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2003-12-28
Optical properties of pyrochlore oxide $Pb_{2}Ru_{2}O_{7-δ}$
We present optical conductivity spectra for $Pb_{2}Ru_{2}O_{7-{\delta}}$ single crystal at different temperatures. Among reported pyrochlore ruthenates, this compound exhibits metallic behavior in a wide temperature range and has the least resistivity. At low frequencies, the optical spectra show typical Drude responses, but with a knee feature around 1000 \cm. Above 20000 \cm, a broad absorption feature is observed. Our analysis suggests that the low frequency responses can be understood from two Drude components arising from the partially filled Ru $t_{2g}$ bands with different plasma frequencies and scattering rates. The high frequency broad absorption may be contributed by two interband transitions: from occupied Ru $t_{2g}$ states to empty $e_{g}$ bands and from the fully filled O 2p bands to unoccupied Ru $t_{2g}$ states.
0312662v1
2004-01-31
Unprecedented Superconductivity in the beta-Pyrochlore Osmate KOs2O6
Superconductivity in the potassium osmium oxide KOs2O6 crystallizing in the beta-pyrochlore structure is studied by means of electrical resistivity, magnetic susceptibility and specific heat. It is the second superconductor in the family of pyrochlore oxides, following the alfa-type pyrochlore oxide Cd2Re2O7 which is believed to be a conventional s-wave superconductor. The superconducting transition temperature Tc of KOs2O6 is 9.6 K, almost one order higher than the Tc = 1.0 K of Cd2Re2O7. Moreover, the superconductivity of KOs2O6 is remarkably robust under high magnetic fields, with a large upper critical magnetic field Hc2 of about 38 T, which seems to exceed Pauli's limit expected for conventional superconductivity. This is also in contrast to the case of Cd2Re2O7, in which the Hc2 is 0.29 T, much smaller than the corresponding Pauli's limit. These distinct contrasts strongly suggest that the mechanism of superconductivity is essentially different between the two pyrochlore oxides.
0402006v3
2004-03-31
Spin-Transfer Effects in Nanoscale Magnetic Tunnel Junctions
We report measurements of magnetic switching and steady-state magnetic precession driven by spin-polarized currents in nanoscale magnetic tunnel junctions with low-resistance, < 5 Ohm-micron-squared, barriers. The current densities required for magnetic switching are similar to values for all-metallic spin-valve devices. In the tunnel junctions, spin-transfer-driven switching can occur at voltages that are high enough to quench the tunnel magnetoresistance, demonstrating that the current remains spin-polarized at these voltages.
0404002v2
2004-08-16
Structural, transport, magnetic properties and Raman spectroscopy of orthorhombic Y$1-x$CaxMnO3(0 <= x <= 0.5)
Orthorhombic Y$_{1-x}$Ca$_x$MnO$_3$ ($0 \leq x \leq 0.5$) was prepared under high pressure and the variations with $x$ of its structural, magnetic, electrical properties and the polarized Raman spectra were investigated. The lattice parameters change systematically with $x$. Although there are strong indications for increasing disorder above $x = 0.20$, the average structure remains orthorhombic in the whole substitutional range. Ca doping increases conductivity, but temperature dependence of resistivity $\rho$(T) remains semiconducting for all $x$. The average magnetic exchange interaction changes from antiferromagnetic for $x < 0.08$ to ferromagnetic for $x > 0.08$. The evolution with $x$ of the Raman spectra provides evidence for increasingly disordered oxygen sublattice at $x \geq 0.10$, presumably due to quasistatic and/or dynamical Jahn-Teller distortions.
0408360v1
2004-09-08
Evidence for charge Kondo effect in superconducting Tl-doped PbTe
We report results of low-temperature thermodynamic and transport measurements of Pb_{1-x}Tl_{x}Te single crystals for Tl concentrations up to the solubility limit of approximately x = 1.5%. For all doped samples, we observe a low-temperature resistivity upturn that scales in magnitude with the Tl concentration. The temperature and field dependence of this upturn are consistent with a charge Kondo effect involving degenerate Tl valence states differing by two electrons, with a characteristic Kondo temperature T_K ~ 6 K. The observation of such an effect supports an electronic pairing mechanism for superconductivity in this material and may account for the anomalously high T_c values.
