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Register a new userUsing neutron spin-echo to investigate proton dynamics in proton-conducting perovskites
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We demonstrate the applicability of studying the proton dynamics in proton-conducting perovskites using neutron spin-echo spectroscopy, a powerful method hitherto neglected for studies of the proton dynamics in ceramic proton conductors. By combining our neutron spin-echo results of hydrated BaZr0.90Y0.10O2.95 with results obtained from kinetic modeling based on first-principles calculations we show that already over a length-scale as short as 2 nm the long-range proton self-diffusion is observed, and the likely effect of dopant atoms acting as trapping centers has averaged out.
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In this paper we investigated the most important family of proton conducting oxides, i.e. cerates, by means of pair distribution function analysis (PDF) obtained from total neutron scattering data. The results clearly demonstrates that the local structure plays a fundamental role in the protonation process. Oxygen vacancy creation by acceptor doping reduces the local structure symmetry which is then restored upon water uptake. This mechanism mainly involves the Ba-O shell which flexibility seems to be at the basis of the proton conduction mechanism, thus providing a direct insight on the design of optimal proton conducting materials.
Monolayers of graphene and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) are highly permeable to thermal protons. For thicker two-dimensional (2D) materials, proton conductivity diminishes exponentially so that, for example, monolayer MoS2 that is just three atoms thick is completely impermeable to protons. This seemed to suggest that only one-atom-thick crystals could be used as proton conducting membranes. Here we show that few-layer micas that are rather thick on the atomic scale become excellent proton conductors if native cations are ion-exchanged for protons. Their areal conductivity exceeds that of graphene and hBN by one-two orders of magnitude. Importantly, ion-exchanged 2D micas exhibit this high conductivity inside the infamous gap for proton-conducting materials, which extends from 100 C to 500 C. Areal conductivity of proton-exchanged monolayer micas can reach above 100 S cm-2 at 500 C, well above the current requirements for the industry roadmap. We attribute the fast proton permeation to 5 A-wide tubular channels that perforate micas crystal structure which, after ion exchange, contain only hydroxyl groups inside. Our work indicates that there could be other 2D crystals with similar nm-scale channels, which could help close the materials gap in proton-conducting applications.
The onset of 1S0 proton spin-singlet pairing in neutron-star matter is studied in the framework of the BCS theory including medium polarization effects. The strong three-body coupling of the diproton pairs with the dense neutron environment and the self-energy effects severely reduce the gap magnitude, so to reshape the scenario of the proton superfluid phase inside the star. The vertex corrections due to the medium polarization are attractive in all isospin-asymmetry range at low density and tend to favor the pairing in that channel. However quantitative estimates of their effect on the energy gap do not give significant changes. Implications of the new scenario on the role of pairing in neutron-star cooling is briefly discussed.
Background: Spin-triplet ($S=1$) proton-neutron (pn) pairing in nuclei has been under debate. It is well known that the dynamical pairing affects the nuclear matrix element of the Gamow-Teller (GT) transition and the double beta decay. Purpose: We investigate the effect of the pn-pair interaction in the $T=0, S=1$ channel on the low-lying spin-dipole (SD) transition. We then aim at clarifying the distinction of the role in between the SD and GT transitions. Method: We perform a three-body model calculation for the transition ${}^{80}mathrm{Ni}to{}^{80}mathrm{Cu}$, where ${}^{78}mathrm{Ni}$ is taken as a core. The strength of the pair interaction is varied to see the effect on the SD transition-strength distribution. To fortify the finding obtained by the three-body model, we employ the nuclear energy-density functional method for the SD transitions in several nuclei, where one can expect a strong effect. Results: The effect of the $S=1$ pn-pair interaction depends on the spatial overlap of the pn pair and the angular momentum of the valence nucleons; the higher the angular momentum of the orbitals, the more significant the effect. Conclusions: The dynamical $S=1$ pairing is effective even for SD states although the spatial overlap of the pn pair can be smaller than GT states. The SD transition involving high-$ell$ orbitals with the same principal quantum number is strongly affected by the dynamical $S=1$ pairing.
We use a recently developed model of relativistic meson-exchange currents to compute the neutron-proton and proton-proton yields in $( u_mu,mu^-)$ scattering from $^{12}$C in the 2p-2h channel. We compute the response functions and cross sections with the relativistic Fermi gas model for different kinematics from intermediate to high momentum transfers. We find a large contribution of neutron-proton configurations in the initial state, as compared to proton-proton pairs. In the case of charge-changing neutrino scattering the 2p-2h cross section of proton-proton emission ({it i.e.,} np in the initial state) is much larger than for neutron-proton emission ({it i.e.,} two neutrons in the initial state) by a $(omega,q)$-dependent factor. The different emission probabilities of distinct species of nucleon pairs are produced in our model only by meson-exchange currents, mainly by the $Delta$ isobar current. We also analyze other effects including exchange contributions and the effect of the axial and vector currents.
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