Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 4, 2026

Methods of Ex Situ and In Situ Investigations of Structural Transformations: The Case of Crystallization of Metallic Glasses
Published on: June 7, 2018
Probing Magnetic Hysteresis at Amorphous Glass Interfaces via Quadrupolar-Enhanced ^{21}Ne Spin Relaxation
Xiaoping Li1,2, Wenfeng Fan1,2, Hang Gao1,2
1Beihang University, School of Instrumentation and Optoelectronic Engineering, Beijing 100191, China.
Abstract:
The magnetic dynamics at the nanoscale interface of amorphous insulators sit at the intersection of advancing ultrasensitive quantum sensing and understanding condensed matter physics. While noble-gas spin relaxation offers a powerful approach to probe these interfaces, it has long been restricted to probing bulk paramagnetic backgrounds due to the deep penetration depths of traditional dipolar probes. In this Letter, we report the observation of nanotesla-level magnetic hysteresis and thermally activated relaxation growth in aluminosilicate glass cells using ^{21}Ne as a quadrupolar-enhanced quantum probe. The strong coupling between the nuclear electric quadrupole moment and the surface electric field gradient compresses the effective spin sampling depth to the nanometer scale [∼O(1) nm]. By coupling Jiles-Atherton hysteresis dynamics with Cates diffusion and accounting for gas-phase thermal line broadening, we obtain a cross-cell average apparent activation energy of ⟨E_{act}⟩≈49.7 kJ/mol within the present relaxation model. The pronounced field-history dependence of the relaxation is consistent with localized magnetic inhomogeneity at the glass interface. The proposed methodology provides an in situ, nondestructive, depth-selective probe of magnetic behavior at otherwise inaccessible amorphous glass interfaces, with potential utility for identifying wall-related relaxation in ultrasensitive comagnetometers.
Related Concept Videos
NMR Spectroscopy: Spin–Spin Coupling
¹H NMR: Interpreting Distorted and Overlapping Signals
As Δν decreases and the signals move closer, the doublets appear increasingly distorted. The intensities of the inner lines increase at the cost of those of the outer lines as the signals are slanted or...
NMR Spectrometers: Resolution and Error Correction
Atomic Nuclei: Nuclear Relaxation Processes
Atomic Nuclei: Magnetic Resonance
Atomic Nuclei: Nuclear Spin State Overview