0409174v2
2004-09-08
Tailoring of ferromagnetic Pr0.85Ca0.15MnO3/ferroelectric Ba0.6Sr0.4TiO3 superlattices for multiferroic properties
Superlattices composed of ferromagnetic Pr0.85Ca0.15MnO3 and ferroelectric Ba0.6Sr0.4TiO3 layers were fabricated on (100) SrTiO3 substrates by a pulsed-laser deposition method. The capacitance and resistive parts of the samples were analyzed from the complex impedance measurements, performed on the samples using a special experimental set-up. The superlattice with larger ferroelectric thickness shows unique characteristics which are not present in the parent ferromagnetic thin film. The superlattice show both ferromagnetic and ferroelectric transitions which is an evidence for the coexistence of both the properties. The high magnetoresistance (40 % at 80K) shown by the superlattice can be attributed to the coupling between ferromagnetic and ferroelectric layers, i.e, to the magnetoelectric effect.
0409182v1
2004-09-20
Effect of Joule heating in current-driven domain wall motion
It was found that high current density needed for the current-driven domain wall motion results in the Joule heating of the sample. The sample temperature, when the current-driven domain wall motion occurred, was estimated by measuring the sample resistance during the application of a pulsed-current. The sample temperature was 750 K for the threshold current density of 6.7 x 10^11 A/m2 in a 10 nm-thick Ni81Fe19 wire with a width of 240 nm. The temperature was raised to 830 K for the current density of 7.5 x 10^11 A/m2, which is very close to the Curie temperature of bulk Ni81Fe19. When the current density exceeded 7.5 x 10^11 A/m2, an appearance of a multi-domain structure in the wire was observed by magnetic force microscopy, suggesting that the sample temperature exceeded the Curie temperature.
0409494v1
2004-11-12
Observation of abrupt first-order metal-insulator transition in GaAs-based two-terminal device
An abrupt first-order metal-insulator transition (MIT) as a jump of the density of states is observed for Be doped GaAs, which is known as a semiconductor, by inducing very low holes of approximately n_p=5x10^{14} cm^{-3} into the valence band by the electric field; this is anomalous. In a higher hole doping concentration of n_p=6x10^{16} cm^{-3}, the abrupt MIT is not observed at room temperature, but measured at low temperature. A large discontinuous decrease of photoluminescence intensity at 1.43 eV energy gap and a negative differential resistance are also observed as further evidence of the MIT. The abrupt MIT does not undergo a structural phase transition and is accompanied with inhomogeneity. The upper limit of the temperature allowing the MIT is deduced to be approximately 440K from experimental data. The abrupt MIT rather than the continuous MIT is intrinsic and can explain the "breakdown" phenomenon (unsolved problem) incurred by a high electric field in semiconductor devices.
0411328v2
2004-11-13
Large magnetoresistance anomalies in Dy7Rh3
The compound Dy7Rh3 ordering antiferromagnetically below (TN=) 59 K has been known to exhibit a temperature (T) dependent electrical resistivity (rho) behavior in the paramagnetic state unusual for intermetallic compounds in the sense that there is a broad peak in rho(T) in the paramagnetic state (around 130 K) as though there is a semi-conductor to metal transition. In addition, there is an upturn below T_N due to magnetic super-zone gap effects. Here we report the influence of external magnetic field (H) on the rho(T) behavior of this compound below 300 K. The rise of rho(T) found below TN could be suppressed at very high fields (>> 60 kOe), thus resulting in a very large magnetoresistance (MR) in the magnetically ordered state. The most notable finding is that the magnitude of MR is large for moderate applications of H (say 80 kOe) in a temperature range far above T_N as well, which is untypical of intermetallic compounds. Thus, this compound is characterized by large MR anomalies in the entire T range of investigation.
0411360v1
2004-11-24
Large magnetoresistance in the magnetically ordered state as well as in the paramagnetic state near 300 K in an intermetallic compound,Gd7Rh3
We report the response of electrical resistivity $\rho$ to the application of magnetic fields (H) up to 140 kOe in the temperature interval 1.8-300 K for the compound, Gd7Rh3, ordering antiferromagnetically below 150 K. We find that there is an unusually large decrease of $\rho$ for moderate values of H in the close vicinity of room temperature uncharacteristic of paramagnets, with the magnitude of the magnetoresistance increasing with decreasing temperature as though the spin-order contribution to $\rho$ is temperature dependent. In addition, this compound exhibits giant magnetoresistance behaviour at rather high temperatures (above 77 K) in the magnetically ordered state due to a metamagnetic transition.
