Anisotropic Relaxation Research Articles

Strongly anisotropic spin dynamics in magnetic topological insulators

The recent discovery of magnetic topological insulators has opened new avenues to explore exotic states of matter that can emerge from the interplay between topological electronic states and magnetic degrees of freedom, be it ordered or strongly fluctuating. Motivated by the effects that the dynamics of the magnetic moments can have on the topological surface states, we investigate the magnetic fluctuations across the (MnBi$_{\text{2}}$Te$_{\text{4}}$)(Bi$_{\text{2}}$Te$_{\text{3}}$)$_{\text{n}}$ family. Our paramagnetic electron spin resonance experiments reveal contrasting Mn spin dynamics in different compounds, which manifests in a strongly anisotropic Mn spin relaxation in MnBi$_{\text{2}}$Te$_{\text{4}}$ while being almost isotropic in MnBi$_{\text{4}}$Te$_{\text{7}}$. Our density-functional calculations explain these striking observations in terms of the sensitivity of the local electronic structure to the Mn spin-orientation, and indicate that the anisotropy of the magnetic fluctuations can be controlled by the carrier density, which may directly affect the electronic topological surface states.

Shape Changes in AuPd Alloy Nanoparticles Controlled by Anisotropic Surface Stress Relaxation.

The shape of AuPd nanoparticles is engineered by surface stress relaxation, achieved by varying the Au content in nanoparticles of Pd-rich compositions. AuPd nanoparticles are grown in the gas phase for several compositions and growth conditions. Their structure is atomically resolved by HRTEM/STEM and EDX. In pure Pd distributions the dominant structures are FCC truncated octahedra (TO), while increasing the Au content there is a transition to icosahedral (Ih) structures in which Au atoms are preferentially placed at the nanoparticle surface. The transition is sharper for growth conditions closer to equilibrium. The physical origin of the transition is determined with the aid of computer simulations. Global optimization searches and free energy calculations confirm that Ih become the equilibrium structure for increasing the Au content. Atomic stress calculations demonstrate that the TO → Ih shape change is caused by a better relaxation of anisotropic surface stress in icosahedra.

Polysaccharides on gelatin-based hydrogels differently affect chondrogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stromal cells

Selection of feasible hybrid-hydrogels for best chondrogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs) represents an important challenge in cartilage regeneration. In this study, three-dimensional hybrid hydrogels obtained by chemical crosslinking of poly (ethylene glycol) diglycidyl ether (PEGDGE), gelatin (G) without or with chitosan (Ch) or dextran (Dx) polysaccharides were developed. The hydrogels, namely G-PEG, G-PEG-Ch and G-PEG-Dx, were prepared with an innovative, versatile and cell-friendly technique that involves two preparation steps specifically chosen to increase the degree of crosslinking and the physical-mechanical stability of the product: a first homogeneous phase reaction followed by directional freezing, freeze-drying and post-curing. Chondrogenic differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cells (hBM-MSC) was tested on these hydrogels to ascertain whether the presence of different polysaccharides could favor the formation of the native cartilage structure. We demonstrated that the hydrogels exhibited an open pore porous morphology with high interconnectivity and the incorporation of Ch and Dx into the G-PEG common backbone determined a slightly reduced stiffness compared to that of G-PEG hydrogels. We demonstrated that G-PEG-Dx showed a significant increase of its anisotropic characteristic and G-PEG-Ch exhibited higher and faster stress relaxation behavior than the other hydrogels. These characteristics were associated to absence of chondrogenic differentiation on G-PEG-Dx scaffold and good chondrogenic differentiation on G-PEG and G-PEG-Ch. Furthermore, G-PEG-Ch induced the minor collagen proteins and the formation of collagen fibrils with a diameter like native cartilage.This study demonstrated that both anisotropic and stress relaxation characteristics of the hybrid hydrogels were important features directly influencing the chondrogenic differentiation potentiality of hBM-MSC.

Exciting Opportunities for Solid-State 95Mo NMR Studies of MoS2 Nano-structures in Materials Research from Low to Ultra-high Magnetic Field (35.2 T).

