Spin-canting in antiferromagnetic transition metal oxides originates from the competition of the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction and single-ion anisotropy with a relatively stronger superexchange interaction. Here we find canted antiferromagnetism in a disordered orthorhombic double perovskite, namely ${\mathrm{Pr}}_2{\mathrm{CrMnO}}_6$. The magnetic structure of ${\mathrm{Pr}}_2{\mathrm{CrMnO}}_6$ is investigated by performing structure, spectroscopy, dc magnetization, and temperature dependent neutron diffraction measurements. The dc magnetization measurements in combination with temperature dependent neutron diffraction measurements reveal a magnetic transition below 95 K, likely resulting from Cr-Mn ordering. Neutron diffraction confirms canted antiferromagnetic order below 95 K with a ground state canting angle of ${38}^{\circ }$ and significant structure-magnetism correlation around the magnetic transition temperature. The canted nature of Cr/Mn moments is attributed to Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction and tilting of the Mn/Cr-${\mathrm{O}}_6$ octahedra, which determine the local easy axes of magnetization. Magnetocaloric studies reveal a second-order magnetic phase transition of the Cr-Mn sublattice at 95 K. The experimentally observed electronic and magnetic ground states are further supported by density functional theory calculations.

We derive analytically, and validate numerically, the dispersion renormalization and attenuation of acoustic waves propagating through quenched disordered media in the long-wavelength limit. We consider weak spatial fluctuations in elastic moduli and/or mass density and compute the disorder-induced self-energies within the leading (Born) approximation. For sufficiently weak disorder, the results depend only on the variances of the fluctuations and are therefore insensitive to the detailed form of the underlying random distribution. For spatially uncorrelated elastic disorder we obtain Rayleigh-type attenuation, $\mathrm{\Gamma }\left(q\right)\propto q^{d+1}$, together with a reduction of the sound speed. In contrast, density disorder produces Rayleigh-type attenuation but does not renormalize the acoustic dispersion to leading order. Molecular dynamics simulations and normal-mode analyses of disordered one- and two-dimensional lattices quantitatively confirm the theoretical predictions.

Ising spin-orbit coupling (ISOC) can strongly protect superconductivity against exchange-field-induced depairing, typically leading to critical fields far exceeding the Pauli limit and continuous (second-order) phase transitions. Here, using a standard free-energy approach, we demonstrate that first-order transitions can emerge in superconductors with weak ISOC under large exchange fields. In this regime, theoretical approaches based on the gap equation fail to determine the thermodynamic critical field and instead yield only the supercooling field. We further identify two pronounced in-gap coherence peaks in the quasiparticle spectra, which represent the weak-ISOC manifestation of the previously reported mirage-gap states. These thermodynamic and spectroscopic signatures remain robust against modest impurity scattering and provide experimentally accessible criteria for identifying weak Ising superconductivity, which serves as an intermediate regime between conventional Pauli-limited and strong Ising superconductors.

We theoretically investigate the magnetic and crystalline anisotropies of the superconducting diode effect (SDE) in proximitized planar Josephson junctions (JJs) with coexisting Rashba and Dresselhaus spin–orbit couplings (SOCs) under an in-plane magnetic field. A symmetry analysis identifies geometric constraints on magnetic-field and crystallographic orientations for which the SDE is suppressed independently of the field strength, providing experimentally testable signatures of the interplay between SOC and Zeeman interaction. We develop a phenomenological model showing that the diode efficiency depends on the relative alignment between the spin–orbit and magnetic fields, and corroborate this behavior in the narrow-junction, low-field regime using an analytical approach that links the anisotropy of the diode response to SOC-induced Fermi contour distortions and anisotropic Cooper pair momentum. These findings are supported by tight-binding simulations of the Bogoliubov–de Gennes equation, which reproduce recent experimental trends. The simulations reveal that electrostatic gating can induce polarity reversals of the SDE in the low-field regime even with only Rashba SOC, consistent with recent experiments, and predict additional reversals for specific field orientations, junction geometries, and SOC ratios. Our results elucidate the origin of anisotropic nonreciprocal superconducting transport and provide guidance for experimentally probing the mechanisms underlying the SDE in semiconductor-based planar JJs.

