Crystal Axes Research Articles

Reversible Single-Crystal to Single-Crystal Transformation and Associated Magnetism of a Cyanide-Bridged Chiral-Structured Magnet.

A chiral molecule-based magnet [MnII (S-pnH) (H2O)][MnIII(CN)6]·H2O (S-pn = S-1,2-diaminopropane), 1S·2H2O (P212121), has been obtained, which has a two-dimensional (2D) square network of cyanide-bridged MnII-MnIII ions. The crystallographic research on this coordination polymer indicates that it is robust enough to transform the single-crystal structure upon dehydration as well as rehydration. Meanwhile, the magnetic property changes are reversibly associated with the structural phase transitions. The complete reversibility upon dehydration/rehydration was demonstrated using in situ X-ray diffraction from the as-prepared 1S·2H2O to the dehydrated [MnII (S-pnH)][MnIII(CN)6], 1S, then rehydrated to [MnII (S-pnH) (H2O)][MnIII(CN)6]·H2O, 1S-HP, and dehydrated again to [MnII (S-pnH)][MnIII(CN)6], 1S-DeHP. Neither the space groups nor the crystal axes changed during the dehydration/rehydration process. The dehydration is considered to be associated with a change in the coordination of the S-pnH from one 2D layer to the neighboring one involving a proton transfer and is accompanied by new cyanide bridging of MnII and MnIII ions formed between the 2D sheet. Corresponding to the 2D to three-dimensional (3D) structural transition, the study of magnetic properties reveals that the Curie temperature of long-range magnetic ordering for 1S (TC = 45 K) is more than double that for 1S·2H2O (TC = 21 K).

180 mW, 1 MHz, 15 fs carrier-envelope phase-stable pulse generation via polarization-optimized down-conversion from gas-filled hollow-core fiber

Gas-filled hollow core fibers allow the generation of single-cycle pulses at megahertz repetition rates. When coupled with difference frequency generation, they can be an ideal driver for generating carrier-envelope phase stable, octave-spanning pulses in the short-wavelength infrared. In this work, we investigate the dependence of the polarization state in gas-filled hollow-core fibers (HCF) on the subsequent difference frequency generation stage. We show that by adjusting the input polarization state of light in geometrically symmetric systems, such as hollow-core fibers, one can achieve precise control over the polarization state of the output pulses. This manipulation preserves the temporal characteristics of the generated ultrashort pulses, especially when operating at a near single-cycle regime. We leverage this property to boost the downconversion efficiency of the near single-cycle pulses in a type I difference frequency generation stage. Our technique overcomes the bandwidth and dispersion constraints of the previous methods that rely on broadband waveplates or adjustment of crystal axes relative to the laboratory frame. This advancement is crucial for experiments demanding pure polarization states in the eigenmodes of the laboratory frame.

Thin film lithium niobate electro-optic modulator with reduced half-wave voltage length product through design

This paper aims at shortening electrode spacing in a thin film lithium niobate (TFLN) electro-optic modulator (EOM) while avoiding an increase in metal absorption loss, thereby reducing the half-wave voltage length product (V π ⋅L). Through numerical simulations, we find that metal absorption loss reaches its peak values when the optical modes of the metal-clad dielectric waveguide and ridged waveguide hybridize. This negative effect can be mitigated by adjusting the electrode width to modify the optical mode of the metal-clad dielectric waveguide. In addition, we raise the vertical position of the electrodes to further mitigate metal absorption loss and reduce the electrode spacing. By calculating the optimal buffer layer thickness for two crystal axis orientations, our findings reveal a 19% reduction in V π ⋅L at conventional crystal axis orientation (θ=±90∘) and a 16% decrease at unconventional crystal axis orientation (θ=54∘). Notably, V π ⋅L at unconventional crystal axis orientation is 5% lower than at conventional crystal axis orientation. These findings demonstrate the effectiveness of geometric configuration optimization toward enhancing the efficiency and performance of the TFLN EOM.

ON THE POSSIBILITY OF USING STRAIGHT AND BENT CRYSTALS FOR CHARGED PARTICLE BEAM STEERING AT THE FUTURE MULTIFUNCTIONAL ACCELERATOR COMPLEX OF NSC KIPT

The scattering of electrons and positrons with energy of 500 MeV on straight and bent silicon crystals has been considered using numerical simulations. The selected particle energy corresponds to parameters that can be achieved at the future multifunctional accelerator complex of the NSC “Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology”. It is shown that bent crystals, at certain orientations, allow deflecting charged particles at angles significantly exceeding the critical angle of axial channeling. It is also shown that experimental investigation of the effect of reducing inco- herent scattering of high-energy positrons when orienting the crystal relative to the direction of particle incidence near one of the main crystal axes is of interest.