Solid-state, natural-abundance 95Mo NMR experiments of four different MoS2 materials have been performed on a magnet B 0 = 19.6 T and on a new Series Connected Hybrid (SCH) magnet at 35.2 T. Employing two different 2H-MoS2 (2H phase) materials, a "pseudo-amorphous" MoS2 nano-material, and a MoS2 layer on the Al2O3 support of a hydrodesulphurization (HDS) catalyst have enabled introduction of solid-state 95Mo NMR as an important analytical tool in studies of MoS2 nano-materials. 95Mo spin-lattice relaxation time (T 1) studies of 160- and 4-layer 2H-MoS2 samples at 19.6 and 35.2 T show their relaxation rates (1/T 1) increase in proportion to B 0 2. This is in accord with chemical shift anisotropy (CSA) relaxation being the dominant T 1(95Mo) mechanism, with a large 95Mo CSA = 1025 ppm determined for all four MoS2 nano-materials. The dominant CSA mechanism suggests the MoS2 band-gap electrons are delocalized throughout the lattice-layer structures, thereby acting as a fast modulation source (ω oτc << 1) for 95Mo CSA in 2H-MoS2. A decrease in T 1(95Mo) is observed for an increase in B 0 field and for a decrease in the number of 2H-MoS2 layers. All four nano-materials exhibit identical 95Mo electric field gradient (EFG) parameters. The T 1 results account for the several failures to retrieve 95Mo spectral EFG and CSA parameters for multilayer 2H-MoS2 samples in the pioneering solid-state 95Mo NMR studies performed during the past two decades (1990-2010), because of the extremely long T 1(95Mo) = ~200-250 s observed at low B 0 (~9.4 T) used at that time. Much shorter T 1(95Mo) values are observed even at 19.6 T for the "pseudo-amorphous" and the HDS catalyst (MoS2-Al2O3 support) MoS2 nano-materials. These allowed useful solid-state 95Mo NMR spectra for these two samples to be obtained at 19.6 T in a few to < 24 h. Most importantly, this research led to observation of an impressive 95Mo MAS spectrum for an average of 1-4 thick MoS2-layers on a Al2O3 support, i.e., the first MAS NMR spectrum of a low natural-abundance, low-γ quadrupole-nucleus species layered on a catalyst support. While a huge gain in NMR sensitivity, factor ~ 60, is observed for the 95Mo MAS spectrum of the 160-layer sample at 35.2 T compared to 14.1 T, the MAS spectrum for the 4-layer sample is almost completely wiped out at 35.2 T. This unusual observation for the 4-layer sample (crumpled, rose-like and defective Mo-edge structures) is due to an increased distribution of the isotropic 95Mo shifts in the 95Mo MAS spectra at B 0 up to 35.2 T upon reduction of the number of sample layers.

Graphene on two-dimensional hexagonal BN, AlN, and GaN: Electronic, spin-orbit, and spin relaxation properties

We investigate the electronic structure of graphene on a series of 2D hexagonal nitride insulators hXN, X = B, Al, and Ga, with DFT calculations. A symmetry-based model Hamiltonian is employed to extract orbital parameters and spin-orbit coupling (SOC) from the low-energy Dirac bands of proximitized graphene. While commensurate hBN induces a staggered potential of about 10 meV into the Dirac bands, less lattice-matched hAlN and hGaN disrupt the Dirac point much less, giving a staggered gap below 100 $\mu$eV. Proximitized intrinsic SOC surprisingly does not increase much above the pristine graphene value of 12 $\mu$eV; it stays in the window of (1-16) $\mu$eV, depending strongly on stacking. However, Rashba SOC increases sharply when increasing the atomic number of the boron group, with calculated maximal values of 8, 15, and 65 $\mu$eV for B, Al, and Ga-based nitrides, respectively. The individual Rashba couplings also depend strongly on stacking, vanishing in symmetrically-sandwiched structures, and can be tuned by a transverse electric field. The extracted spin-orbit parameters were used as input for spin transport simulations based on Chebyshev expansion of the time-evolution of the spin expectation values, yielding interesting predictions for the electron spin relaxation. Spin lifetime magnitudes and anisotropies depend strongly on the specific (hXN)/graphene/hXN system, and they can be efficiently tuned by an applied external electric field as well as the carrier density in the graphene layer. A particularly interesting case for experiments is graphene/hGaN, in which the giant Rashba coupling is predicted to induce spin lifetimes of 1-10 ns, short enough to dominate over other mechanisms, and lead to the same spin relaxation anisotropy as observed in conventional semiconductor heterostructures: 50\%, meaning that out-of-plane spins relax twice as fast as in-plane spins.