Measurement-induced phase transitions (MIPTs), characterizing abrupt changes in entanglement properties in quantum many-body systems subjected to unitary evolution with interspersed projective measurements, have garnered increasing interest. Here, we investigate the driven critical dynamics of MIPTs by linearly tuning the measurement probability $p$ across the critical point $p_c$ at velocity $R$. While the Kibble-Zurek mechanism (KZM) has been extensively validated for driven dynamics across conventional phase transitions, we demonstrate that it exhibits discrepancies when applied to MIPTs, depending on the initial states. Specifically, we show that although the KZM remains valid for quenches starting from the area-law phase, it breaks down for quenches initiated from the volume-law phase. Surprisingly, a unified finite-time scaling (FTS) form can be established to describe these distinct scaling behaviors. A mechanism in which the FTS is protected by a driving-induced quasi-steady state is then proposed. In addition, from the volume-law phase, we uncover a new scaling relation of the entanglement entropy $S$, namely, $S\propto R^{1/r}$ in which $r=z+1/\nu$ with $z$ and $\nu$ being the dynamic and correlation length exponents, respectively. By establishing a dynamic scaling theory for this entanglement transition, we not only bring a perspective on MIPTs that is amenable to experimental detection in rapidly advancing quantum computing platforms, but also fundamentally extend the framework of nonequilibrium critical theory beyond the KZM.

Rare-earth-doped oxide phosphors are important for solid-state lighting and photonic applications because their spectroscopic properties are strongly governed by the interplay between local structure, lattice vibrations, electronic structure, and crystal-field (CF) interactions. We present a comprehensive investigation of the structural, electronic, vibrational, and spectroscopic properties of $R^{3+}$ ($R$ $=\mathrm{Dy}$, Eu)-doped ${\mathrm{CaAl}}_4{\mathrm{O}}_7$ phosphors using complementary first-principles density functional theory (DFT) computations and CF parameters (CFPs) modeling approaches. Electronic-structure computations were performed within DFT employing the LDA+$U$ and LDA–1/2 formalisms, while lattice vibrations were analyzed using both DFT-LDA computations and the semiempirical GF-matrix force-field methods. The DFT geometry-optimized structures preserve the monoclinic space group $C2/c$ while introducing local distortions around the substitutional $\mathrm{C}{\mathrm{a}}^{2+}$ sites. The computed electronic structures reproduce the experimentally observed wide band-gap features and reveal distinct differences between $\mathrm{D}{\mathrm{y}}^{3+}$- and $\mathrm{E}{\mathrm{u}}^{3+}$-doped systems. In $\mathrm{D}{\mathrm{y}}^{3+}$-doped ${\mathrm{CaAl}}_4{\mathrm{O}}_7$, the $4f$ states remain well separated from the band edges, whereas in the $\mathrm{E}{\mathrm{u}}^{3+}$-doped system, Eu($4f$) states appear within the band gap, associated with O($2p$) → Eu($4f$) charge-transfer transitions. The calculated Raman- and infrared-active phonons agree well with experiment. The modeled CFPs successfully reproduce the observed Stark splitting patterns and $4f\text{−}4f$ transition energies of $\mathrm{D}{\mathrm{y}}^{3+}$ and $\mathrm{E}{\mathrm{u}}^{3+}$ ions. The standardized monoclinic CFP sets and rotational invariants reveal stronger CF for $\mathrm{D}{\mathrm{y}}^{3+}$ than for $\mathrm{E}{\mathrm{u}}^{3+}$, correlating with differences in local coordination distortions. Overall, the present study establishes structure-property relationships by demonstrating how local coordination distortions induced by rare-earth substitution govern the electronic structure, lattice dynamics, crystal-field strength, and the resulting spectroscopic properties of $\mathrm{D}{\mathrm{y}}^{3+}$- and $\mathrm{E}{\mathrm{u}}^{3+}$-doped ${\mathrm{CaAl}}_4{\mathrm{O}}_7$ phosphors.

