We present evidence for nuclear spin-lattice relaxation driven by glassy nematic fluctuations in isovalent P-doped ${\mathrm{BaFe}}_2{\mathrm{As}}_2$ single crystals. Both the ${}^{75}\mathrm{As}$ and ${}^{31}\mathrm{P}$ sites exhibit a stretched-exponential relaxation similar to the electron-doped systems. By comparing the hyperfine fields and the relaxation rates at these sites we find that the As relaxation cannot be explained solely in terms of magnetic spin fluctuations. We demonstrate that nematic fluctuations couple to the As nuclear quadrupolar moment and can explain the excess relaxation. These results suggest that glassy nematic dynamics are a common phenomenon in the iron-based superconductors.

Attractive depletion forces between rodlike particles in highly crowded environments have been shown through recent modeling and experimental approaches to induce different structural and dynamic signatures depending on relative orientation between rods. For example, it has been demonstrated that the axial attraction between two parallel rods yields a linear energy potential corresponding to a constant contractile force of 0.1 pN. Here, we extend pairwise, depletion-induced interactions to a multifilament level with actin bundles, and find contractile forces up to 3 pN. Forces generated due to bundle relaxation were not constant, but displayed a harmonic potential and decayed exponentially with a mean decay time of 3.4 s. Through an analytical model, we explain these different fundamental dynamics as an emergent, collective phenomenon stemming from the additive, pairwise interactions of filaments within a bundle.

The interaction of magnetic nanoparticles and electromagnetic fields can be determined through electrical signal induction in coils due to magnetization. However, the direct measurement of instant electromagnetic energy absorption by magnetic nanoparticles, as it relates to particle characterization or magnetic hyperthermia studies, has not been possible so far. We introduce the theory of magnetoacoustics, predicting the existence of second harmonic pressure waves from magnetic nanoparticles due to energy absorption from continuously modulated alternating magnetic fields. We then describe the first magnetoacoustic system reported, based on a fiber-interferometer pressure detector, necessary for avoiding electric interference. The magnetoacoustic system confirmed the existence of previously unobserved second harmonic magnetoacoustic responses from solids, magnetic nanoparticles, and nanoparticle-loaded cells, exposed to continuous wave magnetic fields at different frequencies. We discuss how magnetoacoustic signals can be employed as a nanoparticle or magnetic field sensor for biomedical and environmental applications.

Recent studies show that spherical motile microorganisms in turbulence subject to gravitational torques gather in down-welling regions of the turbulent flow. By analyzing a statistical model we analytically compute how shape affects the dynamics, preferential sampling, and small-scale spatial clustering. We find that oblong organisms may spend more time in up-welling regions of the flow, and that all organisms are biased to regions of positive fluid-velocity gradients in the upward direction. We analyze small-scale spatial clustering and find that oblong particles may either cluster more or less than spherical ones, depending on the strength of the gravitational torques.

Multiplex networks are representations of multilayer interconnected complex networks where the nodes are the same at every layer. They turn out to be good abstractions of the intricate connectivity of multimodal transportation networks, among other types of complex systems. One of the most important critical phenomena arising in such networks is the emergence of congestion in transportation flows. Here, we prove analytically that the structure of multiplex networks can induce congestion for flows that otherwise would be decongested if the individual layers were not interconnected. We provide explicit equations for the onset of congestion and approximations that allow us to compute this onset from individual descriptors of the individual layers. The observed cooperative phenomenon is reminiscent of Braess’ paradox in which adding extra capacity to a network when the moving entities selfishly choose their route can in some cases reduce overall performance. Similarly, in the multiplex structure, the efficiency in transportation can unbalance the transportation loads resulting in unexpected congestion.

We study quantum quenches between integrable and nonintegrable hard-core boson models in the thermodynamic limit with numerical linked cluster expansions. We show that while quenches in which the initial state is a thermal equilibrium state of an integrable model and the final Hamiltonian is nonintegrable (quantum chaotic) lead to thermalization, the reverse is not true. While this might appear counterintuitive given the fact that the eigenstates of both Hamiltonians are related by a unitary transformation, we argue that it is generic. Hence, the lack of thermalization of integrable systems is robust against quenches starting from stationary states of nonintegrable ones. Nonintegrable systems thermalize independently of the nature of the initial Hamiltonian.

