EAGER: Probing Single-Ion Magnets by Raman and Far-Infrared Spectroscopies

在这个由化学系化学结构、动态和机理B计划资助的项目中，田纳西-诺克斯维尔大学化学系的薛子玲(Ben)教授正在开发光谱方法来表征具有有趣磁性的新型金属化合物。目标是了解这些金属络合物的磁性，以便将它们开发成用于高密度数据存储和量子计算的新材料。磁性金属化合物可以比目前的数据存储材料具有更大的存储容量，从而显著节省能源并减少对环境的影响。该项目涉及无机化学、物理化学和材料化学的交叉学科。它特别适合不同层次的科研人员的教育。该项目还将为学生提供在国家实验室进行研究的机会，并扩大他们的教育培训。薛教授的团队处于有利地位，可以为科学界代表性不足的学生提供高水平的教育和培训，包括来自低收入家庭的第一代大学生。单离子磁体(SIMS)由于表现出缓慢的磁弛豫和量子隧道现象而受到积极研究。在离散的SIMS分子中，定向分子自旋的各向异性势垒足够大，足以显示磁滞效应。已经有积极的研究努力来设计/制备具有大各向异性和慢弛豫的SIMs。SIMS中磁基态和激发态之间的大间隔与大的各向异性和慢弛豫密切相关。当磁基态和激发态之间的分离大于50波数时，精确地确定磁基态和激发态之间的分离，以及用光谱探测导致自旋-晶格弛豫的磁-声子相互作用是一个挑战。该项目研究了直接测定SIMS中50多个波数的磁分离和探测磁-声子相互作用的方法。利用磁场中的拉曼光谱和远红外光谱对SIMS进行了表征，表明该光谱可以发展成为探测分子磁性的有效手段。

In this project funded by the Chemical Structure, Dynamic & Mechanism B Program of the Chemistry Division, Professor Ziling (Ben) Xue in Department of Chemistry, University of Tennessee-Knoxville, is developing spectroscopic methods to characterize new classes of metal compounds with interesting magnetic properties. The goal is to understand the magnetic properties of these metal complexes in order to develop them into new materials for high-density data storage and quantum computing. The magnetic metal compounds could have a much larger storage capacity than the current data storage materials with significant energy savings and reduced environmental impacts. The project is interdisciplinary involving inorganic, physical, and materials chemistry. It is particularly suited to the education of researchers at different levels. The project will also offer students opportunities to conduct research at a national laboratory and broaden their educational training. Professor Xue's group is well-positioned to provide the high level of education and training for students underrepresented in science, including first-generation college students from low-income families.Single-ion magnets (SIMs) have been actively studied as they have demonstrated slow magnetic relaxation and quantum tunneling phenomenon. Anisotropy barriers to orientate molecular spins in discrete molecules of SIMs are large enough to display magnetic hysteresis. There have been active research efforts to design/prepare SIMs with large anisotropies and slow relaxations. Large separations between magnetic ground and excited states in SIMs are closely related to the large anisotropies and slow relaxation. It is a challenge to precisely determine the separations between magnetic ground and excited states, when the separations are more than 50 wavenumbers, and to spectroscopically probe magneto-phonon interactions leading to spin-lattice relaxation. This project investigates ways to directly determine magnetic separations more than 50 wavenumbers in SIMs and to probe magneto-phonon interactions. Raman and far-infrared spectroscopies inside magnetic fields are to be used to characterize SIMs, demonstrating that the spectroscopies could be developed into effective methods to probe molecular magnetism.