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The Super $\tau$-Charm facility (STCF) is an electron-positron collider proposed by the Chinese particle physics community. It is designed to operate in a center-of-mass energy range from 2 to 7 GeV with a peak luminosity of $0.5\times 10^{35}{\rm cm}^{-2}{\rm s}^{-1}$ or higher. The STCF will produce a data sample about a factor of 100 larger than that by the present $\tau$-Charm factory -- the BEPCII, providing a unique platform for exploring the asymmetry of matter-antimatter (charge-parity violation), in-depth studies of the internal structure of hadrons and the nature of non-perturbative strong interactions, as well as searching for exotic hadrons and physics beyond the Standard Model. The STCF project in China is under development with an extensive R\&D program. This document presents the physics opportunities at the STCF, describes conceptual designs of the STCF detector system, and discusses future plans for detector R\&D and physics case studies.

Nuclear properties across the chart of nuclides are key to improving and validating our understanding of the strong interaction in nuclear physics. We present high-precision mass measurements of neutron-rich Fe isotopes performed at the TITAN facility. The multiple-reflection time-of-flight mass spectrometer (MR-ToF-MS), achieving a resolving power greater than $600\,000$ for the first time, enabled the measurement of $^{63-70}$Fe, including first-time high-precision direct measurements ($\delta m/m \sim 10^{-7}$) of $^{68-70}$Fe, as well as the discovery of a long-lived isomeric state in $^{69}$Fe. These measurements are accompanied by both mean-field and ab initio calculations using the most recent realizations which enable theoretical assignment of the spin-parities of the $^{69}$Fe ground and isomeric states. Together with mean-field calculations of quadrupole deformation parameters for the Fe isotope chain, these results benchmark a maximum of deformation in the $N = 40$ island of inversion in Fe, and shed light on trends in level densities indicated in the newly-refined mass surface., Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures

Spin angular momentum transfer in magnetic bilayers offers the possibility of ultrafast and low-loss operation for next-generation spintronic devices. We report the field- and temperature- dependent measurements on the magnetization precessions in Co$_2$FeAl/(Ga,Mn)As by time-resolved magneto-optical Kerr effect (TRMOKE). Analysis of the effective Gilbert damping and phase shift indicates a clear signature of an enhanced dynamic exchange coupling between the two ferromagnetic (FM) layers due to the reinforced spin pumping at resonance. The temperature dependence of the dynamic exchange-coupling reveals a primary contribution from the ferromagnetism in (Ga,Mn)As., Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:2203.00293

Fast spin manipulation in magnetic heterostructures, where magnetic interactions between different materials often define the functionality of devices, is a key issue in the development of ultrafast spintronics. Although recently developed optical approaches such as ultrafast spin-transfer and spin-orbit torques open new pathways to fast spin manipulation, these processes do not fully utilize the unique possibilities offered by interfacial magnetic coupling effects in ferromagnetic multilayer systems. Here, we experimentally demonstrate ultrafast photo-enhanced interfacial exchange interactions in the ferromagnetic Co$_2$FeAl/(Ga,Mn)As system at low laser fluence levels. The excitation efficiency of Co$_2$FeAl with the (Ga,Mn)As layer is 30-40 times higher than the case with the GaAs layer at 5 K due to a photo-enhanced exchange coupling interaction via photoexcited charge transfer between the two ferromagnetic layers. In addition, the coherent spin precessions persist to room temperature, excluding the drive of photo-enhanced magnetization in the (Ga,Mn)As layer and indicating a proximity-effect-related optical excitation mechanism. The results highlight the importance of considering the range of interfacial exchange interactions in ferromagnetic heterostructures and how these magnetic coupling effects can be utilized for ultrafast, low-power spin manipulation.