0411608v1
2005-04-05
Coherent transport in homojunction between excitonic insulator and semimetal
From the solution of a two-band model, we predict that the thermal and electrical transport across the junction of a semimetal and an excitonic insulator will exhibit high resistance behavior and low entropy production at low temperatures, distinct from a junction of a semimetal and a normal semiconductor. This phenomenon, ascribed to the dissipationless exciton flow which dominates over the charge transport, is based on the much longer length scale of the change of the effective interface potential for electron scattering due to the coherence of the condensate than in the normal state.
0504121v1
2005-04-25
Impurity scattering and quantum confinement in giant magnetoresistance systems
Ab initio calculations for the giant magnetoresistance (GMR) in Co/Cu, Fe/Cr, and Fe/Au multilayers are presented. The electronic structure of the multilayers and the scattering potentials of point defects therein are calculated self-consistently. Residual resistivities are obtained by solving the quasi-classical Boltzmann equation including the electronic structure of the layered system, the anisotropic scattering cross sections derived by a Green's function method and the vertex corrections. Furthermore, the influence of scattering centers at the interfaces and within the metallic layers is incorporated by averaging the scattering cross sections of different impurities at various sites. An excellent agreement of experimental and theoretical results concerning the general trend of GMR in Co/Cu systems depending on the type and the position of impurities is obtained. Due to the quantum confinement in magnetic multilayers GMR can be tailored as a function of the impurity position. In Co/Cu and Fe/Au systems impurities in the magnetic layer lead to high GMR values, whereas in Fe/Cr systems defects at the interfaces are most efficient to increase GMR.
0504634v1
2005-05-16
Novel procedure to prepare cadmium stannate films using spray pyrolysis technique for solar cell applications
Thin films of cadmium stannate was prepared using low cost cadmium acetate and tin (II) chloride precursors by spray pyrolysis technique at three different substrate temperatures of 400, 450 and 5000 C. A novel procedure of simultaneously forming additional layer, introduced for the first time in this work, on the already coated cadmium stannate film reduced the sheet resistance from 160 ohms/sq to 15 ohms/sq. Further, it is identified that the formation of additional layer does not affect the structural and optical properties of the cadmium stannate films, but improves the electrical property; thus the formation of additional layer seems to be an effective alternate for annealing the films at high temperature in the presence of Ar, CdS, Ar/CdS mixture, hydrogen or nitrogen to improve the structural, electrical and optical properties of the cadmium stannate films as has been reported in the literature. The maximum optical transmittance value of the prepared cadmium stannate film is about 99.8 % and the optical band gap energy value is about 2.9 eV.
0505383v1
2005-05-30
Mechanisms limiting the coherence time of spontaneous magnetic oscillations driven by DC spin-polarized currents
The spin-transfer torque from a DC spin-polarized current can generate highly-coherent magnetic precession in nanoscale magnetic-multilayer devices. By measuring linewidths of spectra from the resulting resistance oscillations, we argue that the coherence time can be limited at low temperature by thermal deflections about the equilibrium magnetic trajectory, and at high temperature by thermally-activated transitions between dynamical modes. Surprisingly, the coherence time can be longer than predicted by simple macrospin simulations.
0505733v2
2005-06-05
On the unusual behavior of nitride compounds
This report presents consistent insight into the mechanism behind the unusual behavior of nitride compounds from the perspective of tetrahedron bond formation and its consequence on valence density of states. An extension of the recent bond-band-barrier (BBB) correlation mechanism for oxidation [Sun CQ, Prog Mater Sci 2003;48:521-685] to the electronic process of nitridation has led to the essentiality of sp-orbital hybridization for a nitrogen atom upon interacting with atoms in solid phase of arbitrary less-electronegative element. In the process of nitridation, a nitrogen atom forms a quasi-tetrahedron with surrounding host atoms through bonding and nonbonding interaction associated with production of electronic holes and antibonding dipoles, which add corresponding density of states to the valence band of the host. It is suggested that the valance alteration of the system takes the responsibility for the blue shift in photoluminescence, lowered work function for cold cathode field emission, corrosion and wear resistant, high elasticity, and magnetic modulation as well.
