title: Suppression of the order parameter correlation length by inhomogeneous strains
abstract: Very recently we presented puzzling results of diffuse neutron scattering experiments on KSCN and RbSCN. The data yield an increase of the diffuse intensity with increasing temperature below T(c), whereas the width remains constant. Using molecular dynamics and 3D Monte Carlo simulations, we have shown that below T(c) the width of the correlation functions can be stabilized by strain fields originating from the order parameter strain interactions. Here we construct a novel analytic model which predicts the existence of a second characteristic length scale and explains the suppression of the growth of precursor clusters by the influence of inhomogeneous strain fields.
authors.affiliation: Institut fur Experimentalphysik, Universitat Wien, Strudlhofgasse 4, A-1090 Wien, Austria.
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Troster
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Schranz
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Krexner
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Kityk
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Lodziana