The role of losses in determining hyperbolic material figures of merit

Uniaxial materials have achieved new prominence in photonics because they can have hyperbolic spectral regions with metallic (ε<0) and dielectric (ε>0) permittivities along different crystal axes. In the lossless case, this results in an open hyperboloid dispersion relation, allowing materials to support highly confined modes with extremely large wavevectors. However, even small losses change the character of the hyperbolic dispersion from open hyperboloids to closed surfaces with finite maximum k, significantly limiting the extent to which highly-confined modes can be achieved. Here, we derive a simple analytic formula for the dispersion relation in the presence of loss and show that for some typical materials the maximum wavevector in hyperbolic materials is roughly ten times the free-space. The scaling of the maximum wavevector is derived, and it is shown that there is a universal scaling relation between the propagation length and the wavelength, which implies that the shortest wavelengths in any hyperbolic material are strongly attenuated.

Structural Phase Transitions of Mg2NiH4 Induced by NiH4 Molecular Ion Distortion and Metal Lattice Deformation under High Pressures.

Experimental observations indicate that pressure treatments transform the monoclinic and orthorhombic low-temperature phases of Mg2NiH4 into an unresolved pseudocubic phase even at room temperatures, resembling the temperature-induced phase transformation of the material. This pressure-induced phase transformation is anticipated to involve deformations of the tetrahedrally bonded NiH4 molecular ion and the metal lattice. However, the precise mechanism underlying this transformation remains unclear. To elucidate this behavior, this study adopted first-principles density functional theory calculations to investigate the effect of applied pressure on the observed phase transition. The results revealed that the phase transition from the low-temperature phases to the pseudocubic phase occurs at approximately 8-9 GPa. Furthermore, at this pressure, the metal lattice deforms into an antifluorite-like structure, and the NiH4 molecular ion undergoes substantial distortion, resulting in the alignment of hydrogen atoms along the crystal axes of the metal lattice. Furthermore, through a comprehensive structural exploration, we successfully identified several tetragonal and orthorhombic models that are energetically more stable than the low-temperature phases at low pressures. These models are potential candidates for elucidating the pseudocubic phase observed in experiments. Overall, our findings are anticipated to enhance the current understanding of the structural changes occurring during pressure and temperature-induced phase transitions.

Physical coherent cancellation of optical addressing crosstalk in a trapped-ion experiment

Abstract We present an experimental investigation of coherent crosstalk cancellation methods for light delivered to a linear ion chain cryogenic quantum register. The ions are individually addressed using focused laser beams oriented perpendicular to the crystal axis, which are created by imaging each output of a multi-core photonic-crystal fibre waveguide array onto a single ion. The measured nearest-neighbor native crosstalk intensity of this device for ions spaced by 5 µm is found to be ∼ 10 − 2 . We show that we can suppress this intensity crosstalk from waveguide channel coupling and optical diffraction effects by a factor &gt; 10 3 using cancellation light supplied to neighboring channels which destructively interferes with the crosstalk. We measure a rotation error per gate on the order of ϵ x ∼ 10 − 5 on spectator qubits, demonstrating a suppression of crosstalk error by a factor of &gt; 10 2 . We compare the performance to composite pulse methods for crosstalk cancellation, and describe the appropriate calibration methods and procedures to mitigate phase drifts between these different optical paths, including accounting for problems arising due to pulsing of optical modulators.

Quaternion and Biquaternion Representations of Proper and Improper Transformations in Non-Cartesian Reference Systems

Quaternion and biquaternion symmetry transformations have been applied to non-Cartesian reference systems of direct and reciprocal crystal lattices. The transformations performed directly in the sets of crystal reference axes simplify the calculations, eliminate the need for orthogonalization, permit the use of crystallographic vectors for defining the directions of rotations and perform the computations directly in the crystal coordinates. The applications of the general quaternion transformations are envisioned for physical, chemical, crystallographic and engineering applications. The general quaternion multiplication rules for any symmetry-unrestricted lattices have been derived for the triclinic crystallographic system and have been applied to the biquaternion representations of all point-group symmetry elements, including the crystallographic hexagonal system. Cayley multiplication matrices for point-groups, based on the biquaternion symbols of proper and improper symmetry elements, have been exemplified.