0506109v1
2005-06-10
Anisotropic Magnetoresistance and Magnetic Anisotropy in High-quality (Ga,Mn)As Films
We have performed a systematic investigation of magnetotransport of a series of as-grown and annealed Ga1-xMnxAs samples with 0.011 <= x <= 0.09. We find that the anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) generally decreases with increasing magnetic anisotropy, with increasing Mn concentration and on low temperature annealing. We show that the uniaxial magnetic anisotropy can be clearly observed from AMR for the samples with x >= 0.02. This becomes the dominant anisotropy at elevated temperatures, and is shown to rotate by 90o on annealing. We find that the in-plane longitudinal resistivity depends not only on the relative angle between magnetization and current direction, but also on the relative angle between magnetization and the main crystalline axes. The latter term becomes much smaller after low temperature annealing. The planar Hall effect is in good agreement with the measured AMR indicating the sample is approximately in a single domain state throughout most of the magnetisation reversal, with a two-step magnetisation jump ascribed to domain wall nucleation and propagation.
0506250v1
2005-06-14
The O-M-O triatomic molecule: Basic unit of cuprates & manganates
The O(oxygen)-M(metal)-O(oxygen) molecule is a basic unit of high-temperature superconducting cuprates and colossal magnetoresistance exhibiting manganates. This molecule can be regarded either as an element of a linear chain or as an ingredient of the corresponding cuprate or manganate lattice. The symmetry of the unit being different in the two approaches, group theory imposes different limitations on conceivable vibrational modes and atomic otbitals that control its transport and optical properties. We now calculate the electron hopping energies along Cu(P0-O(A) bonds, sites for nonlocal electron-vibrational mode coupling. We find the electric transport along the O(A)-Cu(P)-O(A) molecule dominated by scattering from bond polarons which is reflected in the two-branch character of the temperature dependence of its electric resistance.
0506308v1
2005-09-27
Critical currents and vortex dynamics in percolative superconductors containing fractal clusters of a normal phase
The effect of fractal clusters on magnetic and transport properties of percolative superconductors is considered. The superconductor contains percolative superconducting cluster, carrying a transport current, as well as clusters of a normal phase, which act as pinning centers. A prototype of such a structure is a high-temperature superconducting wire. It is found that normal-phase clusters can have fractal features that affect the vortex dynamics. The fractal dimension of the normal-phase cluster boundary in YBCO films is estimated. Depinning and transport of vortices in fractal superconducting structures are investigated. The current-voltage characteristics of superconductors containing fractal clusters are obtained. Dependencies of free vortex density on the fractal dimension as well as the resistance on the transport current are studied. It is found that the fractality of the cluster boundary intensifies pinning. This feature enables the current-carrying capability of a superconductor to be enhanced without changing of its chemical composition.
0509701v1
2005-10-18
Surface Roughness and Hydrodynamic Boundary Conditions
We report results of investigations of a high-speed drainage of thin aqueous films squeezed between randomly nanorough surfaces. A significant decrease in hydrodynamic resistance force as compared with predicted by Taylor's equation is observed. However, this reduction in force does not represents the slippage. The measured force is exactly the same as that between equivalent smooth surfaces obeying no-slip boundary conditions, but located at the intermediate position between peaks and valleys of asperities. The shift in hydrodynamic thickness is shown to be independent on the separation and/or shear rate. Our results disagree with previous literature data reporting very large and shear-dependent boundary slip for similar systems.
0510462v2
2005-10-20
Current-driven magnetization switching in CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB magnetic tunnel junctions
Current-driven magnetization switching in low-resistance Co40Fe40B20/MgO/Co40Fe40B20 magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) is reported. The critical-current densities Jc required for current-driven switching in samples annealed at 270C and 300C are found to be as low as 7.8 x 10^5 A/cm^2 and 8.8 x 10^5 A/cm^2 with accompanying tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) ratios of 49% and 73 %, respectively. Further annealing of the samples at 350C increases TMR ratio to 160 %, while accompanying Jc increases to 2.5 x 10^6 A/cm^2. We attribute the low Jc to the high spin-polarization of tunnel current and small MsV product of the CoFeB single free layer, where Ms is the saturation magnetization and V the volume of the free layer.
