Near absolute zero, this bulk thermodynamic quantity is a sensitive probe of the low energy excitations of a complex quantum system. Such low energy excitations contain useful information about the nature of the ground state. For the canonical example of an ordinary (so-called ‟Fermi liquid‟) metal, the electronic charge-carrying quasiparticles) component of specific heat vanishes linearly with temperature and the lattice vibration (phonon) component vanishes as T3. The two different power-laws ultimately arise from the different quantum statistics of electrons (fermions) and phonons (bosons).
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https://nationalmaglab.org/user-facilities/dc-field/dcfield-techniques/heat-capacity-dc#sigProIda7313076af
Instrumentation
Resistive Magnets
- 35 Tesla, cell 12 (Relaxation Technique)
- 35 T 3He system & VTI (Relaxation Technique -- VTI only)
- The relaxation technique is a completely home built set-up. The user will work the research faculty member in data acquisition, and mounting of their sample to the custom built high field calibrated calorimeters.
Related Publications
Kemper et al, Thermodynamic signature of a magnetic-field-driven phase transition within the superconducting state of an underdoped high-temperature superconductor, arXiv:1403.3702 (2014). Read online
Riggs et al, Heat capacity through the magnetic-field-induced resistive transition in an underdoped high-temperature superconductor, Nature Physics 7, 332-335 (2011). Read online
Riggs et al, Magnetic ordering of the RE lattice in REFeAsO: the odd case of Sm. A specific heat investigation in high magnetic field, Phys. Rev. B., 214404 (2009). Read online