Search Results (271 total)

Using ψ(2S)→π⁺π^-J/ψ events in a sample of 14.0×10⁶ ψ(2S) decays collected with the BES-II detector, a search for the decay of the J/ψ to invisible final states is performed. No signal is found, and an upper limit at the 90% confidence level is determined to be 1.2×10^-2 for the ratio B(J/ψ→invisible) / B(J/ψ→μ⁺μ^-). This is the first search for J/ψ decays to invisible final states.

The Fe-projected vibrational density of states g(E) in nanoscale ⁵⁷Fe/M multilayers, where M=Cr, Co, Cu, Pd, or Ag was measured by nuclear resonant inelastic x-ray scattering. With decreasing Fe thickness, the high-energy phonon peak of Fe near 36 meV is suppressed for the “soft” metals Ag, Pd, and Cu, but much less so for the “hard” metals Co and Cr. This effect is attributed to Fe phonon confinement and interface localization due to an energy mismatch between g(E) of M and of Fe.

First-principles calculations on the mechanical properties and structural identifications of the fluorite- and pyrite-TiO₂ under high pressure have systematically been performed by the plane-wave basis pseudopotential method. Our calculated bulk modulus (272–324  GPa), shear modulus (97–128  GPa), elastic constant C₄₄ (40–73  GPa), and theoretical hardness (13  GPa) of the fluorite-TiO₂ show that it cannot be regarded as a potential candidate of superhard materials. Our results indicate that the differences of mechanical properties between the fluorite- and pyrite-TiO₂ are very small, which are at odds with the previous conclusions. In addition, we find that c-TiO₂ in the previous experiment is closer to the fluorite phase by analyzing the high-pressure behaviors of both cubic phases.

The decays of J/ψ→ηϕf₀(980)[η→γγ,ϕ→K⁺K^-,f₀(980)→π⁺π^-] are analyzed using a sample of 5.8×10⁷ J/ψ events collected with the BESII detector at the Beijing Electron-Positron Collider. A structure at around 2.18  GeV/c² with about 5σ significance is observed in the ϕf₀(980) invariant mass spectrum. A fit with a Breit-Wigner function gives the peak mass and width of m=2.186±0.010(stat)±0.006(syst)  GeV/c² and Γ=0.065±0.023(stat)±0.017(syst)  GeV/c², respectively, which are consistent with those of Y(2175), observed by the BABAR Collaboration in the initial-state radiation process e⁺e^-→γ_ISRϕf₀(980). The production branching ratio is determined to be Br(J/ψ→ηY(2175))Br(Y(2175)→ϕf₀(980))Br(f₀(980)→π⁺π^-)=[3.23±0.75(stat)±0.73(syst)]×  10^-4, assuming that the Y(2175) is a 1^-- state.

The decays of J/ψ→ωKK̅ π and J/ψ→ϕKK̅ π are studied using 5.8×10⁷ J/ψ events collected with the Beijing Spectrometer (BESII) at the Beijing Electron-Positron Collider (BEPC). The K_S⁰K^±π^∓ and K⁺K^-π⁰ systems, produced in J/ψ→ωKK̅ π, have enhancements in the invariant mass distributions at around 1.44  GeV/c². However, there is no evidence for mass enhancements in the KK̅ π system in J/ψ→ϕKK̅ π. The branching fractions of J/ψ→ωK_S⁰K^±π^∓, ϕK_S⁰K^±π^∓, ωK^*K̅ +c.c., and ϕK^*K̅ +c.c. are obtained, and the J/ψ→ηK_S⁰K^±π^∓ branching fraction is measured for the first time.

Propagation of electromagnetic (EM) waves in a piezoelectric-piezomagnetic superlattice (PPS) has been investigated. In a PPS, the electric and magnetic vectors of EM waves could simultaneously couple with the identical superlattice vibration, respectively, due to piezoelectric effect and piezomagnetic effect, which results in magnetoelectric effect. Consequently, two orthogonally polarized EM waves could simultaneously couple with the identical vibration, which would give birth to coupled phonon polaritons. Attributed to this mechanism, in a PPS, the propagation of EM waves varies drastically. EM waves perpendicular to the PPS vector can propagate, while the propagation is inhibited along the PPS vector in the original band gap of either the piezoelectric superlattice or the piezomagnetic superlattice. The origin of the differences in propagation is analyzed and some potential applications are discussed.

