Sensitivity Enhancement of NMR Spectroscopy Receiving Chain Used in Condensed Matter Physics.

Assurance of high measuring sensitivity is one of the most challenging issues for any nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy system. To this end, we propose an accurate noise model of the entire probe-to-spectrometer receiving chain for condensed matter physics, based on the concept of noise figure. The model predicts the propagation of both the signal and noise levels in every component of the NMR spectroscopy receiving chain. Furthermore, it enables identification of the "weakest" component and, therefore, the optimization of the whole system. The most important property of the proposed model is the possibility to find system parameters that reduce the measurement time by an a priori calculation, rather than an a posteriori approach. The model was tested experimentally on several different samples. It was found that the measurement time can still be significantly shortened, down to at least one half of the measurement time, starting from optimized conditions with commercially available components. Thus, the proposed model can be used as a tool for both quantitative analysis of the noise properties and a sensitivity prediction of practical NMR systems in physics and material science.

Solid-state NMR/NQR and first-principles study of two niobium halide cluster compounds.

Two hexanuclear niobium halide cluster compounds with a [Nb6X12](2+) (X=Cl, Br) diamagnetic cluster core, have been studied by a combination of experimental solid-state NMR/NQR techniques and PAW/GIPAW calculations. For niobium sites the NMR parameters were determined by using variable Bo field static broadband NMR measurements and additional NQR measurements. It was found that they possess large positive chemical shifts, contrary to majority of niobium compounds studied so far by solid-state NMR, but in accordance with chemical shifts of (95)Mo nuclei in structurally related compounds containing [Mo6Br8](4+) cluster cores. Experimentally determined δiso((93)Nb) values are in the range from 2,400 to 3,000 ppm. A detailed analysis of geometrical relations between computed electric field gradient (EFG) and chemical shift (CS) tensors with respect to structural features of cluster units was carried out. These tensors on niobium sites are almost axially symmetric with parallel orientation of the largest EFG and the smallest CS principal axes (Vzz and δ33) coinciding with the molecular four-fold axis of the [Nb6X12](2+) unit. Bridging halogen sites are characterized by large asymmetry of EFG and CS tensors, the largest EFG principal axis (Vzz) is perpendicular to the X-Nb bonds, while intermediate EFG principal axis (Vyy) and the largest CS principal axis (δ11) are oriented in the radial direction with respect to the center of the cluster unit. For more symmetrical bromide compound the PAW predictions for EFG parameters are in better correspondence with the NMR/NQR measurements than in the less symmetrical chlorine compound. Theoretically predicted NMR parameters of bridging halogen sites were checked by (79/81)Br NQR and (35)Cl solid-state NMR measurements.

Anisotropy-driven quantum criticality in an intermediate valence system.

Intermetallic compounds containing f-electron elements have been prototypical materials for investigating strong electron correlations and quantum criticality (QC). Their heavy fermion ground state evoked by the magnetic f-electrons is susceptible to the onset of quantum phases, such as magnetism or superconductivity, due to the enhanced effective mass (m*) and a corresponding decrease of the Fermi temperature. However, the presence of f-electron valence fluctuations to a non-magnetic state is regarded an anathema to QC, as it usually generates a paramagnetic Fermi-liquid state with quasiparticles of moderate m*. Such systems are typically isotropic, with a characteristic energy scale T0 of the order of hundreds of kelvins that require large magnetic fields or pressures to promote a valence or magnetic instability. Here we show the discovery of a quantum critical behaviour and a Lifshitz transition under low magnetic field in an intermediate valence compound α-YbAlB4. The QC origin is attributed to the anisotropic hybridization between the conduction and localized f-electrons. These findings suggest a new route to bypass the large valence energy scale in developing the QC.

Two-axis goniometer for single-crystal nuclear magnetic resonance measurements.

We report the design and construction of a two-axis goniometer capable of any sample orientation with respect to the external magnetic field. The advantage of this design is that it allows free rotations around a single axis independent of the other which minimizes rotational error without reduction of the angle range. Goniometer is capable of operating with high precision at both low and high temperatures and in high magnetic fields. To test its performance, it was mounted on the custom made nuclear magnetic resonance probe for use in an Oxford Instruments wide-bore variable field superconducting magnet.

Emergence of superconductivity in the cuprates via a universal percolation process.

A pivotal step toward understanding unconventional superconductors would be to decipher how superconductivity emerges from the unusual normal state. In the cuprates, traces of superconducting pairing appear above the macroscopic transition temperature Tc, yet extensive investigation has led to disparate conclusions. The main difficulty has been to separate superconducting contributions from complex normal-state behaviour. Here we avoid this problem by measuring nonlinear conductivity, an observable that is zero in the normal state. We uncover for several representative cuprates that the nonlinear conductivity vanishes exponentially above Tc, both with temperature and magnetic field, and exhibits temperature-scaling characterized by a universal scale Ξ0. Attempts to model the response with standard Ginzburg-Landau theory are systematically unsuccessful. Instead, our findings are captured by a simple percolation model that also explains other properties of the cuprates. We thus resolve a long-standing conundrum by showing that the superconducting precursor in the cuprates is strongly affected by intrinsic inhomogeneity.