Fully funded PhD project available!

Theory-assisted search for novel itinerant magnets.

Our current understanding of magnetism is based on two opposite
perspectives. In the first one, the so-called local moment picture, longranged magnetic order develops owing to exchange interactions between
local moments carried by individual atoms. By contrast, in the
alternative itinerant view, an unpolarized conduction electron sea
exhibits a correlation driven Stoner-type magnetic instability [1] which
leads to a local imbalance of up- and down-spins. While the local
moment magnetism was readily explained early on within a
Heisenberg model [2] using a Weiss molecular field approximation,
the itinerant moment behaviour is still only poorly understood
and a unified theory of magnetism that could encompass
both these extreme scenarios remains elusive. The main
limitation is a very small number of known examples of materials
that are close to the itinerant limit. So far only two ferromagnets have
been discovered that are made of nonmagnetic constituents,
Sc3In [3] and ZrZn2 [4].
Recently, a new method of designing materials called theoryassisted synthesis has been developed. Application of this novel
technique led us to the discovery of the first itinerant antiferromagnet
with no magnetic constituents, TiAu [5].

The project
The proposed PhD project will focus on searching for consecutive systems built of nonmagnetic
elements only in which strong spin fluctuations may lead to itinerant spin-density-wave-type magnetic order
at low temperatures. The project will start with performing a series of density functional theory-based
electronic band structure calculations aiming at choosing candidate compounds for experimental
investigations. Attempts to synthesize crystals of such materials will be carried as the next step. Structural
and compositional characterization of grown phases will be carried at University of Central Lancashire and
will be followed by physical properties measurements at Royal Holloway, University of London, using a
standard Physical Property Measurement System (PPMS, Quantum Design) and an Adiabatic
Demagnetization Refrigerator system at temperatures between 0.2 K and 400 K and in magnetic fields of
up to 9 Tesla. There will be a possibility of performing high pressure electrical resistivity and magnetic
susceptibility measurements using piston cylinder cells and Bridgman-type high pressure cells available at
Royal Holloway, University of London. Where appropriate, additional experiments will be conducted using
advanced user facilities in the UK such as Diamond Light Source and ISIS pulsed neutron and muon source
at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory and Leeds EPSRC Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Research
Equipment Facility.

The PhD project is fully funded for EU students holding or expecting degrees in Physics
and related subjects. Applicants with experience in the area of solid state physics are
particularly welcome. For details on the project or application procedures please contact
Dr Monika Gama: MGamza@uclan.ac.uk
[1] Stoner, E.C., Proc. Roy. Soc. London A 165, 372 (1938).
[2] Heisenberg, W., Zeitschrift fur Physik 49, 619 (1928).
[3] Matthias, B.T. et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 7, 7 (1961).
[4] Matthias, B.T. & Bozorth, R.M., Phys. Rev. 109, 604
(1958).

[5] Svanidze, E., Wang, J.K., Besara, T., Liu, L., Huang, Q.,
Siegrist, T., Frandsen, B., Lynn, J.W., Nevidomskyy, A.H.,
Gama, M.B., Aronson, M.C., Uemura, Y.J., and Morosan,
E., Novel Itinerant Antiferromagnet TiAu, arXiv:1409.0811
(under review in Nature Communications)