We report measurements of the atomic form factor of lithium, beryllium, and aluminum single crystals at low-momentum transfers (Q=1.6–50  nm⁻¹) from the intensity of phonons observed by inelastic x-ray scattering. Comparing to Hartree-Fock calculations, the form factor deviates significantly in the case of lithium and beryllium around k_F. These deviations can be mostly understood on the basis of electron redistribution by a pseudopotential. The influence of multiple scattering due to coherent phonon scattering and possible deviations from the adiabatic approximation are also discussed.

We use in-plane tunneling spectroscopy to study the temperature dependence of the local superconducting gap Δ(T) in electron-doped copper oxides with various T_c’s and Ce-doping concentrations. We show that the temperature dependence of Δ(T) follows the expectation of the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) theory of superconductivity, where Δ(0)∕k_BT_c≈1.72±0.15 and Δ(0) is the average superconducting gap across the Fermi surface, for all the doping levels investigated. These results suggest that the electron-doped superconducting copper oxides are weak-coupling BCS superconductors.

Using 58×10⁶ J/ψ events collected with the Beijing Spectrometer (BESII) at the Beijing Electron-Positron Collider, the decays J/ψ→γϕρ and J/ψ→γωρ are searched for, and upper limits on their branching fractions are reported at the 90% C.L. No clear structures are observed in the γρ, γϕ, or ρϕ mass spectra for J/ψ→γϕρ nor in the γρ, γω, or ρω mass spectra for J/ψ→γωρ.

By analyzing the data collected at the center-of-mass energy E_cm=3.773  GeV and below the DD̅ meson pair production threshold with the BES-II detector at the BEPC Collider, we directly measured the observed non-DD̅ cross section of ψ(3770) decay to be σ_{ψ(3770)→non-DD̅} ^obs=(0.95±0.35±0.29)  nb at E_cm=3.773  GeV, and the branching fraction BF[ψ(3770)→non-DD̅ ]=(13.4±5.0±3.6)% for inclusive non-DD̅ decay of ψ(3770). We also determined the cross section for DD̅ meson pair production to be σ_DD̅ ^obs=(6.12±0.37±0.23)  nb at E_cm=3.773  GeV.

Using 14.0×10⁶ψ(2S) events collected with the BES-II detector, the C-parity violating process J/ψ→γγ via ψ(2S)→π⁺π^-J/ψ is studied. We determine a new upper limit for the J/ψ→γγ branching ratio of B(J/ψ→γγ)<2.2×10^-5 at the 90% C.L., which is about 20 times lower than the previous measurement.

The charge density wave (CDW) is usually associated with Fermi surfaces nesting. We here report a new CDW mechanism discovered in a 2H-structured transition metal dichalcogenide, where the two essential ingredients of the CDW are realized in very anomalous ways due to the strong-coupling nature of the electronic structure. Namely, the CDW gap is only partially open, and charge density wave vector match is fulfilled through participation of states of the large Fermi patch, while the straight Fermi surface sections have secondary or negligible contributions.

We have measured angle-dependent photoemission spectra for one-photon and two-photon excitation from Ag(111). The observed dispersion of the sp-band transition of Ag(111) can be reproduced using a nearly-free-electron model for the initial and final states involved. The observed dispersion agrees with the known band structure. We illustrate how the strong refraction of low-energy electrons becomes a limiting factor to obtain quantitative band-structure information. Conversely, low-energy electrons of a well-defined direct optical interband transition can provide a sensitive probe of the inner potential. We observe asymmetric two-photon photoelectron intensity distributions with respect to detection along the surface normal. These intensity distributions can be well described by a phenomenological model which employs the Fresnel equations to calculate the electric field components of the incident radiation inside the sample. Very good agreement is found using tabulated optical constants and a momentum matrix element, which is oriented along the surface normal. In contrast, the observed intensity distribution for one-photon photoemission from Ag(111) does not fit the simple Fresnel model. We interpret this as the influence of surface photoemission. By comparison to Cu(001), we show that the expected intensity distributions of the Fresnel model for one-photon photoemission and two-photon photoemission are valid for an orientation of the momentum matrix element along the surface normal if the influence of additional effects like surface photoemission can be neglected.