Precession is a unique motion in which the orientation of the rotational axis of a rotating body is not fixed but moving, and it generally exists in the Universe from giant stars through tiny atomic nuclei. In principle, the precession of an atomic nuclide can be approximately described as wobbling motion, arising from the coupling of a rotation and a harmonic vibration. Recently, a number of wobbling bands were reported at low spin, which violate the wobbling approximation that can be valid only at high spin. Here we explore the nature of the reported low-spin wobbling bands. Via a new experiment, we demonstrate that one such band in $^{187}$Au is generated by dominant single-particle excitation rather than by the excitation of a wobbling phonon. We point out that the imperfect research paradigm used previously would lead to unreliable identification of low-spin wobbling bands. Consequently, new experimental approaches should be developed to distinguish among the different excitation mechanisms that can give rise to the observed low-spin bands in odd-even nuclei.

Single-phase Ni0.46Mn0.54As films with strained C1b symmetry have been successfully grown on GaAs (001) substrates by molecular-beam epitaxy. The epitaxial relationship between the film and the substrate has been studied using synchrotron radiation, and a preferred configuration of (110)-orientated Ni0.46Mn0.54As on (001)-orientated GaAs was revealed. In addition, the magnetic properties of the films were found to be significantly influenced by the growth temperature. The optimized growth temperature is determined to be ~370 degree Celsius , for which relatively high Curie temperature, large saturation magnetization and coercive field, as well as the pronounced in-plane magnetic anisotropy were obtained. According to the results of X-ray absorption spectroscopy, the above phenomenon can be attributed to the variation of the local electronic structure of the Mn atoms. Our work provides useful information for the further investigations of NiMnAs, which is theoretically predicted to host robust half-metallicity.

B20 phase magnetic materials, such as FeGe, have been of significant interests in recent years because they enable magnetic skyrmions, which can potentially lead to low energy cost spintronic applications. One major effort in this emerging field is the stabilization of skyrmions at room temperature and zero external magnetic field. We report the growth of phase-pure FeGe epitaxial thin films on Si(111) substrates by ultrahigh vacuum off-axis sputtering. The high crystalline quality of the FeGe films was confirmed by x-ray diffraction and scanning transmission electron microscopy. Hall effect measurements reveal strong topological Hall effect after subtracting out the ordinary and anomalous Hall effects, demonstrating the formation of high density skyrmions in FeGe films between 5 and 275 K. In particular, substantial topological Hall effect was observed at zero magnetic field, showing a robust skyrmion phase without the need of an external magnetic field.

We report on the magneto-transport properties of chemical vapor deposition grown films of interconnected Bi2Te3 nanoplates. Similar to many other topological insulator (TI) materials, these granular Bi2Te3 films exhibit a linear magneto-resistance (LMR) effect which has received much recent attention. Studying samples with different degree of granularity, we find a universal correlation between the magnitude of the LMR and the average mobility (<\mu>) of the films over nearly two orders of magnitude change of <\mu>. The granularity controlled LMR effect here is attributed to the mobility fluctuation induced classical LMR according to the Parish-Littlewood theory. These findings have implications to both the fundamental understanding and magneto-resistive device applications of TI and small bandgap semiconductor materials.

Pure spin currents generated by spin pumping in ferromagnet/nonmagnet (FM/NM) bilayers produce inverse spin Hall effect (ISHE) voltages in the NM, from which spin pumping and transport characteristics of the NM can be extracted. Due to its exceptionally low damping, Y3Fe5O12 (YIG) is an important and widely used FM for microwave devices and ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) spin pumping. Here we report systematic investigation of spin pumping from 20-nm thick YIG thin films to a series of 3d, 4d and 5d normal metals (Cu, Ag, Ta, W, Pt and Au) with various spin-orbit coupling strengths. From enhanced Gilbert damping obtained from the frequency dependence of FMR linewidths and ISHE signals, the spin Hall angles and YIG/NM interfacial spin mixing conductances are quantitatively determined for these metals. The spin Hall angles largely vary as the fourth power of the atomic number, corroborating the dominant role of spin-orbit coupling across a broad range in the inverse spin Hall effect., Comment: 16 pages 4 figures

