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Results for “Quantum Angular Momentum (Spin)”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 37 records · Page 2
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2026

Relativistic collapse of the classical triple bond in the CBi − molecular ion

The conventional framework for chemical bonding between main-group elements involves separate σ and π orbitals to describe multiple bonds. However, relativistic effects mix these orbitals in molecules containing heavy elements through spin–orbit coupling, leaving the total angular-momentum projection (ω) as the only good quantum number. Direct experimental evidence that relativistic effects change the σ-π bonding framework has remained elusive. Here, we probe the carbon-bismuth triple bond in the CBi − anion using high-resolution cryogenic photoelectron spectroscopy, coupled with relativistic four-component Dirac-Coulomb coupled-cluster calculations. Furthermore, even though the CBi − anion is isovalent to the well-known CN − species, we demonstrate that the traditional σ + 2π triple-bond picture collapses into a pure π-like |ω| = 3/2 and two |ω| = 1/2 Kramers pairs containing substantial σ/π mixing.

Kahraman, Deniz [Brown University, Providence, RI ↗
DOE OSTI2023

Measuring the Neutron Spin Asymmetry A1n in the Valence Quark Region in Hall C at Jefferson Lab

The quest to understand how the nucleon spin is decomposed into its constituent quark and gluon spin and orbital angular momentum (OAM) components has been at the forefront of nuclear physics for decades. Due to the non-perturbative nature of Quantum Chromodynamics (QCD) - the theory describing how quarks and gluons bind together to form protons and neutrons - making absolute predictions of nucleon spin structure is generally difficult, especially as a function of its quark and gluon longitudinal momentum fraction x. Measurements involving nucleon spin structure serve as a sensitive test for QCD, including ab-initio lattice QCD calculations due to the advent of the quasi-PDF formalism, and various predictions that diverge at large-x. The neutron spin asymmetry An 1 at high?x is a key observable for probing nucleon spin structure. In the valence domain (x > 0.5), sea effects are expected to be negligible, and so the total nucleon spin is considered to be carried by the valence quarks. The valence region can therefore enable us to study the role of quark OAM and other non-perturbative effects of the strong force. An 1 was measured in the deep inelastic scattering region of 0.40 < x < 0.75 and 6 < Q2 < 10 GeV2 in Hall C at Jefferson Lab using a 10.4 GeV longitudinally polarized electron beam, upgraded polarized 3He target, and the High Momentum Spectrometer (HMS) and Super High Momentum Spectrometer (SHMS). E12- 06-110 provides the first precision data in the valence quark region above x = 0.60, and its preliminary results proved consistent with earlier data disqualifying a pQCD model that excluded quark OAM. Combined with previous world proton data, the ratio of the polarized-to-unpolarized up quark momentum distribution (?u + ?u)/(u + u) remained positive at large-x, and the down quark (?d + ?d)/(d + d) remained negative.

Rehfuss, Melanie↗
DOE OSTI2020

Hydrodynamics of simply spinning black holes & hydrodynamics for spinning quantum fluids

We find hydrodynamic behavior in large simply spinning five-dimensional Anti-de Sitter black holes. These are dual to spinning quantum fluids through the AdS/CFT correspondence constructed from string theory. Due to the spatial anisotropy introduced by the angular momentum, hydrodynamic transport coefficients are split into groups longitudinal or transverse to the angular momentum, and aligned or anti-aligned with it. Analytic expressions are provided for the two shear viscosities, the longitudinal momentum diffusion coefficient, two speeds of sound, and two sound attenuation coefficients. Known relations between these coefficients are generalized to include dependence on angular momentum. The shear viscosity to entropy density ratio varies between zero and 1/(4π) depending on the direction of the shear. These results can be applied to heavy ion collisions, in which the most vortical fluid was reported recently. In passing, we show that large simply spinning five-dimensional Myers-Perry black holes are perturbatively stable for all angular momenta below extremality.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1995

The Duffin-Kemmer-Petiau oscillator

In view of current interest in relativistic spin-one systems and the recent work on the Dirac Oscillator, we introduce the Duffin-Kemmer-Petiau (DKP) equation obtained by using an external potential linear in r. Since, in the non-relativistic limit, the spin 1 representation leads to a harmonic oscillator with a spin-orbit coupling of the Thomas form, we call the equation the DKP oscillator. This oscillator is a relativistic generalization of the quantum harmonic oscillator for scalar and vector bosons. We show that it conserves total angular momentum and that it is exactly solvable. We calculate and discuss the eigenspectrum of the DKP oscillator in the spin 1 representation.

