuable insight into the Fermi surface evolution in spin- and charge-density-wave systems near quantum phase transitions. In particular, we track the gradual evolution of the Fermi surface in elemental chromium and delineate the critical pressure and absence of Fermi surface reconstruction at the spin-flip transition.

The paramagnetic di(metalloethynyl)benzene ion [1,4-C_6H_4{CW(depe)_2Cl}_2]^(2+) was synthesized from diamagnetic 1,4-C_6H_4{CW(depe)_2Cl}_2 (depe = 1,2-bis(diethylphosphino)ethane). Systematic measurements of magnetic susceptibility for both crystalline and powder-formed compounds indicate a predominant super-exchange coupling between the magnetic tungsten centres. We provide a quantitative description of the observed susceptibility using a decoupled Heisenberg dimer model, and find that all the complexes exhibit a robust antiferromagnetic coupling between spins, J~38 K. We note their potential use as building blocks for one-dimensional spin chains—with or without disorder—and describe possible synthetic routes to these architectures.

A series of novel conjugated polymers containing first row transition metal complexes have been synthesized and characterized. Metal complexes including Mn(II), Fe(II), Co(II), Ni(II), and Cu(II) were incorporated into the bipyridine coordination sites of the conjugated polymer backbone. Upon inclusion of the metal complexes the absorption bands of the polymers were red-shifted and metal-to-ligand charge transfer (MLCT) bands were observed. The magnetic properties of these polymers were studied and the results showed that they all had high paramagnetic susceptibility; where applicable they were all stable in the high-spin state. Their large free spins and stability makes them promising as magnetic materials.

The rare earth hydride YH$_{3-\delta}$ can be tuned through the metal-insulator transition both by changing $\delta$ and by illumination with ultraviolet light. The transition is dominated by strong electron-electron interactions, with transport in the insulator sensitive to both a Coulomb gap and persistent quantum fluctuations. Via a systematic variation of UV illumination time, photon flux, Coulomb gap depth, and temperature, we demonstrate that polycrystalline YH$_{3-\delta}$ serves as a model system for studying the properties of the interacting electron glass. Prominent among its features are logarithmic relaxation, aging, and universal scaling of the conductivity.

A single yttrium hydride thin film is conveniently driven through the T = 0 metal-insulator transition by fine-tuning the charge :carrier density n via persistent photoconductivity at low temperature. Simultaneously, electrical conductivity and Hall measurements are performed for temperatures T down to 350 mK and magnetic fields up to 14 T. A scaling analysis is applied and critical exponents, resolved separately on the metallic and insulating sides of the critical region, are determined consistently. We introduce corrections to scaling to invoke collapse of the data onto a single master curve over an extended region of the (n, T) phase diagram.

The geometrically-frustrated, triangular antiferromagnet GGG exhibits a rich mix of short-range order and isolated quantum states. We investigate the effects of up to 1% Neodymium substitution for Gallium on the ac magnetic response at temperatures below 1 K in both the linear and nonlinear regimes. Substitutional disorder actually drives the system towards a more perfectly frustrated state, apparently compensating for the effect of imperfect Gadolinium/Gallium stoichiometry, while at the same time more closely demarcating the boundaries of isolated, coherent clusters composed of hundreds of spins. Optical measurements of the local Nd environment substantiate the picture of an increased frustration index with doping., 5 pages, 5 figures

The classical theory of solids, based on the quantum mechanics of single electrons moving in periodic potentials, provides an excellent description of substances ranging from semiconducting silicon to superconducting aluminium. Over the last fifteen years, it has become increasingly clear that there are substances for which the conventional approach fails. Among these are certain rare earth compounds and transition metal oxides, including high-temperature superconductors. A common feature of these materials is complexity, in the sense that they have relatively large unit cells containing heterogeneous mixtures of atoms. Although many explanations have been put forward for their anomalous properties, it is still possible that the classical theory might suffice. Here we show that a very common chromium alloy has some of the same peculiarities as the more exotic materials, including a quantum critical point, a strongly temperature-dependent Hall resistance and evidence for a 'pseudogap'. This implies that complexity is not a prerequisite for unconventional behaviour. Moreover, it should simplify the general task of explaining anomalous properties because chromium is a relatively simple system in which to work out in quantitative detail the consequences of the conventional theory of solids.