The lattice vibrational dynamics of supported, self-assembled, isolated ⁵⁷Fe nanoclusters was studied by nuclear resonant inelastic x-ray scattering and molecular dynamics calculations. The morphological and structural properties and the chemical state of the experimental nanoclusters were investigated by atomic force microscopy, high resolution transmission electron microscopy, and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The measured and calculated vibrational densities of states (VDOSs) reveal an enhancement of the low- and high-energy phonon modes and provide experimental and theoretical proof of non-Debye-like behavior in the low-energy region of the VDOS. Experimentally, this effect was found to depend on the nature of the surface shell (oxide or carbide) of the core/shell nanoclusters. According to the calculations for supported isolated pure Fe nanoclusters, the non-Debye-like behavior appears not only in the surface shell but also in the bcc-Fe core of the nanocluster due to the hybridization of surface and bulk modes.

Using 58×10⁶ J/ψ and 14×10⁶ ψ(2S) events collected by the BESII detector at the BEPC, branching fractions or upper limits for the decays J/ψ and ψ(2S)→ΛΛ̅ π⁰ and ΛΛ̅ η are measured. For the isospin violating decays, the upper limits are determined to be B(J/ψ→ΛΛ̅ π⁰)<6.4×10^-5 and B[ψ(2S)→ΛΛ̅ π⁰]<4.9×10^-5 at the 90% confidence level. The isospin conserving process J/ψ→ΛΛ̅ η is observed for the first time, and its branching fraction is measured to be B(J/ψ→ΛΛ̅ η)=(2.62±0.60±0.44)×10^-4, where the first error is statistical and the second one is systematic. No ΛΛ̅ η signal is observed in ψ(2S) decays, and B[ψ(2S)→ΛΛ̅ η]<1.2×10^-4 is set at the 90% confidence level. Branching fractions of J/ψ decays into Σ⁺π^-Λ̅ and Σ̅ ^-π⁺Λ are also reported, and the sum of these branching fractions is determined to be B(J/ψ→Σ⁺π^-Λ̅ +c.c.)=(1.52±0.08±0.16)×10^-3.

We have investigated the structural and magnetic properties of LaCoO₃ nanoparticles prepared by a sol-gel method. A ferromagnetic order with T_C∼85  K has been observed in the nanoparticles. The infrared spectra give evidence for a stabilizing of higher spin state and a reduced Jahn-Teller distortion in the nanoparticles with respect to the bulk LaCoO₃, which is consistent with the recent reports in the strained films [Phys. Rev. B 75, 144402 (2007)] and proposed to be the possible origin of the observed ferromagnetic order in LaCoO₃.

The structural formation process and physical properties of silver nanowires were investigated via an unbiased genetic algorithm search using empirical potential combined with density-functional theory calculations. Some unexpected structural behaviors resulting from the intrinsic properties of silver were revealed. Two kinds of atomic arrangements, i.e., normal and abnormal configurations, appear alternately during the growth of wire, from which a (111) facet-based formation mechanism was observed. The excellent agreements between theoretical results and experimental observations on the structural motif, Young’s modulus, and shell effects of Ag nanowires indicate the importance of objective and precise atomistic descriptions in the study of nanosystems.

The electronic structure of a new charge-density-wave system or superconductor, 1T-Cu_xTiSe₂, has been studied by photoemission spectroscopy. A correlated semiconductor band structure is revealed for the undoped case, which resolves a long-standing controversy in the system. With Cu doping, the charge-density wave is suppressed by the raising of the chemical potential, while the superconductivity is enhanced by the enhancement of the density of states, and possibly suppressed at higher doping by the strong scattering.