Nedjadi, Youcef↗
DOE OSTI2023

Long-range, non-local switching of spin textures in a frustrated antiferromagnet

Abstract Antiferromagnetic spintronics is an emerging area of quantum technologies that leverage the coupling between spin and orbital degrees of freedom in exotic materials. Spin-orbit interactions allow spin or angular momentum to be injected via electrical stimuli to manipulate the spin texture of a material, enabling the storage of information and energy. In general, the physical process is intrinsically local: spin is carried by an electrical current, imparted into the magnetic system, and the spin texture will then rotate in the region of current flow. In this study, we show that spin information can be transported and stored “non-locally" in the material Fe x NbS 2 . We propose that collective modes can manipulate the spin texture away from the flowing current, an effect amplified by strong magnetoelastic coupling of the ordered state. This suggests a novel way to store and transport spin information in strongly spin-orbit coupled magnetic systems.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2022

Raman gain control in optical fibers with orbital-angular-momentum-induced chirality of light

Stimulated Raman scattering is a particularly robust nonlinearity, occurring in virtually every material because its spectral linewidth and associated frequency shift do not typically depend on phases or directions (i.e. wavevectors) of the interacting light beams. In amorphous materials such as glass fibers, Raman bandwidths are large, enabling its use as a broadband gain element. This ubiquity makes it a versatile means for achieving optical amplification or realizing lasers over a large range of pulsewidths at user-defined colors. However, this ease of deploying the effect also presents itself as a stubborn source of noise in fiber-based quantum sources or parasitic emission in fiber lasers. Here, we show that orbital angular momentum carrying light beams experiencing spin-orbit interactions yield novel phase-matching criteria for Raman scattering. This enables tailoring its spectral shape (by over half the Raman shift in a given material) as well as strength (by ∼ 100×) simply by controlling light’s topological charge – a capability of utility across the multitude of applications where modulating Raman scattering is desired.

Liu, Xiao (ORCID:000000032239762X)↗
DOE OSTI2025

Covariant Quantum Error-Correcting Codes with Metrological Entanglement Advantage

Here, we show that a subset of the basis for the irreducible representations of a tensor-product SU(2) rotation forms a covariant approximate quantum error-correcting code with transversal U(1) logical gates. Generalizing previous work on “thermodynamic codes” to general local spin and different irreducible representations using only properties of the angular momentum algebra, we obtain bounds on the code inaccuracy under generic noise on any known 𝑑 sites, under independent and identically distributed noise, and under heralded 𝑑-local erasures. We demonstrate that this family of codes protects a probe state with quantum Fisher information surpassing the standard quantum limit when the sensing parameter couples to the generator of the U(1) logical gate.

quantum error correction↗
DOE OSTI2021

Gravity Probe Spin: Prospects for measuring general-relativistic precession of intrinsic spin using a ferromagnetic gyroscope

An experimental test at the intersection of quantum physics and general relativity is proposed: measurement of relativistic frame dragging and geodetic precession using intrinsic spin of electrons. Furthermore, the behavior of intrinsic spin in spacetime dragged and warped by a massive rotating body is an experimentally open question, hence the results of such a measurement could have important theoretical consequences. Such a measurement is possible by using mm-scale ferromagnetic gyroscopes in orbit around the Earth. Under conditions where the rotational angular momentum of a ferromagnet is sufficiently small, a ferromagnet’s angular momentum is dominated by atomic electron spins and is predicted to exhibit macroscopic gyroscopic behavior. If such a ferromagnetic gyroscope is sufficiently isolated from the environment, rapid averaging of quantum uncertainty via the spin-lattice interaction enables readout of the ferromagnetic gyroscope dynamics with sufficient sensitivity to measure both the Lense-Thirring (frame dragging) and de Sitter (geodetic precession) effects due to the Earth.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Semi-classical Kinetic Theory for Massive Spin-half Fermions with Leading-order Spin Effects

We consider the quantum kinetic-theory description for interacting massive spin-half fermions using the Wigner function formalism. We derive a general kinetic theory description assuming that the spin effects appear at the classical and quantum level. To track the effect of such different contributions we use the semi-classical expansion method to obtain the generalized dynamical equations including spin, analogous to classical Boltzmann equation. This approach can be used to obtain a collision kernel involving local as well as non-local collisions among the microscopic constituent of the system and eventually, a framework of spin hydrodynamics ensuring the conservation of the energy-momentum tensor and total angular momentum tensor.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2023

