Short Correlation Length Research Articles

How Thick is the Air-Water Interface?─A Direct Experimental Measurement of the Decay Length of the Interfacial Structural Anisotropy.

The air-water interface is a highly prevalent phase boundary impacting many natural and artificial processes. The significance of this interface arises from the unique properties of water molecules within the interfacial region, with a crucial parameter being the thickness of its structural anisotropy, or "healing depth". This quantity has been extensively assessed by various simulations which have converged to a prediction of a remarkably short length of ∼6 Å. Despite the absence of any direct experimental measurement of this quantity, this predicted value has surprisingly become widely accepted as fact. Using an advancement in nonlinear vibrational spectroscopy, we provide the first measurement of this thickness and, indeed, find it to be ∼6-8 Å, finally confirming the prior predictions. Lastly, by combining the experimental results with depth-dependent second-order spectra calculated from ab initio parametrized molecular dynamics simulations, which are also in excellent agreement with this experimental result, we shed light on this surprisingly short correlation length of molecular orientations at the interface.

Constraints on the intergalactic magnetic field fromFermi/LAT observations of the ‘pair echo’ of GRB 221009A

Delayed ‘pair-echo’ signal from interactions of very-high-energyγrays in the intergalactic medium can be used for the detection of the intergalactic magnetic field (IGMF). We used the data of theFermi/LAT telescope coupled with LHAASO observatory measurements to confirm the presence of IGMF along the line of sight to theγ-ray burst GRB 221009A. Comparing theFermi/LAT measurements with the expected level of the pair-echo flux, set by the multi-TeV LHAASO detection, we derived a lower bound 10−19G on the IGMF with correlation lengthllarger than 1 Mpc, improving asl−1/2for shorter correlation lengths. This provides an independent verification of the existence of a lower bound on IGMF in the voids of the large-scale structure, previously derived from the observations of active galactic nuclei.

Proton transport through interfaces in nanophase-separation of hydrated aquivion membrane: Molecular dynamics simulation approach

We investigate the effect of temperature and hydration on the nanophase-separated structure and proton conductivity in Aquivion and Nafion membranes using molecular dynamics simulation method. By considering two different temperatures (298 and 353 K) and water contents (10 and 20 wt%), our study reveals that Nafion exhibits better nanophase separation and a more mature internal structure of the water phase compared to Aquivion, leading to facilitated proton dissociation and improved proton conduction through vehicular and hopping mechanisms. This study also identifies the formation of a hydronium-mediated bridge configuration that restricts vehicular mobility at low hydration, resulting in a decrease of the vehicular contribution to proton conduction. From quantitative evaluation of the extent of nanophase-separation using structure factor analysis, we find that Nafion has a shorter correlation length with greater concentration contrast in comparison to Aquivion. At high hydration conditions, the hopping mechanism dominates at low temperature while the vehicular mechanism is dominant at high temperature. At low hydration, the vehicular mechanism is significantly decreased due to hydronium-mediated bridge configurations. It is interesting to note that the proton conductivity in the Aquivion membrane is higher despite the Nafion membrane having a higher proton diffusion. We discover that the greater proton conductivity of Aquivion membrane is caused by its higher proton concentration. In general, our findings offer a fundamental knowledge of the connection between nanophase-separated structure and proton transport characteristics in Nafion and Aquivion systems under a range of temperature and hydration circumstances.

Time-Temperature Dependent Short- and Long-Range Structural Transformation in Medium-Entropy Alloys

Neutron scattering experiments were conducted to reveal the origin of diffuse scattering in a medium-entropy alloy (MnCoNi). Results showed that a time-temperature-dependent short- and long-range structural transformation from a face-centered cubic to a primitive tetragonal structure occurs. In the MnCoNi alloy, the long-range ordered phase with a relatively small c/a ratio of 3.7(1)% can only be grown in a limited temperature range, whereas short-range structural transformation with a short correlation length of 1-4 nm can be formed in a wide temperature range. On the contrary, no sign of short-/long-range staggered atomic rearrangement, such as L10 and L12 structures, was observed in the CrCoNi alloy at least at room temperature. The difference in the forming ability of short-/long-range ordering between the MnCoNi and CrCoNi alloys was discussed.

Turbulence and E × B flow correlations across the L-H transition in DIII-D deuterium and hydrogen plasmas.