Optical vortices interacting with two-dimensional (2D) materials enable unprecedented control over quantum phenomena. Here, we report an anomalous inverse Faraday effect (IFE) in graphene quantum dots (GQDs) under linearly polarized vortex illumination, where the transferred orbital angular momentum (OAM) induces a light-driven magnetic moment. Using our recently developed time-dependent quantum perturbation framework [Xu and Xie, Phys. Rev. B 110, 085425 (2024)], we make a counterintuitive observation: in certain off-axis regions, the induced magnetic moments reverse direction, manifested as currents counterrotating relative to the vortex's helical wavefront. Phase-difference analysis and eigenmode decomposition resolve this anomaly, further revealing that OAM transfer efficiency is orders of magnitude lower than its spin counterpart. Remarkably, the anomalous IFE persists under Lindblad dissipation. This work provides a platform for optical OAM-to-magnetization conversion in quantum-engineered 2D systems.

We theoretically investigate the intrinsic (impurity-independent) spin Nernst effect (SNE), a spin current generation perpendicular to temperature gradients, in spin-triplet superconductors. We show that, in these systems, the SNE consists of two distinct contributions: a direct quasiparticle contribution and an indirect supercurrent contribution. The quasiparticle contribution originates from the momentum space Berry curvature generated by spin-triplet Cooper pairs. The indirect contribution arises from a compensating supercurrent that cancels the bulk thermoelectric charge current. While this contribution vanishes when the condensate has no spin polarization in momentum space, it can be comparable in magnitude to the quasiparticle contribution in nonunitary superconductors. These results demonstrate that thermoelectric spin supercurrent must be explicitly accounted for when evaluating the SNE in nonunitary superconductors.

S-scheme heterojunctions offer a route to separate photogenerated carriers while retaining strong redox capability, but how interfacial chemical modification controls the underlying carrier dynamics remains insufficiently understood. Here, we systematically investigate the carrier dynamics of pristine hexagonal boron nitride $({\mathrm{hBN})/\mathrm{SnS}}_2$ and C=C-doped ${\mathrm{hBNC}/\mathrm{SnS}}_2$ van der Waals heterojunctions using first-principles calculations combined with nonadiabatic molecular dynamics (NAMD) simulations. Both pristine and doped heterojunctions exhibit a staggered type-II band alignment in their static electronic structures. C=C bonding, however, reduces the work function of hBNC, increases its Fermi-level offset relative to ${\mathrm{SnS}}_2$, and enhances the interfacial dipole and built-in electric field. The NAMD results reveal distinct charge-transfer behaviors in the two systems: Pristine ${\mathrm{hBN}/\mathrm{SnS}}_2$ is dominated by hole transfer, whereas C=C-doped $\mathrm{hBNC}/{\mathrm{SnS}}_2$ exhibits much faster interfacial electron-hole recombination than interlayer electron or hole transfer. This change in the kinetic hierarchy suppresses the conventional type-II relaxation pathway and supports S-scheme-like carrier-transfer dynamics in the doped heterojunction. Moreover, free-energy calculations of the key hydrogen evolution reaction and oxygen evolution reaction steps further validate the photocatalytic advantage predicted by the preceding electronic-structure and carrier-dynamics analyses. Our findings provide a mechanistic understanding of how interfacial C=C bond engineering promotes kinetically favored S-scheme-like carrier dynamics while simultaneously improving the thermodynamic feasibility of photocatalytic water splitting.