Time-dependent shape of bistable unsymmetric carbon fibers-epoxy thin laminates

Carbon fiber-epoxy thin laminates, manufactured adopting a [0/90] non-symmetric lay-up, are characterized by two stable curved shapes, so being bistable. These composite thin laminates are attracting great interest for their potential application as novel morphing structures and power harvesting devices in many engineering fields. The curvature changes of rectangular bistable plates were monitored at room temperature by a laser scanner system over a time span of 10 d. These changes were ascribed to the relaxation of thermal stresses over time. Anisotropic stress relaxation behavior was then studied looking at the matrix dominated properties, such as the transverse modulus in accelerated high temperature experiments and the moisture absorption. Then, a simple viscoelastic model was proposed together with a finite element analysis of the distortion arising from laminate cooling at the end of high temperature cure process. The experimental and numerical results showed that the transverse elastic modulus and the hygroscopic effect are the main factors affecting the shape relaxation of bistable laminates.

Control of spin relaxation anisotropy by spin-orbit-coupled diffusive spin motion

Spatiotemporal spin dynamics under spin-orbit interaction is investigated in a (001) GaAs two-dimensional electron gas using magneto-optical Kerr rotation microscopy. Spin polarized electrons are diffused away from the excited position, resulting in spin precession because of the diffusion-induced spin-orbit field. Near the cancellation between spin-orbit field and external magnetic field, the induced spin precession frequency depends nonlinearly on the diffusion velocity, which is unexpected from the conventional linear relation between the spin-orbit field and the electron velocity.This behavior originates from an enhancement of the spin relaxation anisotropy by the electron velocity perpendicular to the diffused direction. We demonstrate that the spin relaxation anisotropy, which has been regarded as a material constant, can be controlled via diffusive electron motion.

A Scaled Effective Medium Theory for Calculation of Resonant and Relaxation Frequency in Magnetic Composites

Scaled Effective Medium Theory (ScEMT) is applied to predict magnetic resonant and relaxation frequency in polymer-magnetic particle composites with favorable comparison to measured data. A single scaling function is identified that uses magnetic particulate resonant and relaxation frequencies, or magnetization and anisotropy field, volume fraction and DC susceptibility as predicted by ScEMT. Previous publications demonstrated that ScEMT improved the prediction of DC susceptibility as compared to classical models. Maxwell-Garnett (MGT) and Coherent Model Approximation (CMA) serve as theoretical baselines for comparison. However, both require separate scaling functions in their prediction of resonant and relaxation. Measured data are presented that suggest a single scaling function of ScEMT is sufficient to calculate both parameters. The paper emphasizes the application of the models and shows a wide range of particulate chemistries. ScEMT calculates susceptibility, resonant and relaxation frequency that agree with measurement. The paper concludes by predicting dispersive permeability that represents improvement over both CMA and MGT models. Future studies will address formulation of an EMT model (s) that describe mixtures of hard and soft magnetic materials mixed in a polymer composite. EMT for composite dielectric properties will be expanded to address the chaining. Early results of that effort will be reported in a separate paper.

Evaluation of enzymatic and magnetic properties of γ-glutamyl-[1-13C]glycine and its deuteration toward longer retention of the hyperpolarized state.

Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) is an emerging cutting-edge method of acquiring metabolic and physiological information in vivo. We recently developed γ-glutamyl-[1-13C]glycine (γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly) as a DNP nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) molecular probe to detect γ-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) activity in vivo. However, the detailed enzymatic and magnetic properties of this probe remain unknown. Here, we evaluate a γ-Glu–Gly scaffold and develop a deuterated probe, γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly-d2, that can realize a longer lifetime of the hyperpolarized signal. We initially evaluated the GGT-mediated enzymatic conversion of γ-Glu–Gly and the magnetic properties of 13C-enriched γ-Glu–Gly (γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly and γ-[5-13C]Glu–Gly) to support the validity of γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly as a DNP NMR molecular probe for GGT. We then examined the spin-lattice relaxation time (T1) of γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly and γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly-d2 under various conditions (D2O, PBS, and serum) and confirmed that the T1 of γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly and γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly-d2 was maintained for 30 s (9.4 T) and 41 s (9.4 T), respectively, even in serum. Relaxation analysis of γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly revealed a significant contribution of the dipole–dipole interaction and the chemical shift anisotropy relaxation pathway (71% of the total relaxation rate at 9.4 T), indicating the potential of deuteration and the use of a lower magnetic field for realizing a longer T1. In fact, by using γ-Glu-[1-13C]Gly-d2 as a DNP probe, we achieved longer retention of the hyperpolarized signal at 1.4 T.

Toward a general quasi-linear approach for the instabilities of bi-Kappa plasmas. Whistler instability

Kappa distributions are ubiquitous in space and astrophysical poorly collisional plasmas, such as the solar wind, suggesting that microscopic and macroscopic properties of these non-equilibrium plasmas are highly conditioned by the wave–particle interactions. The present work addresses the evolution of anisotropic bi-Kappa (or bi-κ-)distributions of electrons triggering instabilities of electromagnetic electron-cyclotron (or whistler) modes. The new quasi-linear approach proposed here includes time variations of the κ parameter during the relaxation of temperature anisotropy. Numerical results show that κ may increase for short interval of times at the beginning, but then decreases toward a value lower than the initial one, while the plasma beta and temperature anisotropy indicate a systematic relaxation. Our results suggest that the electromagnetic turbulence plays an important role on the suprathermalization of the plasma, ultimately lowering the parameter κ. Even though the variation of κ is in general negative () this variation seems to depend of the initial conditions of anisotropic electrons, which can vary very much in the inner heliosphere.

Epitaxial growth and strain relaxation of corundum-phase (Al,Ga)2O3 thin films from pulsed laser deposition at 1000 °C on r-plane Al2O3

We investigate the epitaxial growth of (Al,Ga)2O3 alloy thin films in the corundum phase on r-plane (01.2) Al2O3 substrates. We compare films grown by pulsed laser deposition at substrate temperatures of 750 °C and 1000 °C. The initial strongly anisotropic plastic strain relaxation through the a-plane prismatic glide system is directly evidenced by imaging the associated slip lines. We find enhanced plastic relaxation at the higher substrate temperature. Details of the stoichiometry transfer from the target to the film are discussed.

Evaluation of Thermal Expansion Coefficient in Ge1-x Sn x Nanowire Using Reciprocal Space Mapping