The isotope dependence of the low- to high confinement-mode (L- to H-mode) transition power threshold PLH presents significant challenges for the initial (non-nuclear) hydrogen operations phase of the international thermonuclear experimental reactor (ITER). Here, we examine the isotope dependence of turbulence and E × B flow correlation properties in the L-mode edge plasma, leading up to the L-H transition. At marginal auxiliary power (near PLH), turbulence is initially suppressed periodically during limit cycle oscillations (LCO) that precede the transition to sustained H-mode confinement. We present evidence that the long-range (toroidal) correlation of the E × B edge plasma flow across the LCO phase is much weaker in hydrogen than in deuterium in the DIII-D tokamak, congruent with the higher threshold power PLH required to access LCO and H-mode in hydrogen. Concomitantly, the time required to initially quench edge turbulence via localized edge E × B flow shear is significantly longer in hydrogen (1-1.5 ms) than in deuterium (approx. 100 µs). No toroidal long-range correlation of the turbulence amplitude is observed, in agreement with expectations based on the relatively short poloidal turbulence correlation length. Radial edge turbulence and flow correlation lengths are longer in deuterium than in hydrogen plasmas as one would expect from 'naïve' gyro-Bohm isotope transport scaling, despite the substantially higher thermal flux across the last closed flux surface in hydrogen before the L-H transition. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'H-mode transition and pedestal studies in fusion plasmas'.

Shape-induced superstructure formation in concentrated ferrofluids under applied magnetic fields.

The field-induced ordering of concentrated ferrofluids based on spherical and cuboidal maghemite nanoparticles is studied using small-angle neutron scattering, revealing a qualitative effect of the faceted shape on the interparticle interactions as shown in the structure factor and correlation lengths. Whereas a spatially disordered hard-sphere interaction potential with a short correlation length is found for ∼9 nm spherical nanoparticles, nanocubes of a comparable particle size exhibit a more pronounced interparticle interaction and the formation of linear arrangements. Analysis of the anisotropic two-dimensional pair distance correlation function gives insight into the real-space arrangement of the nanoparticles. On the basis of the short interparticle distances found here, oriented attachment, i.e. a face-to-face arrangement of the nanocubes, is likely. The unusual field dependence of the interparticle correlations suggests a field-induced structural rearrangement.

Дві компоненти поля зсувних напружень в площині ковзання в багатокомпонентних сплавах

It was found that dissolved atoms in the two nearest atomic planes on each side of the glide plane in the multicomponent alloy CrCoNiFeMn create a short-wave component of the shear stress field in the glide plane. This component is characterized by greater standard deviation and shorter correlation length in comparison with the long-wave component. The long-wave component of the stress field is created by dissolved atoms that are located farther from the glide plane. This component has a correspondingly smaller standard deviation and longer correlation length than the short-wave one. Both components depend on the test segment length of dislocation. The stress calculated for a certain test segment length is actually averaged over this segment. The standard deviations of the short-wave and long-wave components of the stress field are complex functions of the test segment length. They generally decrease with increasing this length. The reduction of the short-wave component is especially noticeable at short test segment lengths. The correlation lengths opposite almost do not depend on the test segment length. The ratio between the standard deviations of the short-wave and long-wave components becomes such that it does not allow to neglect the long-wave one, when the test segment length is approximately equal to the full correlation length of the long-wave component. Two components of the shear stress field could explain the thermal and athermic components of the solid solution strengthening of multicomponent alloy. Keywords: shear stresses, solid solution, glide plane.

Full and Hybrid Multiscale Lubrication Modeling

The numerical solution for the lubrication of parallel rough surfaces cannot be obtained using the well-known flow factors of Patir and Cheng. Nor can it be determined using homogenization techniques. Is there an alternative, besides a purely long-term deterministic way of solving the problem? The present paper aims at proposing a multiscale approach in order to reduce the computing time, specific to deterministic resolutions, while maintaining good accuracy. The configuration is a parallel rough surface slider, with imposed hydrodynamic operating conditions. The domain consists of independent macro-elements, on which the Reynolds equation is solved. Then, the macro-element boundaries are adjusted to ensure global mass conservation. In its hybrid version, the algorithm replaces some well-chosen macro-elements by simple linear finite elements. The results clearly show the potential of our method. Because the lubrication of each macro-element can be processed independently, the multicore architecture of the processor is exploited. Even if the performance depends on the ratio roughness/height, the computing time is half than for the classical deterministic method, with a few percent errors. The work concludes with some recommendations on the configurations for which the multiscale method is best suited, such as surfaces with short correlation lengths.

