Magnetic torque of uranium dioxide single crystals

ORAL

Abstract

Uranium dioxide is one of the most studied actinide compounds due to its fundamental and applied importance. Recently, we have performed a low-temperature magnetostriction study of UO2 in magnetic fields up to 95 T [Nature Comm. 8, 99 (2017)], and uncovered the appearance of linear magnetostriction, leading to a trigonal distortion and piezomagnetism (the first example of piezomagnetism in f-electron spin system). The unusually strong correlations between the magnetic moments in U-atoms and lattice distortions are a direct consequence of the non-collinear symmetry of the magnetic state that breaks time reversal symmetry in a non-trivial way that leads to the piezomagnetism. The microscopic nature of these interactions, however, remains unclear. During the talk, we will present magnetic torque measurements (up to 35 T) performed on oriented UO2 single crystals. We will discuss implications of these results in the context of the origin of the piezomagnetic ground state in this material.

*Work supported by DOE’s Early Career Research Program (K.G. and D.A.). Work at the NHMFL-FSU was supported by NSF cooperative agreements DMR-1157490 and DMR-1644779 and the state of Florida. R.E.B., D.G., and Y.L. acknowledge support from US-DOE, BES, under Award No. DE-SC0016568 (EFRC-CAST)

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Presenters

  • Krzysztof Gofryk

    • Idaho National Laboratory

Authors

  • Krzysztof Gofryk

    • Idaho National Laboratory

  • You Lai

    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Florida State University
    • NHMFL-FSU
    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and Florida State University

  • Daniel Antonio

    • Idaho National Laboratory

  • Ryan Baumbach

    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Florida State University
    • Florida State University
    • NHMFL-FSU
    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and Florida State University
    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory - Florida State University
    • NHMFL

  • David E Graf

    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory
    • National High Magnetic Field Lab, Tallahassee, FL
    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and Department of Physics, Florida State University
    • National High Magnetic Field Lab
    • NHMFL, Tallahassee, FL, United States
    • Florida State University
    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Florida State University
    • NHMFL-FSU
    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory and Florida State University
    • NHMFL

  • Marcelo Jaime

    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Los Alamos
    • Los Alamos National Laboratory
    • National High Magnetic Field Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545
    • NHMFL, Los Alamos National Labs
    • NHMFL-LANL
    • Pulsed Field Faclity, National High Magnetic Field Laboratory

  • Andres Saul

    • Aix-Marseille University

  • Myron B Salamon

    • University of Texas at Dallas
    • Los Alamos National Laboratory
    • NHMFL-LANL

  • James L Smith

    • Los Alamos National Laboratory
    • LANL