Ge1-x Sn x is expected to be a new material for next-generation electronic and thermoelectric device because it has higher carrier mobilities and lower thermal conductivity than pure Si and Ge. Here, strain is an important factor for designing electric and thermoelectric devices. It has been reported that there is a correlation between strain and thermal conductivity for group IV semiconductors [1]. In plane compressive strain is induced in epitaxially grown GeSn thin film on a Ge substrate due to the difference in lattice parameter. Anisotropic strain relaxation has been occurred in the GeSn nanowires. Anisotropic strain may cause anisotropic thermal expansion and thermal conductivity. In this study, we evaluated the thermal expansion of Ge1-x Sn x nanowire fabricated on Ge substrate using reciprocal space mapping (RSM) by synchrotron radiation X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurement.The Ge1-x Sn x thin films were epitaxially grown on Ge (001) substrate for 34 and 45 nm by home-made metal organic chemical vapor deposition [2]. Sn concentrations (x) is 3.2% as confirmed by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry. Then, the nanowires were fabricated by electron beam lithography and dry etching as shown in Fig. 1. The major axis length (L) parallel to [110] were fixed at 10 µm while the minor axis width (W) parallel to [-110] were 200 or 500 nm. For the measurement of RSM, multi-axis diffractometer in BL19B2 of SPring-8 was used. The photon energy was 10 keV, which is just under the K-edge of Ge at 11 keV. We fabricated many nanowires to obtain sufficiently strong X-ray diffraction. The sample temperature was controlled using a heating stage (Anton Paar DHS1100).Figure 2 shows the relationship between temperature and the lattice parameters in Ge0.968Sn0.032 nanowire with W=500 nm. Thermal expansion for the sample with W=200 nm showed an isotropic change. However, it was revealed that the thermal expansion between the in-plane minor axis [-110] and the out-of-plane [001] directions were different for the sample with W=500 nm. In the previous study, we have confirmed the uniaxial strain relaxation (minor axis direction [-110]) has been occurred with decreasing W for Ge1-x Sn x nanowire [3]. Thus, it is considered that the thermal expansion become isotropic as the nanowire width gets shorter. References Xu et al., J. Appl. Phys. 106, 114302 (2009).Suda et al., ECS Trans. 64 (6). 697 (2014).K. Yoshioka et al., Thin Solid Films 697, 137797 (2020). Figure 1

Fine-Tuning of Uniaxial Anisotropy and Slow Relaxation of Magnetization in the Hexacoordinate Co(II) Complexes with Acidoligands

A new hexacoordinate Co(II) complex with the general formula [CoL(NCS)2]·DMSO (1) (L = biscondensation product of diacetyl and 2-hydrazinyl-4,6-dimethylpyrimidine, DMSO = dimethylsulfoxide) exhibit...

Photoexcited charge carrier dynamics in Sb2Se3(100)

Antimony selenide (${\mathrm{Sb}}_{2}{\mathrm{Se}}_{3}$) consists of one-dimensional ribbons that are van der Waals bonded to each other. Due to its favorable optoelectronic properties, it is a promising material for solar energy conversion. Owing to its narrow direct band gap and its high absorption coefficient it is an efficient absorber for solar light. Besides, it is cheap, stable in harsh environments, and abundant with low toxicity. For its use in solar devices, efficient transport of photoexcited charge carriers towards the active interface and long lifetimes at sufficiently high energies are mandatory. Here time-resolved two-photon photoemission experiments on the (100) surface of ${\mathrm{Sb}}_{2}{\mathrm{Se}}_{3}$ are presented. Data were taken along and perpendicular to the direction of the one-dimensional ribbons in order to unravel the anisotropic lifetimes and relaxation dynamics of photoexcited charge carriers. In both cases, various conduction bands could be populated and within the first picosecond ultrafast scattering towards the lowest conduction band was observed. Moreover, long lifetimes of up to 35 ps in the conduction band bottom at the surface were obtained and no sign of trapping in defect states was found. These measurements shed light on the relaxation and scattering of free carriers in ${\mathrm{Sb}}_{2}{\mathrm{Se}}_{3}$, which is the key for the design of ${\mathrm{Sb}}_{2}{\mathrm{Se}}_{3}$-based electrodes.

Influence of micro-patterning of the growth template on defect reduction and optical properties of non-polar GaN

We investigate the influence of different types of template micro-patterning on defect reduction and optical properties of non-polar GaN using detailed luminescence studies. Non-polar (or a-plane) GaN exhibits a range of different extended defects compared with its more commonly used c-plane counterpart. In order to reduce the number of defects and investigate their impact on luminescence uniformity, non-polar GaN was overgrown on four different GaN microstructures. The micro-patterned structures consist of a regular microrod array; a microrod array where the −c-side of the microrods has been etched to suppress defect generation; etched periodic stripes and finally a subsequent combination of etched stripes and etched microrods (double overgrowth). Overall the presence of extended defects, namely threading dislocations and stacking faults (SFs) is greatly reduced for the two samples containing stripes compared with the two microrod samples. This is evidenced by more uniform emission and reduction in dark regions of non-radiative recombination in room temperature cathodoluminescence imaging as well as a reduction of the SF emission line in low temperature photoluminescence. The observed energy shifts of the GaN near band edge emission are related to anisotropic strain relaxation occurring during the overgrowth on these microstructures. A combination of stripes and microrods is a promising approach for defect reduction and emission uniformity in non-polar GaN for applications in light-emitting devices as well as power electronics.