Nanoscale inhomogeneity of charge density waves dynamics in La2−xSrxNiO4

While stripe phases with broken rotational symmetry of charge density are known to emerge in doped strongly correlated perovskites, the dynamics and heterogeneity of spatial ordering remain elusive. Here we shed light on the temperature dependent lattice motion and the spatial nanoscale phase separation of charge density wave order in the archetypal striped phase in La2−xSrxNiO4+y (LSNO) perovskite using X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS) joint with scanning micro X-ray diffraction (SµXRD). While it is known that the CDW in 1/8 doped cuprates shows a remarkable stability we report the CDW motion dynamics by XPCS in nickelates with an anomalous quantum glass regime at low temperature, T < 65 K, and the expected thermal melting at higher temperature 65 < T < 120 K. The nanoscale CDW puddles with a shorter correlation length are more mobile than CDW puddles with a longer correlation length. The direct imaging of nanoscale spatial inhomogeneity of CDW by scanning micro X-ray diffraction (SµXRD) shows a nanoscale landscape of percolating short range dynamic CDW puddles competing with large quasi-static CDW puddles giving rise to a novel form of nanoscale phase separation of the incommensurate stripes order landscape.

Dissipationless spin current generation in a Kitaev chiral spin liquid

$\alpha$-RuCl$_3$ is a promising candidate material for the Kitaev spin liquid state where the half quantization of the thermal Hall effect, suggesting a topological character, has been observed. However, its relation to the existence of chiral Majorana fermions, which is predicted from the theory of the Kitaev model, is still under debate. Here we propose a more direct signature of a chiral Majorana edge mode which emerges in a universal scaling of the Drude weight of the edge spin Seebeck effect in the Kitaev model. Moreover, the absence of backscatterings in the chiral edge mode results in the generation of a dissipationless spin current in spite of an extremely short spin correlation length close to a lattice constant in the bulk. This result is not only experimentally observable, but also opens a way towards spintronics application of Kitaev materials. In contrast to magnetically ordered systems, a Kitaev spin liquid state is stable even in the atomic scale and makes it possible to fabricate a highly integrated device with substantial efficiency to generate a spin current. This proposal for using $\alpha$-RuCl$_3$ as a nano-scale device will pioneer Kitaev spintronics.

The Strange-Metal Behavior of Cuprates

Recent resonant X-ray scattering experiments on cuprates allowed to identify a new kind of collective excitations, known as charge density fluctuations, which have finite characteristic wave vector, short correlation length and small characteristic energy. It was then shown that these fluctuations provide a microscopic scattering mechanism that accounts for the anomalous transport properties of cuprates in the so-called strange-metal phase and are a source of anomalies in the specific heat. In this work, we retrace the main steps that led us to attributing a central role to charge density fluctuations in the strange-metal phase of cuprates, discuss the state of the art on the issue and provide an in-depth analysis of the contribution of charge density fluctuations to the specific heat.

Non-halo structures and their effects on gravitational lensing

ABSTRACT Anomalies in the flux ratios of the images of quadruply-lensed quasars have been used to constrain the nature of dark matter. Assuming these lensing perturbations are caused by dark matter haloes, it is currently possible to constrain the mass of a hypothetical Warm Dark Matter (WDM) particle to be mχ &amp;gt; 5.2 keV. However, the assumption that perturbations are only caused by DM haloes might not be correct as other structures, such as filaments and pancakes, exist and make up a significant fraction of the mass in the Universe, ranging between 5 ${{\ \rm per\ cent}}$ and 50 ${{\ \rm per\ cent}}$ depending on the dark matter model. Using novel fragmentation-free simulations of 1 and 3 keV WDM cosmologies we study these ‘non-halo’ structures and estimate their impact on flux-ratio observations. We find that these structures display sharp density gradients with short correlation lengths, and can contribute more to the lensing signal than all haloes up to the half-mode mass combined, thus reducing the differences expected among WDM models. We estimate that non-halo structures can be the dominant cause of line-of-sight flux-ratio anomalies in very warm, but already excluded, $m_x \sim 1 \,\rm {keV}$ scenarios. For colder cases $m_x \gtrsim 3 \,\rm {keV}$, we estimate that non-haloes can contribute about $5 - 10{{\ \rm per\ cent}}$ of the total flux-ratio signal.