0510538v1
2006-02-13
Doping of Ce in T-La2CuO4: Rigorous test for electron-hole symmetry for high-Tc superconductivity
We report that Ce doping was achieved in La2CuO4 with the K2NiF4 (T) structure for the first time by molecular beam epitaxy. A synthesis temperature of as low as ~ 630C and an appropriate substrate choice, i.e., (001)LaSrGaO4 (a \~ 3.843 A), enebled us to incorporate Ce into K2NiF4 lattice and to obtain Ce-doped T-La2-xCexCuO4 up to x ~ 0.06. The doping of Ce makes T-La2CuO4 more insulating, which is in sharp contrast to Sr (or Ba) doping in T-La2CuO4, which make the compound metallic and superconducting. The observed smooth increase in resistivity from the hole-doped side (T-La2-xSrxCuO4) to the electron-doped side (T-La2-xCexCuO4) indicates that the electron-hole symmetry is broken in the T-phase materials.
0602303v1
2006-03-02
Coupled dynamics of electrons and phonons in metallic nanotubes: current saturation from hot phonons generation
We show that the self-consistent dynamics of both phonons and electrons is the necessary ingredient for the reliable description of the hot phonons generation during electron transport in metallic single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). We solve the coupled Boltzmann transport equations to determine in a consistent way the current vs. voltage (IV) curve and the phonon occupation in metallic SWNTs which are lying on a substrate. We find a good agreement with measured IV curves and we determine an optical phonon occupation which corresponds to an effective temperature of several thousands K (hot phonons), for the voltages typically used in experiments. We show that the high-bias resistivity strongly depends on the optical phonon thermalization time. This implies that a drastic improvement of metallic nanotubes performances can be achieved by increasing the coupling of the optical phonons with a thermalization source.
0603046v1
2006-03-05
Electro-Thermal Transport in Metallic Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes for Interconnect Applications
This work represents the first electro-thermal study of metallic single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) for interconnect applications. Experimental data and careful modeling reveal that self-heating is of significance in short (1 < L < 10 um) nanotubes under high-bias. The low-bias resistance of micron scale SWNTs is also found to be affected by optical phonon absorption (a scattering mechanism previously neglected) above 250 K. We also explore length-dependent electrical breakdown of SWNTs in ambient air. Significant self-heating in SWNT interconnects can be avoided if power densities per unit length are limited to less than 5 uW/um.
0603110v1
2006-03-24
Single-crystalline nanopillars for spin-transfer measurements
We report on current-induced magnetization switching (CIMS) in single- crystalline nanopillars. Fe(14 nm)/Cr(0.9 nm)/Fe(10 nm)/Ag(6 nm)/Fe(2 nm) multilayers are deposited by molecular-beam epitaxy. The central Fe layer is coupled to the thick one by interlayer exchange coupling over Cr. The topmost Fe layer is decoupled (free layer). Nanopillars with 150 nm diameter are prepared by optical and e-beam lithography. The opposite spin scattering asymmetries of Fe/Cr and Fe/Ag interfaces enable us to observe CIMS at small magnetic fields and opposite current polarity in a single device. At high magnetic fields, step-like resistance changes are measured at positive currents and are attributed to current-driven magnetic excitations.
0603662v1
2006-07-03
Knight shift detection using gate-induced decoupling of the hyperfine interaction in quantum Hall edge channels
A method for the observation of the Knight shift in nanometer-scale region in semiconductors is developed using resistively detected nuclear magnetic resonance (RDNMR) technique in quantum Hall edge channels. Using a gate-induced decoupling of the hyperfine interaction between electron and nuclear spins, we obtain the RDNMR spectra with or without the electron-nuclear spin coupling. By a comparison of these two spectra, the values of the Knight shift can be given for the nuclear spins polarized dynamically in the region between the relevant edge channels in a single two-dimensional electron system, indicating that this method has a very high sensitivity compared to a conventional NMR technique.
0607028v1
2006-12-01
New Type Phase Transition of Li2RuO3 with Honeycomb Structure
A new-type structural transition has been found in Li2RuO3 with honeycomb lattice of edge-sharing RuO6-octahedra. With decreasing temperature T, the electrical resistivity exhibits an anomalous increase at T=Tc~540 K, suggesting the (metal to insulator)-like transition and the magnetic susceptibility also shows a sharp decrease. Detailed structure analyses have revealed that the high temperature space group C2/m changes to P21/m at Tc. The most striking fact is that a significant reduction of the bond lengths is found between two of six Ru-Ru pairs of the hexagon in the low temperature phase, indicating a new type phase transition by the mechanism of the formation of molecular orbits of these Ru-Ru pairs.
