Collective excitations in solid hydrogen as observed by incoherent neutron scattering

Abstract

Incoherent neutron scattering experiments are reported at a number of scattering angles for solid H₂ using the time-of-flight technique. The samples had an ortho concentration ofX≦0.91 and the temperatures were 4.2, 2.2 and 1.2 K. The recorded scattering functions exhibit the elastic line, the ortho-para conversion line, the phonon spectrum on the energy-gain side of the neutrons and finally the phonon spectrum on the energy-loss side. Analysis of the data shows multiple scattering to be very important especially at small scattering angles. Accordingly, the results of an extensive calculation are reported that include up to four-fold scattering. The phonon spectrum that brings calculation and experiment in agreement at all angles is presented. It is concluded from the comparison between the spectra at various temperatures that unexpectedly the samples have always remained in the hexagonal close-packed phase even below the usual transition temperature into the cubic phase. Comparison is made with the spectrum (also in thehcp phase) obtained from coherent neutron scattering. The high-energy phonon tail, to be expected for quantum crystals, is observed and is qualitatively consistent with that in a similar spectral density derived theoretically from ortho-para conversion data under pressure. No evidence of a libron spectrum atT=2.2 K for a sample withX=0.91 could be found, which is consistent with the absence of the cubic orientationally ordered phase in these experiments.