Influence of spin casting solvent on the self‐assembly of silicon‐containing block copolymer thin films via high temperature thermal treatment

AbstractThe present paper focuses on the influence of different solvents (toluene, mesitylene, acetone, tetrahydrofuran, propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate (PGMEA) and ethyl acetate) on the self‐assembly behaviour of cylinder‐forming polystyrene‐block‐poly(dimethylsiloxane‐random‐vinylmethylsiloxane) diblock copolymer films deposited on thin brush layers of polystyrene (PS) or polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) polymers grafted to a silicon substrate. The morphology and the key metrics for all samples were determined from the analysis of the SEM images and their evolution was investigated, as a function of the annealing time at 310 °C, for each solvent and for both PS and PMMA brushes. In general, shorter correlation lengths ξ are observed on PS brushes than on PMMA brushes. In addition, SEM data analysis reveals that tetrahydrofuran, PGMEA and ethyl acetate solvents promote a morphological change from fingerprint‐like parallel cylinders to a hexagonally packed dot pattern for annealing time tA &gt; 30 s. Finally, the line edge roughness and linewidth roughness values are weakly dependent on both the casting solvent and the nature of the grafted brush. The reported data reveal that the choice of the polymer brush nature and of the solvent employed during the spin coating of the diblock copolymer film could substantially affect the self‐assembly process and requires accurate optimization due to their subtle interplay. © 2021 Society of Industrial Chemistry.

Mapping the surface of partially cloudy exoplanets is hard

ABSTRACT Reflected light photometry of terrestrial exoplanets could reveal the presence of oceans and continents, hence placing direct constraints on the current and long-term habitability of these worlds. Inferring the albedo map of a planet from its observed light curve is challenging because different maps may yield indistinguishable light curves. This degeneracy is aggravated by changing clouds. It has previously been suggested that disc-integrated photometry spanning multiple days could be combined to obtain a cloud-free surface map of an exoplanet. We demonstrate this technique as part of a Bayesian retrieval by simultaneously fitting for the fixed surface map of a planet and the time-variable overlying clouds. We test this approach on synthetic data and then apply it to real disc-integrated observations of the Earth. We find that 8 d of continuous synthetic observations are sufficient to reconstruct a faithful low-resolution surface albedo map, without needing to make assumptions about cloud physics. For light curves with negligible photometric uncertainties, the minimal top-of-atmosphere albedo at a location is a good estimate of its surface albedo. When applied to observations from the Earth Polychromating Imaging Camera aboard the Deep Space Climate Observatory spacecraft, our approach removes only a small fraction of clouds. We attribute this difficulty to the full-phase geometry of observations combined with the short correlation length for Earth clouds. For exoplanets with Earth-like climatology, it may be hard to do much better than a cloud-averaged map. We surmise that cloud removal will be most successful for exoplanets imaged near quarter phase that harbour large cloud systems.

The structuring effect of the alkyl domains on the polar network of ionic liquid mixtures: a molecular dynamics study.

By using molecular dynamics simulations, we investigate the structural and dynamic properties of mixtures of 1,3-dimethylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide, [C1C1im][Tf2N] and 1-dodecyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide, [C12C1im][Tf2N] (also C1 and C12 in short). Such mixtures feature an imidazolium bistriflimide salt with a very short alkyl chain, not giving rise to any nano-segregation as a pure component, with another one with a longer alkyl chain that exhibits a substantial nano-segregation as a pure liquid. As the mole fraction of the long-chain component C12 is increased, the so-called pre-peak of the structure factor S(q), occurring in the region 1-3 nm-1, shows a shift to higher values of the wavevector q, mirroring a decrease of the corresponding correlation length. Moreover, the intensity of the pre-peak strongly increases with the C12 concentration. These results are in very good agreement with experimental X-ray scattering data in the literature. On the other hand, the diffusion of the ions is found to exhibit a simple behaviour consistent with the increased viscosity of the mixture, and these results are also in good agreement with NMR experimental data from the literature. The simulation results are rationalized as caused by a structuring effect, similar to the hydrophobic effect, of the alkyl domains of the C12 component dissolved in the "solvent" represented by the C1 cation, the Tf2N- anion and the C12 cation head. In short, the exclusion of the alkyl chains from the polar network, a process mostly governed by electrostatic interactions, favours the formation of hydrophobic domains, which in turn exert a structuring effect on the ions of the polar domains, favouring a stronger ionic interaction. This is finally reflected in a shorter correlation length and a higher intensity of the pre-peak of the structure factor S(q) as the C12 mole fraction is increased. At variance with the microscopic structure, the diffusion of all three types of ions is not strongly influenced by the nano-segregation and is essentially dependent on the viscosity of the mixture.