A weighted difference of the $g$ factors of the H- and Li-like ions of the same element is theoretically studied and optimized in order to maximize the cancellation of nuclear effects between the two charge states. We show that this weighted difference and its combination for two different elements can be used to extract a value for the fine-structure constant from near-future bound-electron $g$ factor experiments with an accuracy competitive with or better than the present literature value.

We present a parameter estimation technique based on performing joint measurements of a weak interaction away from the weak-value-amplification approximation. Two detectors are used to collect full statistics of the correlations between two weakly entangled degrees of freedom. Without discarding of data, the protocol resembles the anomalous amplification of an imaginary-weak-value-like response. The amplification is induced in the difference signal of both detectors allowing robustness to different sources of technical noise, and offering in addition the advantages of balanced signals for precision metrology. All of the Fisher information about the parameter of interest is collected. A tunable phase controls the strength of the amplification response. We experimentally demonstrate the proposed technique by measuring polarization rotations in a linearly polarized laser pulse. We show that in the presence of technical noise the effective sensitivity and precision of a split detector is increased when compared to a conventional continuous-wave balanced detection technique.

The unbound nucleus ${}^{26}\mathrm{O}$ has been investigated using invariant-mass spectroscopy following one-proton removal reaction from a ${}^{27}\mathrm{F}$ beam at $201\mathrm{MeV}/\mathrm{nucleon}$. The decay products, ${}^{24}\mathrm{O}$ and two neutrons, were detected in coincidence using the newly commissioned SAMURAI spectrometer at the RIKEN Radioactive Isotope Beam Factory. The ${}^{26}\mathrm{O}$ ground-state resonance was found to lie only $18\pm 3(\mathrm{stat})\pm 4(\mathrm{syst})\mathrm{keV}$ above threshold. In addition, a higher lying level, which is most likely the first $2^{+}$ state, was observed for the first time at ${1.28}_{-0.08}^{+0.11}\mathrm{MeV}$ above threshold. Comparison with theoretical predictions suggests that three-nucleon forces, $pf$-shell intruder configurations, and the continuum are key elements to understanding the structure of the most neutron-rich oxygen isotopes beyond the drip line.

We have studied, for the first time by electron spectroscopy, the Auger decay of the $4d\to nf$ ($n=4,5$) resonances in ${\mathrm{Xe}}^{5+}$ ion. By detecting in coincidence the Auger electrons with the resulting ${\mathrm{Xe}}^{6+}$ ions, we unravel the contribution of the different final ionic states to the total cross section measured by ion spectroscopy. A strong intensity of $5s5p$ satellite lines has been observed, up to 4 times stronger than the $5s^2$ main lines. This unexpected behavior is confirmed by multiconfiguration Dirac-Fock calculations. This technique provides the most stringent test for theoretical models and allows us to disentangle the contribution of ions in the ground and metastable states in the target beam.

We experimentally demonstrate the coherent control, i.e., phase-dependent enhancement and suppression, of the optical absorption in an array of metallic nanoantennas covered by a thin luminescent layer. The coherent control is achieved by using two collinear, counterpropagating, and phase-controlled incident waves with wavelength matching the absorption spectrum of dye molecules coupled to the array. Symmetry arguments shed light on the relation between the relative phase of the incident waves and the excitation efficiency of the optical resonances of the system. This coherent control is associated with a phase-dependent distribution of the electromagnetic near fields in the structure which enables a significant reduction of the unwanted dissipation in the metallic structures.

Enhancing the optical cross section is an enticing goal in light-matter interactions, due to its fundamental role in quantum and nonlinear optics. Here, we show how dipolar interactions can suppress off-axis scattering in a two-dimensional atomic array, leading to a subradiant collective mode where the optical cross section is enhanced by almost an order of magnitude. As a consequence, it is possible to attain an optical depth which implies high-fidelity extinction, from a monolayer. Using realistic experimental parameters, we also model how lattice vacancies and the atomic trapping depth affect the transmission, concluding that such high extinction should be possible, using current experimental techniques.