High resolution laser Stark excitation of np (60<n<85) Rydberg states of ultracold cesium atoms shows an efficient blockade of the excitation attributed to long-range dipole-dipole interaction. The dipole blockade effect is observed as a quenching of the Rydberg excitation depending on the value of the dipole moment induced by the external electric field. Effects of ions which could match the dipole blockade effect are discussed in detail but are ruled out for our experimental conditions. Analytic and Monte Carlo simulations of the excitation of an ensemble of interacting Rydberg atoms agree with the experiments and indicate a major role of the nearest neighboring Rydberg atom.

The structural and electronic properties of the arsenic in situ impurity in Hg_1−xCd_xTe (MCT) have been studied by combining the full-potential linear augmented plane wave and plane-wave pseudopotential methods based on the density functional theory. The structural relaxations, the local charge density, and the densities of states were computed to investigate the impurity effects on the electronic structure. The bonding characteristic between the impurity and the host atoms was discussed by analyzing the valence and the bonding charge density. The defect levels introduced by the in situ arsenic impurity were determined by the transition energy levels which agree well with the experimental results. Based on the calculated formation energy, the chemical trends of the in situ arsenic impurity and the compensation effects between As_Te and As_Hg in Hg_1−xCd_xTe have been studied systematically. A brief discussion on the activation model of the postgrowth annealing process of arsenic-doped MCT was also presented.

We study the dynamics of an adaptive coupled array of phase oscillators. The adaptive law is designed in such a way that the coupling grows stronger for the pairs which have larger phase incoherence. The proposed scheme enhances the synchronization and achieves a more reasonable coupling dynamics for the network of oscillators with different intrinsic frequencies. The synchronization speed and the steady-state phase difference can be adjusted by the parameters of the adaptive law. Besides global coupling, nearest-neighbor ring coupling is also considered to demonstrate the generality of the method.

A general relation between the relativistic dwell time and Larmor time is derived by a time-dependent method. It is explicitly shown that the relativistic dwell time is equal to the Larmor time in an infinitesimal magnetic field.

Using 14×10⁶ ψ(2S) events accumulated at the BESII detector, we report first measurements of branching fractions or upper limits for ψ(2S) decays into γpp̅ , γ2(π⁺π^-), γK_S⁰K⁺π^-+c.c., γK⁺K^-π⁺π^-, γK^*0K^-π⁺+c.c., γK^*0K̅ ^*0, γπ⁺π^-pp̅ , γ2(K⁺K^-), γ3(π⁺π^-), and γ2(π⁺π^-)K⁺K^- with the invariant mass of hadrons below 2.9  GeV/c². We also report branching fractions of ψ(2S) decays into 2(π⁺π^-)π⁰, ωπ⁺π^-, ωf₂(1270), b₁^±π^∓, and π⁰2(π⁺π^-)K⁺K^-.

We use inelastic neutron scattering to probe magnetic excitations of an optimally electron-doped superconductor Nd_1.85Ce_0.15CuO_4-δ above and below its superconducting transition temperature T_c=25  K. In addition to gradually opening a spin pseudogap at the antiferromagnetic ordering wave vector Q=(1/2,1/2,0), the effect of superconductivity is to form a resonance centered also at Q=(1/2,1/2,0) but at energies above the spin pseudogap. The intensity of the resonance develops like a superconducting order parameter, similar to those for hole-doped superconductors and electron-doped Pr_0.88LaCe_0.12CuO₄. The resonance is therefore a general phenomenon of cuprate superconductors, and must be fundamental to the mechanism of high-T_c superconductivity.

Determination of the lattice dynamics of Sn at high pressure has represented a major experimental challenge and eluded previous attempts. Here we report the first successful measurement of the phonon density of states of Sn at high pressure to 64 GPa using nuclear resonant inelastic x-ray scattering. We also present density functional theory calculations that are in excellent agreement with the measured data. The results of this combined experimental and theoretical study establish reliable phonon density of states of Sn at high pressure. It makes possible an accurate description of its thermodynamic properties that are of great importance and interest in high pressure research.