Understanding the nature of quasihole excitations, i.e., anyons that have fractional charge and fractional statistics, has been a challenging problem in condensed matter physics. Our theoretical approach to this problem has been to consider a quantum dot containing a few charged particles, Coulomb-coupled to the incompressible fluid. The size of the dot and the separation distance of the dot from the incompressible state strongly influence the energetics of the Laughlin quasiholes. Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy studies of this system have previously been able to probe these quasiholes and have confirmed our estimates of the Laughlin quasihole energies. Turning to the Pfaffian state, we now observe that such a theoretical approach is also able to provide valuable information about the Pfaffian quasiholes, viz., the energy dispersion, the charge density distribution, and the quasihole energy. The energy dispersion of e/4 quasiholes derived here clearly reflects the interaction between the quantum dot and the incompressible Pfaffian state. PL spectroscopy experiments on the 5/2 Pfaffian-Laughlin state could perhaps shed light on the energetics of these elusive quasiparticles that we found in this work.

Alkali metals in ionic compounds are conventionally regarded as electron donors, forming the basis of the classical ionic paradigm. Under extreme compression, however, this picture becomes questionable. Here we combine first-principles calculations and CALYPSO structure prediction to investigate K-Te, Rb-Te, and Cs-Te compounds over 0–800 GPa. We find that pressure activates the $d$ orbitals of heavy alkali metals, enabling strong hybridization with Te $5p$ states and significant band broadening, which drives a redistribution of electronic occupation between $p$ and $d$ manifolds. As a result, the alkali metals progressively lose their donor character and evolve toward an anion-like state characterized by enhanced electron accumulation. The decreasing reversal pressure from K to Cs arises from the combined effects of intrinsic electronic characteristics and pressure-induced structural evolution, where the formation of favorable high-pressure structures with shorter metal-Te distances and stronger orbital overlap promotes metal $d$-state participation and $p\text{−}d$ hybridization. These results reveal that pressure-induced $d$-orbital activation and competitive $p\text{−}d$ occupancy provide an intrinsic mechanism for tuning charge polarity in closed-shell ionic systems, leading to orbital-selective electronic reconstruction.

Mobility edges (MEs), which separate eigenstates with distinct localization properties within a single spectrum, play a central role in localization physics. However, one-dimensional quasiperiodic models hosting analytically exact MEs, especially multiple MEs associated with critical states, remain rare. Here we propose an extended quasiperiodic mosaic model supporting two groups of exact MEs. These MEs separate extended, critical, and localized states and analytically determine both the extended-critical and critical-localized transition boundaries. We verify the exact MEs and characterize the three types of eigenstates through fractal-dimension analysis. We further introduce dynamical diagnostics based on wave-packet evolution to distinguish different localization regimes and propose an experimentally feasible realization in a Rydberg Raman superarray. Our work provides an analytically tractable platform for investigating the coexistence and dynamical signatures of different localization phases in quasiperiodic systems.

Thermal conductivity is a fundamental material property that plays a crucial role in understanding the dynamics and evolution of planetary interiors. Despite its importance, the thermal conductivity of seifertite and pyrite-type ${\mathrm{SiO}}_2$ remains unknown. Here, we calculate the lattice thermal conductivities of seifertite and pyrite-type ${\mathrm{SiO}}_2$ using the Green-Kubo method based on molecular dynamics (MD) simulations driven by two machine learning potentials (MLPs) constructed from the SCAN and PBEsol exchange-correlation functionals, with ab-initio-level accuracy. To demonstrate our methodology, we also compute the thermal conductivity using the phonon quasiparticle approach combined with the Wigner transport equation (WTE). Comparison with the Green-Kubo results allows us to quantify the particlelike and wavelike contributions and to infer a possible additional contribution from overdamped vibrational modes that lie beyond the phonon quasiparticle framework. Overall, the Green-Kubo method predicts up to 22% higher thermal conductivity as it fully captures heat transport channels even at high temperatures. The 19% reduction in thermal conductivity across the phase transition from seifertite to the pyrite-type phase suggests the potential formation of a thermally resistive layer in the mantle of super-Earths.

