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Introduction To SR: Muon Spin Rotation, Relaxation and Resonance
Introduction To SR: Muon Spin Rotation, Relaxation and Resonance
Introduction To SR: Muon Spin Rotation, Relaxation and Resonance
Due to the parity violation of the muon decay, the muon emits a fast positron
(electron) preferentially along the direction of its spin
The µSR technique is unmatched in its extreme sensitivity to small internal magnetic fields (~0.1 G)
able to detect fields of nuclear and electronic origin.
As a result of parity violation, the decay electrons are distributed asymmetrically with
respect to muon polarization.
With upper sign for µ+ decay and lower sign for µ- decay.
Asymmetry Parameter
The asymmetry coefficient A depends on the energy of the decay positron from µ+
decay and the decay electron from µ− decay.
While µ+ avoids the positively charged nuclei in the host material, µ- behaves as a
heavy electron and is easily captured into the atomic orbitals.
Because it is "heavy", the µ- quickly cascades to the atomic 1s ground state and
then lose its polarization, which introduces the undesired noise.
On the other hand, the significant overlap between muon and nuclear wave
functions can result in nuclear capture, so the measured mean lifetime in matter
is considerably shorter for the µ- because of the capture by nuclei.
The surface muon beam is always used for the investigation of relatively thin
samples, its energy is rather weak. Muons arising from pions slowing down in the
production target and decaying at rest near the target surface. And it is only used
for positive muon.
Low-energy muon beams
• High energy beam (15-60
MeV µ+ or µ-) for bulk
matter studies
• Surface (Arizona) beam (4
MeV µ+) – Magnetism,
superconductivity, soft
matter, chemistry in
relatively thin samples
• Low-energy muon beam
(0-30 keV µ+) – Thin films,
multilayers, interfaces on a
nm scale
Quantum Magnetism
The study of magnetism is the most common area of application of µSR, due to
the sensitivity of the muon to small fields and its capability to probe both static
and dynamic local field distributions. μSR is able to map out phase diagrams of
low moment systems at very low temperatures and applied fields.
Spin-glass systems
The ability to perform µSR measurements in zero field has been especially useful
for spin-glass systems, which are quite sensitive to the application of external
magnetic fields. µSR provides a full signal even when the internal field is random
in magnitude. This feature often allows µSR studies in spin-glass systems where
the NMR signal is wiped out due to randomness and/or fast relaxation
phenomena.
Frustrated Spin Systems
Low energy muons can be implanted at different depths allowing surfaces and
interfaces to be probed. The energy of muon beams can be tuned allowing them
to be implanted at different depths within materials. Using low energy muons
(LEM) enables us to probe magnetic behaviour at surfaces and interfaces as well
as within the bulk of materials.
Superconductivity
Muons are a sensitive probe of length scales, symmetry and spontaneous fields in
superconductors. The interplay of superconductivity and magnetism on a
microscopic scale is a central theoretical and experimental issue in condensed
matter physics. Because of its high sensitivity to small internal magnetic fields and
its ability to determine the volume fraction of magnetic phases, µSR is ideally
suited to addressing this fundamental issue
Reference
1. Muon Spin Rotation/Relaxation/Resonance (µSR), Jeff E. Sonier Simon Fraser, Simon Fraser
University Department of Physics
2. Muon spin relaxation/rotation/resonance (µSR), Masatsugu Sei Suzuki, Department of
Physics, SUNY at Binghamton
3. Local probes of magnetism, NMR and µSR: A short introduction, Fabrice Bert,
http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/sfn/20141303001
4. μSR - Muon spin rotation, relaxation and resonance, M. Forker, Nuclear Methods in Solid
State Research
5. Muon Spin Spectroscopy, Adrian Hillier, ISIS Facility
6. Muon Spectroscopy: Materials research, UKRI
7. Muon Spin Rotation, Relaxation and Resonance - Application to Condensed Matter, A.
Yaouanc and P. Dalmas de Réotier, Oxford University Press