Polarization self-modulation in a coaxially end-pumped orthogonally polarized laser

A scheme of orthogonally polarized laser (OPL) with polarization self-modulation (PSM) in the coaxial end-pumping configuration is proposed in this work. The gain medium consisted of two Nd:YVO4 crystals with orthogonal optical axes, and a quarter-wave plate served as a polarization-switching device. By rotating the electric vector during each cavity round trip, frequency degeneration and correlated operation of two polarization components were achieved. The polarization eigenstates in two orthogonal directions were analyzed using the Jones matrix and eigenequation. The spectral distribution was also briefly discussed based on thermal effects. The results showed that two eigenmodes located at 45° and 135° to the crystal axis, respectively, with a frequency difference equaled to half the free spectral range of the resonator. In the experiments, it was found for the first time that the modulation of eigenstates can be realized by adjusting pump parameters (including pump power, beam size, focusing position, and pump wavelength) and cavity anisotropy, which enables the manipulation of degree of polarization (DOP) and monitoring the resonator properties. Overall, tuning the laser polarization eigenstate offers a flexible method to switch the operational states of the OPL, including the longitudinal mode frequency difference, DOP, polarization angle, etc. It is believed this scheme provides a valuable reference to realize compact, high-beam-quality, and robust OPLs for applications such as dual-frequency light source development, precision measurement and polarization control.

Acoustic and acousto-optic properties of lithium based biaxial crystals: LiGaSe2, LiInSe2 and LiInS2

We present the results of an experimental investigation of the lithium based biaxial crystals’ acoustic and acousto-optic properties: lithium selenogallate (LiGaSe2), lithium indium selenide (LiInSe2) and lithium thioindate (LiInS2). The velocities of longitudinal and shear acoustic waves propagating along the crystal axes are determined for the first time. We have also calculated the values of the six elastic constants cii (i = 1–6). In this paper we present the result of the experimental investigation of the acousto-optic figure of merit. We have measured the acousto-optic figure of merit for the first time in the case of diffraction by the longitudinal acoustic waves. Using the obtained experimental data we have computed the values of nine photoelastic coefficients pij (i,j = 1–3) for each investigated lithium based biaxial crystal.

Accumulation of oxygen interstitial-vacancy pairs under irradiation of corundum single crystals with energetic xenon ions

Single crystals of α-Al2O3 with broad sides oriented perpendicular to the c crystal axis have been irradiated by 231-MeV xenon ions with fluence varying from 5×1011 to 1014 ions/cm2. The spectra of radiation-induced optical absorption (absorption of a pristine crystal is subtracted) have been decomposed into Gaussians serving as a measure of oxygen-related Frenkel defects (vacancy-interstitial pairs). The concentration of all structural defects considered – vacancy-type F and F+ centers as well as oxygen interstitials – continuously increases with ion fluence. Therefore, radiation-induced origin of elementary absorption bands at 5.6 and 6.6 eV tentatively ascribed earlier to charged and neutral oxygen interstitials has been proved for the first time. The concentrations of charged interstitials (in the form of superoxide ions) have been directly determined by the EPR method. The evolution of cathodoluminescence bands typical of self-trapped excitons (VUV band at 7.6 eV) and F-type defects (bands peaked around 3.0 and 3.8 eV) with the rise of Xe-ion-irradiation fluence has been measured and analyzed.

Single-channel high-precision laser rangefinder

The article deals with the construction of a single-channel light rangefinder. At the same time, one of the main difficulties is the presence of depolarization of light, which forms residual light at the output of the analyzer, which greatly affects the measurement accuracy. It is shown that in order to exclude residual light by compensating for depolarization, a KDP crystal plate with the possibility of rotation in a plane parallel to the optical axis is installed at the input of the demodulator.The possibility of using an optical delay line on a single mirror with the possibility of moving along the axis of the radiation source is also considered. The normal to the mirror surface and the optical axes of the KDP crystals are located to the axis of the light source at an angle of 0.7–0.9∘.

