Scientists at Uppsala University have solved a 24-year-old problem of how different phases form in materials at various temperature and pressure changes.Many materials possess a clear phase transition (i.e., liquid to solid) as the temperature cools below a certain critical temperature but the mechanism behind the reordering of the structure was left unexplained, or called the "hidden order." Extremely small magnetic fluctuations on the atomic level have been discovered that prompt changes in the properties of the material, giving rise to a different phase of that material.
Under ordinary conditions, this magnetic excitation is too weak to affect the bulk of the material. The "hidden order" remained one of the largest questions in the field of material science, as knowledge of the function of these properties can lead researchers to manipulate and construct more exotic materials with the desired characteristics, such as superconductors.
These results were published in the February 22nd edition of Nature Materials.
Source: ScienceDaily
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