Theory seminar: Magnetic Bloch Oscillations

Olav Syljuåsen, UiO

Quantum mechanics predicts that a particle in a periodic potential will oscillate when a constant force acts on it. The oscillation pattern is rather unusual from a classical point of view as it is the external force which determines its frequency and amplitude. Such Bloch oscillations were for a long time controversial, and it took about sixty years until they were finally observed in semiconductor superlattices.  In this talk I will discuss the possibility of observing Bloch oscillations in magnetic materials. In particular I will focus on neutron signatures of Bloch oscillations in one-dimensional anisotropic ferromagnets.