Dissipative systems can exhibit a variety of behavioral modes, ranging from complex deterministic chaos to the spontaneous emergence of ordered structures. A simple example of the latter is Benard cells. More complex examples include lasers, droplet clusters, the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction, and biological life. Of particular interest in the context of the formation of dissipative structures are bistable systems with spin crossover. This paper discusses the possibility of observing self-oscillations of magnetization in magnetically ordered systems with spin crossover. The results of theoretical calculations of the nonlinear dynamics of bistable magnetic systems under nonequilibrium conditions are presented.

Polarization switching in ferroelectric ${\mathrm{BaTiO}}_3$ can proceed through fundamentally different mechanisms—yet the conditions that determine which pathway is realized remain poorly understood. Using machine-learning potential-based molecular dynamics with the MACEField model, we systematically vary supercell size to reveal a clear transition from homogeneous polarization switching to domain-wall (DW)-mediated switching, accompanied by a coercive field increase of over 50%. Shannon entropy analysis demonstrates that this transition is driven by size-dependent polarization fluctuations that promote 180° DW nucleation—establishing a direct, quantitative link between local configurational disorder and macroscopic switching behavior. Additional analyses further suggest that the switching pathway is also influenced by the kinetic competition between DW nucleation/growth and annihilation. Furthermore, the switching pathway and hysteresis response are shown to depend critically on supercell geometry and the relative orientation of applied stress and electric field. These findings reveal that homogeneous and DW-mediated switching are distinct physical regimes in ${\mathrm{BaTiO}}_3$, and that atomistic simulations must account for system size to correctly capture the operative switching mechanism.

The complex interplay between crystal structure and electron correlation in driving phase transitions in ${\mathrm{VO}}_2$, as a function of parameters such as temperature, pressure, doping, and strain, has long been a central problem in condensed matter science. In this work, we present a temperature-hydrostatic pressure structural phase diagram of the $M4$ phase in 8% Cr-doped ${\mathrm{VO}}_2$, based on temperature-dependent, high-pressure synchrotron powder x-ray diffraction measurements using a diamond anvil cell. In addition to the ambient-pressure, temperature-driven monoclinic $M4$-tetragonal $R$ transition, we observe the $M4\to R\to {\mathrm{CaCl}}_2$-type orthorhombic $O$ phase transition with increasing pressure at room temperature. The high-temperature $R$ phase also transforms into the $O$ phase at higher pressures through a second-order transition, where the spontaneous strain in the orthorhombic structure acts as the order parameter. Under intermediate temperature-pressure conditions, several mixed-phase regions are observed. These structural findings provide a robust framework for developing an understanding of electronic structure and the underlying mechanisms of phase transitions in 8% Cr-doped ${\mathrm{VO}}_2$ within the temperature-pressure phase space.

The Born effective charge, a fundamental quantity in lattice dynamics and ferroelectrics, provides a quantitative measure of the linear polarization response to ionic displacements. However, it does not account for higher-order effects, which can play a significant role in certain materials, such as fluorite ${\mathrm{HfO}}_2$. In this paper, we use the second-order mode effective charges defined with the second-order atomic dynamical charges as a measure of the dipole moments generated by nonpolar lattice distortions. Using first-principles calculations, we demonstrate that specific combinations of nonpolar phonons in many oxides can induce strongly aligned second-order polarizations, reaching magnitudes comparable to those of intrinsically polar modes even in the zero-frequency limit, broadening the understanding of second-order effects, which have historically been emphasized for their dynamical effects at specific frequency ranges. Through a symmetry-based analysis of the charge density, we elucidate the microscopic origin of these effects, tracing them to variations in bond covalency and local electronic rearrangements. We also demonstrate large second-order mode effective charge in well-studied perovskites, highlighting the generality of these phenomena. Our results offer insights into the design principles of next-generation ferroelectric, piezoelectric, and multifunctional materials from the higher-order contribution to polarization in crystalline solids.