Random finite element analysis of backward erosion piping

Backward erosion piping (BEP) is a type of internal erosion that threatens the integrity of dams and levees. BEP has been shown to be highly sensitive to spatial variations in soil properties; however, there are presently no assessment methods that permit incorporating spatial variation in soil properties into BEP analysis. The Random Finite Element Method (RFEM) is a numerical approach for incorporating spatially variable properties into finite element analysis. In this study, an RFEM approach to simulating BEP was developed to assess pipe progression through variable soils. The soil hydraulic conductivity and critical hydraulic gradient for pipe progression were treated as log-normal random variables. Analyses were conducted for a range of hydraulic conductivity and critical gradient random fields with varied spatial correlation lengths, distribution parameters, and field correlations. Results indicate that the probability of failure increases with increasing spatial correlation length. Additionally, increased variance in soil permeability was shown to increase the probability of failure for large correlation lengths and decrease the probability of failure for short correlation lengths. Regardless of correlation length, increasing values of the mean critical hydraulic gradient led to decreased failure probabilities, and increasing values of critical hydraulic gradient variance led to increased failure probabilities.

Short-Range Nematic Fluctuations in Sr_{1-x}Na_{x}Fe_{2}As_{2} Superconductors.

Interactions between nematic fluctuations, magnetic order and superconductivity are central to the physics of iron-based superconductors. Here we report on in-plane transverse acoustic phonons in hole-doped Sr_{1-x}Na_{x}Fe_{2}As_{2} measured via inelastic x-ray scattering, and extract both the nematic susceptibility and the nematic correlation length. By a self-contained method of analysis, for the underdoped (x=0.36) sample, which harbors a magnetically ordered tetragonal phase, we find it hosts a short nematic correlation length ξ∼10 Å and a large nematic susceptibility χ_{nem}. The optimal-doped (x=0.55) sample exhibits weaker phonon softening effects, indicative of both reduced ξ and χ_{nem}. Our results suggest short-range nematic fluctuations may favor superconductivity, placing emphasis on the nematic correlation length for understanding the iron-based superconductors.

Strange metal behaviour from charge density fluctuations in cuprates

Besides the mechanism responsible for high critical temperature superconductivity, the grand unresolved issue of the cuprates is the occurrence of a strange metallic state above the so-called pseudogap temperature T*. Even though such state has been successfully described within a phenomenological scheme, the so-called Marginal Fermi-Liquid theory, a microscopic explanation is still missing. However, recent resonant X-ray scattering experiments identified a new class of charge density fluctuations characterized by low characteristic energies and short correlation lengths, which are related to the well-known charge density waves. These fluctuations are present over a wide region of the temperature-vs-doping phase diagram and extend well above T*. Here we investigate the consequences of charge density fluctuations on the electron and transport properties and find that they can explain the strange metal phenomenology. Therefore, charge density fluctuations are likely the long-sought microscopic mechanism underlying the peculiarities of the metallic state of cuprates.

Disorder-induced coupling of Weyl nodes in WTe2

The finite coupling between Weyl nodes due to residual disorder is investigated by magnetotransport studies in WTe$_2$. The anisotropic scattering of quasiparticles is evidenced from classical and quantum transport measurements. A new theoretical approach using a real band structure is developed to calculate the dependence of the scattering anisotropy with the correlation length of the disorder. A comparison between theory and experiments reveals for the first time a short correlation length in WTe$_2$ ($\xi$~nm). This result implies a significant coupling between Weyl nodes and other bands, so that inter-node scattering strongly reduces topologically non-trivial properties, such as the chiral anomaly.

A quasi-Monte Carlo method based on the Karhunen–Loeve expansion for groundwater flow simulation

To study the effects of spatial variability on groundwater flow simulation, some stochastic methods are proposed in this study. The Karhunen–Loeve expansion is utilized to generate the random field of the parameter conductivity. The conventional and pseudo-random, Latin hypercube, and quasi-random sampling methods are employed to generate random vectors in the Karhunen–Loeve expansion. Various Monte Carlo methods based on different sampling methods are compared and analyzed in groundwater flow simulation. It is shown that the quasi-Monte Carlo method has better convergence and efficiency compared to other methods, especially in cases with large input variance and short correlation length. The Karhunen–Loeve expansion possesses the ability to generate a random field of general type. The type of stochastic input has a great impact on uncertainty in groundwater simulations.