Microscale fiber-integrated vector magnetometer with on-tip field biasing using N - V ensembles in diamond microcrystals

In quantum sensing of magnetic fields, ensembles of nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond offer high sensitivity, high bandwidth and outstanding spatial resolution while operating in harsh environments. Moreover, the orientation of defect centers along four crystal axes forms an intrinsic coordinate system, enabling vector magnetometry within a single diamond crystal. While most vector magnetometers rely on a known bias magnetic field for full recovery of three-dimensional (3D) field information, employing external 3D Helmholtz coils or permanent magnets results in bulky, laboratory-bound setups, impeding miniaturization of the device. Here, a novel approach is presented that utilizes a fiber-integrated microscale coil at the fiber tip to generate a localized uniaxial magnetic field. The same fiber-tip coil is used in parallel for spin control by combining dc and microwave signals in a bias tee. To implement vector magnetometry using a uniaxial bias field, the orientation of the diamond crystal is preselected and then fully characterized by rotating a static magnetic field in three planes of rotation. The measurement of vector magnetic fields in the full solid angle is demonstrated with a shot-noise-limited sensitivity of 19.4nT/Hz1/2 and microscale spatial resolution while achieving a fiber sensor head cross section of less than 1mm2. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Sub-picosecond, strain-tunable, polarization-selective optical switching via anisotropic exciton dynamics in quasi-1D ZrSe3

In cutting-edge optical technologies, polarization is a key for encoding and transmitting vast information, highlighting the importance of selectively switching and modulating polarized light. Recently, anisotropic two-dimensional materials have emerged for ultrafast switching of polarization-multiplexed optical signals, but face challenges with low polarization ratios and limited spectral ranges. Here, we apply strain to quasi-one-dimensional layered ZrSe3 to enhance polarization selectivity and tune operational energies in ultrafast all-optical switching. Initially, transient absorption on unstrained ZrSe3 reveals a sub-picosecond switching response in polarization along a specific crystal axis, attributed to shifting-recovery dynamics of an anisotropic exciton. However, its polarization selectivity is weakened by a slow non-excitonic response in the perpendicular polarization. To overcome this limitation, we apply strain to ZrSe3 by bending its flexible substrate. The compressive strain spectrally decouples the excitonic and non-excitonic components, doubling the polarization selectivity of the sub-picosecond switching and tripling it compared to that in the tensile-strained ZrSe3. It also effectively tunes the switching energy at a shift rate of ~93 meV %-1. This strain-tunable switching is repeatable, reversible, and robustly maintains the sub-picosecond operation. First-principles calculations reveal that the strain control is enabled by momentum- and band-dependent modulations of the electronic band structure, causing opposite shifts in the excitonic and non-excitonic transitions. Our findings offer a novel approach for high-performance, wavelength-tunable, polarization-selective ultrafast optical switching.

Effect of a traveling magnetic field on the parameters of doped tellurium gallium arsenide single crystals grown by the chokhralsky method

The effect of a traveling magnetic field on the parameters of Te-doped GaAs single crystals in the carrier density range of 5 × 1017–2 × 1018 cm–3 has been studied. A traveling magnetic field was induced in a melt by a graphite inductor located in the setup chamber around the main heater. It is shown that a high-frequency magnetic field slightly reduces the dislocation density in the crystals without changing the shape of the dislocation distribution over their cross sections. The magnetic field affects the impurity distribution along the crystal axis, almost doubling the distance between the striation bands from 9 µm in the absence of magnetic field to 17 µm in a field with a frequency of 300 Hz.

Designed Spin-Texture-Lattice to Control Anisotropic Magnon Transport in Antiferromagnets.

Spin waves in magnetic materials are promising information carriers for future computing technologies due to their ultra-low energy dissipation and long coherence length. Antiferromagnets are strong candidate materials due, in part, to their stability to external fields and larger group velocities. Multiferroic antiferromagnets, such as BiFeO3 (BFO), have an additional degree of freedom stemming from magnetoelectric coupling, allowing for control of the magnetic structure, and thus spin waves, with the electric field. Unfortunately, spin-wave propagation in BFO is not well understood due to the complexity of the magnetic structure. In this work, long-range spin transport is explored within an epitaxially engineered, electrically tunable, 1D magnonic crystal. A striking anisotropy is discovered in the spin transport parallel and perpendicular to the 1D crystal axis. Multiscale theory and simulation suggest that this preferential magnon conduction emerges from a combination of a population imbalance in its dispersion, as well as anisotropic structural scattering. This work provides a pathway to electrically reconfigurable magnonic crystals inantiferromagnets.

An Efficient and Eco-Friendly Recycling Route of Valuable Metals from Spent Ternary Li-Ion Batteries: Kinetics Evaluation of Chlorination Processes and Regeneration of LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 Cathode Materials.