Trivalent rare earth hydrides stabilized in thin film form demonstrate spectacular optical and electronic properties. A thin film of YH_x or LaH_x can be transformed rapidly from metal to insulator, from shiny mirror to transparent window, simply by changing the surrounding hydrogen gas pressure or an electrolytic cell potential at room temperature (RT). At low temperatures, in-situ doping is not possible in this way as hydrogen cannot diffuse. However, our finding of persistent photoconductivity under ultraviolet illumination permits tuning through the T = 0 metal–insulator transition and reveals the important role played by strong electron correlations. We discuss the optical, electronic, magnetic, and structural properties of switchable mirrors from both the technological and scientific perspectives.

A gas loading cell has been developed to load rare earth thin film samples with hydrogen at pressures up to 200 bars at room temperature. A miniature valve closes the gas inlet, after which the cell is suspended from the cold tail of a ^3He flow cryostat into the bore of a 16 T superconducting magnet. An ultraviolet stroboscope outside the cryostat illuminates the sample by way of an optical fiber to a window in the cell. Electrical feedthroughs permit photoconductivity and magnetotransport measurements over three decades in temperature. Extension to other materials, different gas atmospheres, and helium dilution refrigerator temperatures is straightforward.

Quantum spins placed on the corners of a square lattice can dimerize and form singlets, which then can be transformed into a magnetic state as the interactions between dimers increase beyond threshold. This is a strictly 2D transition in theory, but real-world materials often need the third dimension to stabilize long-range order. We use high pressures to convert sheets of Cu^2+ spin 1/2 dimers from local singlets to global antiferromagnet in the model system SrCu_2(BO_3)_2. Single-crystal neutron diffraction measurements at pressures above 5 GPa provide a direct signature of the antiferromagnetic ordered state, whereas high-resolution neutron powder and X-ray diffraction at commensurate pressures reveal a tilting of the Cu spins out of the plane with a critical exponent characteristic of 3D transitions. The addition of anisotropic, interplane, spin–orbit terms in the venerable Shastry–Sutherland Hamiltonian accounts for the influence of the third dimension.

Rare earth hydride films can be converted reversibly from metallic mirrors to insulating windows simply by changing the surrounding hydrogen gas pressure at room temperature. At low temperatures, in situ doping is not possible in this way as hydrogen cannot diffuse. However, our finding of persistent photoconductivity under ultraviolet illumination offers an attractive possibility to tune yttrium hydride through the T = 0 metal-insulator transition. Conductivity and Hall measurements are used to determine critical exponents. The unusually large value for the product of the static and dynamical critical exponents appears to signify the important role played by electron-electron interactions.

We characterize the non-Ohmic portion of the conductivity at temperatures T < 1 K in the highly correlated transition metal chalcogenide Ni(S, Se)_2. Pressure tuning of the T = 0 metal-insulator transition reveals the influence of the quantum critical point and permits a direct determination of the dynamical critical exponent z = 2.7_(-0.4)^(+0.3) Within the framework of finite temperature scaling, we find that the spatial correlation length exponent ν and the conductivity exponent μ differ.

Magnetic correlations in all four phases of pure and doped vanadium sesquioxide (V_2O_3) have been examined by magnetic thermal-neutron scattering. Specifically, we have studied the antiferromagnetic and paramagnetic phases of metallic V_(2-y)O_3, the antiferromagnetic insulating and paramagnetic metallic phases of stoichiometric V_2O_3, and the antiferromagnetic and paramagnetic phases of insulating V_(1.944)Cr_(0.056)O_3. While the antiferromagnetic insulator can be accounted for by a localized Heisenberg spin model, the long-range order in the antiferromagnetic metal is an incommensurate spin-density wave, resulting from a Fermi surface nesting instability. Spin dynamics in the strongly correlated metal are dominated by spin fluctuations with a "single lobe'' spectrum in the Stoner electron-hole continuum. Furthermore, our results in metallic V_2O_3 represent an unprecedentedly complete characterization of the spin fluctuations near a metallic quantum critical point, and provide quantitative support for the self-consistent renormalization theory for itinerant antiferromagnets in the small moment limit. Dynamic magnetic correlations for ħω

We use an array of miniature Hall probe magnetometers to probe the entry and flow of flux in a single crystal torus or the heavy fermion superconductor UPt_3. Local measurements over the hole are exquisitely sensitive to vortex motion anywhere in the torus, and they permit us to detect avalanches restricted to and with a sharp onset in the lower temperature superconducting phase. Computer simulations support a mechanism dependent upon the degenerate nature of the superconducting order parameter.