
LNS: Laboratory for Neutron Scattering and Imaging
PhD, Master, Bachelor or Semester projects at the LNS
We offer students the possibility to do their PhD or educational research in our lab. See Teaching and Education for detailed information on Master/Diploma thesis, Bachelor/Semester work and practical courses at the LNS.
News
Hercules School 2021 at PSI
During the week of March 15 – 19, we had the pleasure to welcome 20 international PhD students, PostDocs and assistant professors at PSI, taking part in the first virtual Hercules School on Neutrons & Synchrotron Radiation.
Charge density waves in cuprate superconductors beyond thecritical doping
The unconventional normal-state properties of the cuprates are often discussed in terms of emergent electronic order that onsets below a putative critical doping of xc≈0.19. Charge density wave (CDW) correlations represent one such order; however, experimental evidence for such order generally spans a limited range of doping that falls short of the critical value xc, leading to questions regarding its essential relevance. Here, we use X-ray diffraction to demonstrate that CDW correlations in La2−xSrxCuO4 persist up to a doping of at least x=0.21.
Strong Superexchange in a d^(9−δ) Nickelate Revealed by Resonant Inelastic X-Ray Scattering
The discovery of superconductivity in a d9−δ nickelate has inspired disparate theoretical perspectives regarding the essential physics of this class of materials. A key issue is the magnitude of the magnetic superexchange, which relates to whether cuprate-like high-temperature nickelate superconductivity could be realized. We address this question using Ni L-edge and O K-edge spectroscopy of the reduced d9−1/3 trilayer nickelates R4Ni3O8 (where R = La, Pr) and associated theoretical modeling.
Decomposing Magnetic Dark-Field Contrast in Spin Analyzed Talbot-Lau Interferometry: A Stern-Gerlach Experiment without Spatial Beam Splitting
We have recently shown how a polarized beam in Talbot-Lau interferometric imaging can be used to analyze strong magnetic fields through the spin dependent differential phase effect at field gradients. While in that case an adiabatic spin coupling with the sample field is required, here we investigate a nonadiabatic coupling causing a spatial splitting of the neutron spin states with respect to the external magnetic field. This subsequently leads to no phase contrast signal but a loss of interferometer visibility referred to as dark-field contrast.