Electric field on nucleus due to phonon lattice oscillations in solid states

TL;DR

This paper investigates how lattice phonon oscillations in solid materials influence the electric field at atomic nuclei, revealing potential for enhanced nuclear electric dipole moment measurements in the MHz-THz range.

Contribution

It introduces a mechanism where lattice phonons significantly affect the electric field at nuclei, proposing a novel experimental approach for nuclear EDM detection in solids.

Findings

Phonon oscillations can enhance electric fields at nuclei in dielectrics.

The study identifies the MHz-THz frequency range as critical for electric field modulation.

An experimental scheme for nuclear EDM measurement using acoustic phonons is proposed.

Abstract

In atoms and molecules, the electrons screen the nucleus from the external electric field. However, if the frequency of the electric field reaches the energy of atomic or molecular transition, the electric field at the nucleus may be resonantly enhanced by many orders in magnitude. In this paper, we study the mechanisms of screening or enhancement of electric field acting on the nuclei in solid states. We show that in dielectric crystals the phonon oscillations of the lattice play crucial role for determining the electric field on nuclei in the MHz-THz region. As an application, we propose an experimental scheme for measuring nuclear electric dipole moment in a solid state based on the coherent excitation of acoustic phonons.