Jamming in confined geometry: Criticality of the jamming transition and implications of structural relaxation in confined supercooled liquids* *Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 11734014).

In marginally jammed solids confined by walls, we calculate the particle and ensemble averaged value of an order parameter, 〈Ψ(r)〉, as a function of the distance to the wall, r. Being a microscopic indicator of structural disorder and particle mobility in solids, Ψ is by definition the response of the mean square particle displacement to the increase of temperature in the harmonic approximation and can be directly calculated from the normal modes of vibration of the zero-temperature solids. We find that, in confined jammed solids, 〈Ψ(r)〉 curves at different pressures can collapse onto the same master curve following a scaling function, indicating the criticality of the jamming transition. The scaling collapse suggests a diverging length scale and marginal instability at the jamming transition, which should be accessible to sophisticatedly designed experiments. Moreover, 〈Ψ(r)〉 is found to be significantly suppressed when approaching the wall and anisotropic in directions perpendicular and parallel to the wall. This finding can be applied to understand the r-dependence and anisotropy of the structural relaxation in confined supercooled liquids, providing another example of understanding or predicting behaviors of supercooled liquids from the perspective of the zero-temperature amorphous solids.

MRI of Skeletal Muscles in Participants with Type 2 Diabetes with or without Diabetic Polyneuropathy.

BackgroundDiabetic polyneuropathy (DPN) is associated with loss of muscle strength. MRI including diffusion-tensor imaging (DTI) may enable detection of muscle abnormalities related to type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) and DPN.PurposeTo assess skeletal muscle abnormalities in participants with DM2 with or without DPN by using MRI.Materials and MethodsThis prospective cross-sectional study included participants with DM2 and DPN (DPN positive), participants with DM2 without DPN (DPN negative), and healthy control (HC) participants enrolled between August 2017 and June 2018. Muscle strength at the knee and ankle was determined with isokinetic dynamometry. MRI of the lower extremities included the Dixon sequence, multicomponent T2 mapping, and DTI calculated fat fractions (FFs), T2 relaxation of muscle (T2water), fractional anisotropy (FA), and diffusivity (mean, axial, and radial). One-way analysis of variance and Tukey honestly significant difference were applied for comparison between groups, and multivariate regression models were used for association between MRI parameters, nerve conduction, strength, and body mass index (BMI).ResultsTwenty participants with DPN (mean age, 65 years ± 9 [standard deviation]; 70% men; mean BMI, 34 kg/m2 ± 5), 20 participants without DPN (mean age, 64 years ± 9; 55% men; mean BMI, 30 kg/m2 ± 6), and 20 HC participants (mean age, 61 years ± 10; 55% men; mean BMI, 27 kg/m2 ± 5) were enrolled in this study. Muscle strength adjusted for age, sex, and BMI was lower in participants with DPN than in DPN-negative and HC participants in the upper and lower leg (plantar flexors [PF], 62% vs 78% vs 89%; P < .001; knee extensors [KE], 73% vs 95% vs 93%; P < .001). FF was higher in leg muscle groups of participants with DPN than in DPN-negative and HC participants (PF, 20% vs 10% vs 8%; P < .001; KE, 13% vs 8% vs 6%; P < .001). T2water was prolonged in leg muscle groups of participants with DPN when compared with HC participants (PF, 33 msec vs 31 msec; P < .001; KE, 32 msec vs 31 msec; P = .002) and in the lower leg when compared with participants without DPN (PF, 33 msec vs 32 msec; P = .03). In multivariate regression models, strength was associated with FA (b = -0.0004), T2water (b = -0.03 msec), and FF (b = -0.1%) at thigh level (P < .001). Furthermore, FA (b = -0.007), T2water (b = -0.53 msec), and FF (b = -4.0%) were associated with nerve conduction at calf level (P < .001).ConclusionMRI of leg muscle groups revealed fat accumulation, differences in water composition, and structural changes in participants with type 2 diabetes mellitus and neuropathy. Abnormalities were most pronounced in the plantar flexors.© RSNA, 2020Online supplemental material is available for this article.See also the editorial by Sneag and Tan in this issue.