Quantum beats in two-color photoionization to the spin-orbit split continuum of Ar

We report a study of the quantum beats in two-color photoionization of argon. An attosecond extreme ultraviolet pulse train prepares an electronic wave packet of definite odd parity, with total angular momentum J = 1, targeting the states between 14.0 and 14.5 eV from the ground state. Two-photon ionization of this wave packet with a tunable infrared probe pulse makes the constituent states interfere in both continuum channels, corresponding to the core angular momenta j c = 1/2 and 3/2, respectively. We analyze photoelectron spectrograms as a function of the time delay of the probe pulse and identify oscillations due to several pairs of states through Fourier decomposition. We observe phase differences between the corresponding beat signals in the two spin-orbit split continua. Comparison of theoretical simulations with the experimental measurements allows us to interpret the amplitudes and phases of ionization signals. Furthermore, we express the observed phase differences in terms of the off-diagonal elements of the short-range scattering matrix and the dipole matrix elements to the continuum eigenchannels.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Simplified projection on total spin zero for state preparation on quantum computers

Here, we introduce a simple algorithm for projecting on J = 0 states of a many-body system by performing a series of rotations to remove states with angular momentum projections greater than zero. Existing methods rely on unitary evolution with the two-body operator J 2 , which when expressed in the computational basis contains many complicated Pauli strings requiring Trotterization and leading to very deep quantum circuits. Our approach performs the necessary projections using the one-body operators J x and J z . By leveraging the method of Cartan decomposition, the unitary transformations that perform the projection can be parametrized as a product of a small number of two-qubit rotations, with angles determined by an efficient classical optimization. Given the reduced complexity in terms of gates, this approach can be used to prepare approximate ground states of even-even nuclei by projecting onto the J = 0 component of deformed Hartree-Fock states. We estimate the resource requirements in terms of the universal gate set {H,S, CNOT ,T} and briefly discuss a variant of the algorithm that projects onto J = 1/2 states of a system with an odd number of fermions.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Machine Learning for Neutron Resonance Evaluations [Slides]

The performance of nuclear reactors and other nuclear systems depends on a precise understanding of the neutron interaction cross sections for materials used in these systems. These cross sections exhibit a resonance structure whose shape is determined in part by the angular momentum quantum numbers of the resonances. The correct assignment of the quantum numbers of neutron resonances is therefore of paramount importance. In this presentation, we describe the application of machine learning to automate the quantum number assignments. Scikit-learn classifiers were trained on simulated resonance data whose statistical properties were chosen to mimic real data. We explored the use of several physics (and random matrix theory)-motivated features for training the classifiers, including the nearest neighbor spacing distribution, cumulative level distribution, and channel width distributions. Initial results demonstrated that we can determine resonance spin groups somewhat reliably. We are now investigating the application of our approach to 52 Cr resonance data.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2023

Spin-textured neutron beams with orbital angular momentum

In this work, we present a rigorous theoretical framework underpinning the technique of spin-echo modulated small-angle neutron scattering (SEMSANS), and show how the technique can be extended in order to generate spin-textured neutron beams with orbital angular momentum (OAM) via birefringent neutron spin-polarization devices known as magnetic Wollaston prisms. Neutron OAM beams are mathematically characterized by a “cork-screw” phase singularity e iℓΦ about the propagation axis where ℓ is the OAM quantum number. To understand the precise relationship between the emergent OAM state and the variety of spin textures realized by various setups, we have developed a path-integral approach that in the interferometric limit makes a judicious use of magnetic Snell's law. We show that our proposed technique produces a complex two-dimensional pattern of spin-OAM entangled states which may be useful as a probe of quantum magnetic materials. We compare our path-integral approach to the well-known single-path Larmor precession model and present a pedagogical derivation of magnetic Snell's law of refraction for both massive and massless particles based on Maupertuis's action principle.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2025

Slow Electron Spin Relaxation at Ambient Temperatures with Copper Coordinated by a Rigid Macrocyclic Ligand