Plasma blob dynamics on the high-field side in the proximity of a magnetic field null ($X$ point) is investigated in TORPEX. A significant acceleration of the blobs towards the $X$ point is observed. Close to the $X$ point the blobs break apart. The $\mathbf{E}\times \mathbf{B}$ drifts associated with the blobs are measured, isolating the background drift component from the fluctuating contribution of the blob internal potential dipole. The time evolution of the latter is consistent with the fast blob dynamics. An analytical model based on charge conservation is derived for the potential dipole, including ion polarization, diamagnetic, and parallel currents. In the vicinity of the $X$ point, a crucial role in determining the blob motion is played by the decrease of the poloidal magnetic field intensity. This variation increases the connection length that short circuits the potential dipole of the blob. Good quantitative agreement is found between the model and the experimental data in the initial accelerating phase of the blob dynamics.

One of the most important predictions in magnetohydrodynamics is that in the presence of a uniform magnetic field $b_0{\widehat{\mathbf{e}}}_{\parallel }$ a transition from weak to strong wave turbulence should occur when going from large to small perpendicular scales. This transition is believed to be a universal property of several anisotropic turbulent systems. We present, for the first time, direct evidence of such a transition using a decaying three-dimensional direct numerical simulation of incompressible balanced magnetohydrodynamic turbulence with a grid resolution of ${3072}^2\times 256$. From large to small scales, the change of regime is characterized by (i) a change of slope in the energy spectrum going from approximately $-2$ to $-3/2$, (ii) an increase of the ratio between the wave and nonlinear times, with a critical ratio of ${\chi }_c\sim 1/3$, (iii) a modification of the isocontours of energy revealing a transition from a purely perpendicular cascade to a cascade compatible with the critical-balance-type phenomenology, and (iv) an absence followed by a dramatic increase of the communication between Alfvén modes. The changes happen at approximately the same transition scale and can be seen as manifest signatures of the transition from weak to strong wave turbulence. Furthermore, we observe a significant nonlocal three-wave coupling between strongly and weakly nonlinear modes resulting in an inverse transfer of energy from small to large scales.

The recent realization that Sweet-Parker current sheets are violently unstable to the secondary tearing (plasmoid) instability implies that such current sheets cannot occur in real systems. This suggests that, in order to understand the onset of magnetic reconnection, one needs to consider the growth of the tearing instability in a current layer as it is being formed. Such an analysis is performed here in the context of nonlinear resistive magnetohydrodynamics for a generic time-dependent equilibrium representing a gradually forming current sheet. It is shown that two onset regimes, single-island and multi-island, are possible, depending on the rate of current sheet formation. A simple model is used to compute the criterion for transition between these two regimes, as well as the reconnection onset time and the current sheet parameters at that moment. For typical solar corona parameters, this model yields results consistent with observations.

We present practical methods to measure entanglement for quantum simulators that can be realized with trapped ions, cold atoms, and superconducting qubits. Focusing on long- and short-range Ising-type Hamiltonians, we introduce schemes that are applicable under realistic experimental conditions including mixedness due to, e.g., noise or temperature. In particular, we identify a single observable whose expectation value serves as a lower bound to entanglement and that may be obtained by a simple quantum circuit. As such circuits are not (yet) available for every platform, we investigate the performance of routinely measured observables as quantitative entanglement witnesses. Possible applications include experimental studies of entanglement scaling in critical systems and the reliable benchmarking of quantum simulators.

Using extended time series scanning transmission electron microscopy, we investigate structural fluctuations at an incommensurate grain boundary in Au. Atomic-resolution imaging reveals the coalescence of two interfacial steps, or disconnections, of different height via coordinated motion of atoms along close-packed directions. Numerical simulations uncover a transition pathway that involves constriction and expansion of a characteristic stacking fault often associated with grain boundaries in face-centered cubic materials. It is found that local atomic fluctuations by enhanced point defect diffusion may play a critical role in initiating this transition. Our results offer new insights into the collective motion of atoms underlying the lateral advance of steps that control the migration of faceted grain boundaries.

To confirm the existence of the carrier multiplication (CM) effect and estimate its generation efficiency of multiple excitons in semiconductor nanocrystals (NCs), it is imperative to completely exclude the false contribution of charged excitons from the measured CM signal. Here we place single CdSe NCs above an aluminum film and successfully resolve their UV-excited photoluminescence (PL) time trajectories where the true and false CM signals are contained in the blinking “on” and “off” levels, respectively. By analyzing the PL dynamics of the on-level photons, an average CM efficiency of $\sim 20.2\%$ can be reliably estimated when the UV photon energy is $\sim 2.46$ times the NC energy gap.