Magnetic relaxation measurements on a series of Y1−xPrxBa2Cu3O7− x=0.13, 0.34, and 0.47 single crystals were performed over a large field and temperature range in order to investigate the characteristics of the vortex matter across the second magnetization peak SMP . The magnitude of the SMP varies nonmonotonically with Pr concentration, i.e., the irreversible magnetization normalized by its va...

By means of computer simulations, we study how droplets of hard, rodlike particles optimize their shape and internal structure under the influence of the osmotic compression caused by the presence of spherical particles that act as depletion agents. At sufficiently high osmotic pressures, the rods that make up the drops spontaneously align to turn them into uniaxial nematic liquid-crystalline d...