Paramagnetic transition metal complexes can serve as quantum bits, storing phase information through unpaired electrons. Despite their promise, these systems often require low temperatures and tend to rapidly decohere. Recent efforts have sought to improve longitudinal relaxation (T 1 ), which provides an upper limit for phase coherence (T m ), by investigating existing literature compounds with reduced vibrational coupling and orbital angular momentum. However, synthetic strategies for improving T 1 through novel ligand design have remained scant. Here, we disclose the synthesis of a new modular macrocyclic ligand framework with four nitrogen donors (N 4 ) derived from phenanthroline that supports room-temperature coherent Cu(II) spin centers. The optimized complex more than doubles the T 1 over the next best Cu(II)-N 4 compound and exhibits a room temperature coherence time (T m ) of 0.28 μs, close to previously reported values. This performance enhancement arises from a tight binding site with short Cu–N distances, resulting in a stronger ligand field and reduced thermal accessibility of symmetric vibrational modes. This work demonstrates a practical approach to enabling spin coherence at room temperature, a factor critical to accessing relevant quantum bits and biological sensors, through a designer macrocyclic ligand platform.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2023

Magnetoelectronic phenomena due to quantum magnetization fluctuations

The goal of the project was to identify techniques to study magnetoelectronic phenomena such as spin transfer (ST) that stem from the quantum-mechanical nature of magnetization, and utilize them to characterize these quantum phenomena. The first such technique, electronic measurements based on the dependence of resistance on the population of spin-wave quanta (magnons) in a magnetic nanostructure, was shown by detailed measurements to be significantly influenced by the current-driven generation of a highly nonequilibrium phonon distribution by electrical current. This previously unrecognized phenomenon adds to the understanding of current-induced heating phenomena, qualitatively changes the methodology of analysis of current-induced heating common in scientific studies and engineering of current-carrying nanostructures. It benefits the public by providing a new direction for mitigation of Joule heating effects in electronic devices. The project also included quantum simulations of current-induced effects in magnetic nanostructures, which revealed that linear momentum and energy conservation are important for ST. Only angular momentum conservation was previously believed to be important. This finding is important for the fundamental understanding of ST, and for the design of efficient magnetoelectronic devices taking advantage of these conservation laws. Simulations also showed that non-classical ST is dominant in antiferromagnets, which will transform the understanding of ST in these systems. Finally, experimental studies of spin-transfer in ultrathin transition metal films revealed very large non-classical effects which were traced to the quantum origins of magnetism associated in the studied systems with the formation of an orbital liquid state. These findings i) transform the understanding of "conventional" transition-metal magnetism, ii) open a new field of studies in magnetism and a new method for the electronic control of magnetic properties and magnetism itself, and iii) provide a new approach to the development of efficient magnetoelectronic devices.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2023

Novel machine-learning method for spin classification of neutron resonances

The performance of nuclear reactors and other nuclear systems depends on a precise understanding of the neutron interaction cross sections for materials used in these systems. These cross sections exhibit resonant structure whose shape is determined in part by the angular-momentum quantum numbers of the resonances. The correct assignment of the quantum numbers of neutron resonances is, therefore, paramount. In this project, we apply machine learning to automate the quantum number assignments using only the resonances' energies and widths and not relying on detailed transmission or capture measurements. The classifier used for quantum number assignment is trained using stochastically generated resonance sequences whose distributions mimic those of real data. Here we explore the use of several physics-motivated features for training our classifier. These features amount to out-of-distribution tests of a given resonance's widths and resonance-pair spacings. We pay special attention to situations where either capture widths cannot be trusted for classification purposes or where there is insufficient information to classify resonances by the total spin J. We demonstrate the efficacy of our classification approach using simulated and actual 52 Cr resonance data.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS2021

A Study of the Pope-Osborne Angular Momentum Synthesis Theory (POAMS) Including a Mathematical Reformulation and Validation Experiment

This Technical Memorandum records the results of research performed by NASA MSFC under a Space Act Agreement with Quantum Machines, LLC. (SAA8-1519855), signed July 1, 2015. The Pope-Osborne Angular Momentum Synthesis theory (POAMS) was evaluated and reformulated into a form which predicted a non-Newtonian spin-coupled force used to conceive and perform experiments. Rudimentary and preliminary data appears consistent with the predictions of a spin-coupled force based on the alignment of nucleons, but additional research on the theory and experiments with careful methodologies and measurements needs to be conducted. Experiments with better measurements may be realized if effective methods for inducing nuclear alignment in spin active materials can be devised.

POAMS↗