Ferromagnetic resonance driven spin pumping of pure spin currents from a ferromagnet into a nonmagnetic material promises new spin-functional devices with low energy consumption. The mechanism of spin pumping is under intense investigation and it is widely believed that exchange interaction between the ferromagnet and nonmagnetic material is responsible for this phenomenon. We observe a thousand-fold exponential decay of the spin pumping from 20-nm thick Y3Fe5O12 films to platinum across insulating barriers, from which the exponential decay lengths of 0.16 and 0.23 nm are extracted for oxide barriers with band gaps of 4.93 eV and 2.36 eV, respectively. This prototypical signature of quantum tunneling through a barrier underscores the importance of exchange coupling for spin pumping and reveals its dependence on the characteristics of the barrier material., Comment: 19 papges, 5 figures

Epitaxial Y3Fe5O12 thin films have been deposited by off-axis sputtering, which exhibit excellent crystalline quality, enabling observation of large spin pumping signals in Pt/Y3Fe5O12 and W/Y3Fe5O12 bilayers driven by cavity ferromagnetic resonance. The inverse spin Hall voltages reach 2.10 mV and -5.26 mV in 5-mm long Pt/Y3Fe5O12 and W/Y3Fe5O12 bilayers, respectively, excited by a radio-frequency magnetic field of 0.3 Oe. From the ferromagnetic resonance linewidth broadening, the interfacial spin mixing conductance of 4.56E14 {\Omega}-1m-2 and 2.30E14 {\Omega}-1m-2 are obtained for Pt/Y3Fe5O12 and W/Y3Fe5O12 bilayers, respectively., Comment: 20 pages 4 figures

Ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) driven spin pumping is an emerging technique for injection of a pure spin current from a ferromagnet (FM) into a non-magnetic (NM) material without an accompanying charge current. It is widely believed that this pumping proceeds exclusively via a short-range exchange interaction at the FM/NM interface. Here we report robust, long-range spin pumping from the ferrimagnetic double perovskite Sr2FeMoO6 (SFMO) into Pt across an insulating barrier up to 200 nm thick, and systematically rule out all known spurious effects. This result demonstrates dynamic spin injection over a distance far beyond the coupling range of the exchange interaction, exposing the need to consider other coupling mechanisms. The characteristic length scale for magnetic textures in Sr2FeMoO6 is approximately 150 nm, resulting from structural antiphase boundaries, thus raising the possibility that magnetic dipole coupling underlies the observed long range spin transfer. This discovery reveals a route to dynamic angular momentum transfer between a FM and a NM in the absence of mediation by itinerant electrons and promises new spin-functional devices employing long-range spin pumping., Comment: This paper has been withdrawn by the author due to our new experiment that is inconsistent with previous argument

Coupling between axial and torsional degrees of freedom often modifies the conformation and expression of natural and synthetic filamentous aggregates. Recent studies on chiral single-walled carbon nanotubes and B-DNA reveal a reversal in the sign of the twist-stretch coupling at large strains. The similarity in the response in these two distinct supramolecular assemblies and at high strains suggests a fundamental, chirality dependent non-linear elastic behaviour. Here, we seek the link between the microscopic origin of the non-linearities and the effective twist-stretch coupling using energy based theoretical frameworks and model simulations. Our analysis reveals a sensitive interplay between the deformation energetics and the sign of the coupling, highlighting robust design principles that determine both the sign and extent of these couplings. These design principles have been already exploited by Nature to dynamically engineer such couplings, and have broad implications in mechanically coupled actuation, propulsion and transport in biology and technology., Comment: Accepted for publication in Journal of Royal Society Interface

The excited state electronic structure of $\pi$ conjugated phenylene-acetylene oligomers is calculated using time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) approaches. The theoretical fluorescence spectra are analyzed in terms of Frank-Condon active nuclear normal modes and shown to compare well with experiment. Theoretical and experimental results for the optical absorption and emission spectra of these molecules indicate that the conjugation length can be significantly reduced by conformational rotations about the triple-bonded carbon links. This has serious implications on the electronic functionalities of polyphenylene-acetylene based molecular wires and their possible use as charge/energy conduits in nano-assemblies.