Assessing magnetic and inductive thermal properties of various surfactants functionalised Fe3O4 nanoparticles for hyperthermia

This work reports the fabrication of magnetite (Fe3O4) nanoparticles (NPs) coated with various biocompatible surfactants such as glutamic acid (GA), citric acid (CA), polyethylene glycol (PEG), polyvinylpyrrolidine (PVP), ethylene diamine (EDA) and cetyl-trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) via co-precipitation method and their comparative inductive heating ability for hyperthermia (HT) applications. X-ray and electron diffraction analyses validated the formation of well crystallined inverse spinel structured Fe3O4 NPs (crystallite size of ~ 8–10 nm). Magnetic studies confirmed the superparamagnetic (SPM) behaviour for all the NPs with substantial magnetisation (63–68 emu/g) and enhanced magnetic susceptibility is attributed to the greater number of occupations of Fe2+ ions in the lattice as revealed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Moreover, distinctive heating response (specific absorption rate, SAR from 130 to 44 W/g) of NPs with similar size and magnetisation is observed. The present study was successful in establishing a direct correlation between relaxation time (~ 9.42–15.92 ns) and heating efficiency of each surface functionalised NPs. Moreover, heat dissipated in different surface grafted NPs is found to be dependent on magnetic susceptibility, magnetic anisotropy and magnetic relaxation time. These results open very promising avenues to design surface functionalised magnetite NPs for effective HT applications.

Thermoelectric response of nodal-line semimetals: Probing the Fermi surface topology

We investigate the low-temperature thermoelectric properties of three-dimensional nodal-line semimetals within the semiclassical Boltzmann formalism. Considering short-range interaction between electrons and scattering agents, we calculate the anisotropic relaxation times and then obtain the charge conductivity and thermopower along the radial and the axial directions with respect to the nodal-line plane. Increasing the carrier concentration, a sharp change in the thermopower signals topological transition in the shape of the Fermi surface from a torus into an ellipsoid. An adequate treatment of the energy and direction dependence of the relaxation time is necessary for the observation of the topological transition of the Fermi surface in the thermoelectric properties.

Thermal cycling effects on the structure and physical properties of granular materials

Over the past two decades, various investigations have shown that the application of thermal cycles of heating and cooling to granular materials causes permanent densification. However, prior to this study, significant associated effects of thermal cycles on the structural reorganization and physical properties of granular materials remained mostly unknown. To address these elusive aspects, this paper investigates the relationship between the microstructural changes induced by thermal cycling and their influence on the physical properties of granular materials using a multiphysical and multiscale computational approach. Microstructural changes are analyzed using coupled thermo-mechanical discrete element simulations and macroscopic physical properties are upscaled using homogenization. Multiple initial porosities and particle size distributions are investigated for a large number of thermal cycles of varying amplitude. Results demonstrate significant variations in the structure and properties of granular materials. Volumetric densification and fabric anisotropy increase monotonically with the amplitude and number of cycles. Coordination number exhibits a maximum for a critical temperature amplitude established theoretically to correspond to an optimal particle rearrangement. Mechanical stiffness and thermal conductivity increase in anisotropic fashion due to stress relaxation and fabric anisotropy and typically exhibit the most variation at the critical temperature amplitude. Intrinsic permeability to fluid flow decreases isotropically and monotonically with the amplitude and number of thermal cycles due to pore volume reduction. The critical temperature amplitude provides a limit to the thermal energy that can seemingly induce optimal and permanent structural reorganizations, as well as maximum variations of specific physical properties of granular materials.