The recycling of spent Li-ion batteries is urgent, and the effective recovery of valuable metals from spent cathode material is an economic and eco-friendly approach. In this study, Ni, Cu, Co, and Mn were extracted synchronously from spent LiNixCoyMn1-x-yO2 by chlorination and the complexation reaction of ammonium chloride at low temperatures. The kinetics of the chlorination process was investigated by nonisothermal thermal analysis to determine the rate equation of metal conversion, and the apparent activation energies were calculated to be 99.96 kJ·mol-1 for lithium and 146.70 kJ·mol-1 for nickel, cobalt, and manganese, respectively. The separation of valuable metals from polymetallic leaching solution and the regeneration of cathode materials were further investigated to promote the industrialization of the process. The recoveries of Ni, Co, Mn, and Li can reach 97.75, 99.99, 99.99, and 92.23%, respectively. The prepared LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 precursor is a multilayer spherical particle formed by stacking primary hexagonal nanosheets along the (010) crystal axis, the formation mechanism of which was discussed. The effect of temperature, time, and mixed lithium ratio on the performance of single crystal LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 cathode in the synthesis process was investigated to determine the optimum conditions. Compared with commercial materials, the prepared single crystal LiNi0.8Co0.1Mn0.1O2 cathode has a more regular crystal structure and higher initial discharge capacity (215.9 mAh·g-1 at 0.1 C).

Electrical manipulation of the spins in phosphorene double quantum dots

We investigate electric dipole spin resonance (EDSR) induced by an oscillating electric field within a system of double quantum dots formed electrostatically in monolayer phosphorene. Apart from the observed anisotropy of effective masses, phosphorene has been predicted to exhibit anisotropic spin-orbit coupling. Here, we examine a system consisting of two electrons confined in double quantum dots. A single-band effective Hamiltonian together with the configuration interaction theory is implemented to simulate the time evolution of the ground state. We examine spin flips resulting from singlet-triplet transitions driven by external AC electric fields, both near and away from the Pauli blockade regime, revealing fast sub-nanosecond transition times. Furthermore, we analyze the impact of anisotropy by comparing dots arranged along a different crystal axis. The sub-harmonic multi-photon transitions and Landau-Zener-Stückelberg-Majorana transitions are discussed. We show modulation of spin-like and charge-like characteristics of the qubit through potential detuning.

Application of the EBSD Technique in the Study of Porosity and Permeability in Deformation Bands in Sandstone.

Deformation bands are common constituents of porous clastic fluid reservoirs. Various techniques have been used to study deformation band structure and the associated changes in porosity and permeability. However, the use of electron backscatter diffraction technique is limited. Thus, more information is needed regarding the crystallographic relationships between detrital crystals, which can significantly impact reservoir rock quality. We employ microscopic and microstructural investigation techniques to analyze the influence of cataclastic deformation bands on pore space. Porosity measurements of the Cretaceous Ilhas Group sandstone in NE Brazil, obtained through computerized microtomography, indicate that the undeformed domains exhibit a total porosity of up to 13%. In contrast, this porosity is slightly over 1% in the deformation bands. Scanning electron microscopy analyses revealed the presence of grain fragmentation and dissolution microstructures, along with cement-filling pre-existing pores. The electron backscatter diffraction analyses indicated extensive grain fragmentation and minimal contribution from intracrystalline plasticity as a deformation mechanism. However, the c axes of quartz crystals roughly align parallel to the orientation of the deformation band. In summary, we have confirmed and quantified the internal changes in a deformation band cluster, with grain size reduction and associated compaction as the main mechanism supported by quartz cementation.

Multi-axis stress sensing of bending and torsion using nano-diamond NVC fixed on a Si cantilever

In this study, we developed a cantilever-type force probe with a nano-diamond nitrogen vacancy color center (NVC) fixed on Si surface by sputtered SiO2 layer. We explored the correlation between the optically detected magnetic resonance (ODMR) spectrum’s peak shift and the stress intensity caused by the cantilever’s vibration. By adjusting the crystal axis of the nano-diamond and the static magnetic field, we assessed the peak shift’s dependency on these variables. Our results indicated that the peak shift could effectively detect uniaxial stress from standard vibration. Moreover, with increasing vibration amplitude, the peak shift proportionally intensified, consistent with theoretical expectations. For multi-axial vibration involving torsion, we noted multiple peak shifts in positive direction, suggesting stress along the axis. These findings confirm the potential of nano-diamonds on cantilevers to measure multiaxial stress.