We report neutron inelastic scattering experiments on single-crystal PbMg1/3Nb2/3O3 doped with 32% PbTiO3, a relaxor ferroelectric that lies close to the morphotropic phase boundary. When cooled under an electric field E∥ [001] into tetragonal and monoclinic phases, the scattering cross section from transverse acoustic (TA) phonons polarized parallel to E weakens and shifts to higher energy relative to that under zero-field-cooled conditions. Likewise, the scattering cross section from transverse optic (TO) phonons polarized parallel to E weakens for energy transfers 4≤ω≤9 meV. However, TA and TO phonons polarized perpendicular to E show no change. This anisotropic field response is similar to that of the diffuse scattering cross section, which, as previously reported, is suppressed when polarized parallel to E but not when polarized perpendicular to E. Our findings suggest that the lattice dynamics and dynamic short-range polar correlations that give rise to the diffuse scattering are coupled.

The thermoelectric Hall effect is the generation of a transverse heat current upon applying an electric field in the presence of a magnetic field. Here, we demonstrate that the thermoelectric Hall conductivity α_xy in the three-dimensional Dirac semimetal ZrTe₅ acquires a robust plateau in the extreme quantum limit of magnetic field. The plateau value is independent of the field strength, disorder strength, carrier concentration, or carrier sign. We explain this plateau theoretically and show that it is a unique signature of three-dimensional Dirac or Weyl electrons in the extreme quantum limit. We further find that other thermoelectric coefficients, such as the thermopower and Nernst coefficient, are greatly enhanced over their zero-field values even at relatively low fields.

We present neutron inelastic scattering measurements of the low-energy phonons in single crystal BiFeO3. The dispersions of the three acoustic phonon modes (LA along [100], TA1 along [010], and TA2 along [11¯0]) and two low-energy optic phonon modes (LO and TO1) have been mapped out between 300 and 700K. Elastic constants are extracted from the phonon measurements. The energy linewidths of both TA phonons at the zone boundary clearly broaden when the system is warmed toward the magnetic ordering temperature TN=640K. This suggests that the magnetic order and low-energy lattice dynamics in this multiferroic material are coupled.

Identifying what broken symmetries are present in the cuprates has become a major area of research. Many authors have reported evidence for so-called "Q ∼ 0"order that involves broken inversion, mirror, chiral, or time-reversal symmetry that is uniform in space. Not all these observations are well understood and new experimental probes are needed. Here we use resonant soft x-ray scattering (RSXS) to search for Q ∼ 0 order in Bi2.1Sr1.9CaCu2O8+x (Bi-2212) by measuring the region of a forbidden Bragg peak, 0; 0; 3 , which is normally extinguished by symmetry but may become allowed on resonance if valence band order is present. Using circularly polarized light, we found that this reflection becomes allowed on the Cu L3 resonance for temperatures Tc < T < T+, though remains absent in linear polarization and at other temperatures. This observation suggests the existence of spatially uniform valence band order near the pseudogap temperature. In addition, we observed periodic oscillations in the specular reflectivity from the sample surface that resemble thin film interference fringes, though no known film is present. These fringes are highly resonant, appear in all polarizations, and exhibit a period that depends on the location where the beam strikes the sample surface. We speculate that these fringes arise from interaction between some intrinsic valence band instability and extrinsic structural surface morphologies of the material. Our study supports the existence of some kind of Q ∼ 0 broken symmetry state in Bi-2212 at intermediate temperatures. Further studies using a microfocused beam, which could disentangle microscopic effects from macroscopic heterogeneities, are needed to ascertain the universality of the effect.

Most resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) studies of dynamic charge order correlations in the cuprates have focused on the high-symmetry directions of the copper oxide plane. However, scattering along other in-plane directions should not be ignored as it may help understand, for example, the origin of charge order correlations or the isotropic scattering resulting in strange metal behavior. Our RIXS experiments reveal dynamic charge correlations over the qx-qy scattering plane in underdoped Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ. Tracking the softening of the RIXS-measured bond-stretching phonon, we show that these dynamic correlations exist at energies below approximately 70 meV and are centered around a quasi-circular manifold in the qx-qy scattering plane with radius equal to the magnitude of the charge order wave vector, qCO. This phonon-tracking procedure also allows us to rule out fluctuations of short-range directional charge order (i.e., centered around [qx = ±qCO, qy = 0] and [qx = 0, qy = ±qCO]) as the origin of the observed correlations.