0612026v1
2006-12-26
Transport properties of n-type ultrananocrystalline diamond films
We investigate transport properties of ultrananocrystalline diamond films for a broad range of temperatures. Addition of nitrogen during plasma-assisted growth increases the conductivity of ultrananocrystalline diamond films by several orders of magnitude. We show that films produced at low concentration of nitrogen in the plasma are very resistive and electron transport occurs via a variable range hopping mechanism while in films produced at high nitrogen concentration the electron states become delocalized and the transport properties of ultrananocrystalline diamond films can be described using the Boltzmann formalism. We discuss the critical concentration of carriers at which the metal to insulator transition in ultrananocrystalline diamond films occurs and compare our results with available experimental data.
0612633v1
2007-01-29
Parameters of the Dzyaloshinsky-Moriya type weak ferromagnetism for some perovskite compounds
Compounds with distorted perovskite structure of the 4-f and 3-d transition metals with the common formula LnTO3 (where Ln is rare-earth element, T is an element from the Fe group) are the most multifold binary oxides of these two groups elements. Wide range of stability for this structure allows the realization of combinations of the Lanthanides with all the transition metals except the Nickel. Quite interesting physical phenomena take place in these oxides like charge and orbital ordering; relatively independent magnetic lattices of the both metals; particular magnetic structures; high optical indicators; giant magneto-resistance; peculiar dielectric and ferroelectric properties etc. We have investigated the magnetic properties of pure ferrites and chromium-based materials as well as of some mixed type oxides like HoxTb1-xO3, HoMnxFe1-xO3, HoMnxCr1-xO3 and DyFexCr1-xO3.
0701708v1
2007-02-20
Organic small molecule field-effect transistors with Cytop(TM) gate dielectric: eliminating gate bias stress effects
We report on organic field-effect transistors with unprecedented resistance against gate bias stress. The single crystal and thin-film transistors employ the organic gate dielectric Cytop(TM). This fluoropolymer is highly water repellent and shows a remarkable electrical breakdown strength. The single crystal transistors are consistently of very high electrical quality: near zero onset, very steep subthreshold swing (average: 1.3 nF V/(dec cm2)) and negligible current hysteresis. Furthermore, extended gate bias stress only leads to marginal changes in the transfer characteristics. It appears that there is no conceptual limitation for the stability of organic semiconductors in contrast to hydrogenated amorphous silicon.
0702472v1
2007-02-25
Broadband dielectric microwave microscopy on $μ$m length scales
We demonstrate that a near-field microwave microscope based on a transmission line resonator allows imaging in a substantially wide range of frequencies, so that the microscope properties approach those of a spatially-resolved impedance analyzer. In the case of an electric probe, the broadband imaging can be used in a direct fashion to separate contributions from capacitive and resistive properties of a sample at length scales on the order of one micron. Using a microwave near-field microscope based on a transmission line resonator we imaged the local dielectric properties of a Focused Ion Beam (FIB) milled structure on a high-dielectric-constant Ba_{0.6}Sr_{0.4}TiO_3 (BSTO) thin film in the frequency range from 1.3 GHz to 17.4 GHz. The electrostatic approximation breaks down already at frequencies above ~10 GHz for the probe geometry used, and a full-wave analysis is necessary to obtain qualitative information from the images.
0702573v1
2007-06-05
Structure-Property Relationship in the Ordered-Perovskite- Related Oxide Sr3.12Er0.88Co4O10.5
Synchrotron X-ray diffraction patterns were measured and analyzed for a polycrystalline sample of the room-temperature ferromagnet Sr3.12Er0.88Co4O10.5 from 300 to 650 K, from which two structural phase transitions were found to occur successively. The higher-temperature transition at 509 K is driven by ordering of the oxygen vacancies, which is closely related to the metallic state at high temperatures. The lower-temperature transition at 360 K is of first order, at which the ferromagnetic state suddenly appears with exhibiting a jump in magnetization and resistivity. Based on the refined structure, possible spin and orbital models for the magnetic order are proposed.
0706.0605v2
2007-08-14
Origin of the Non-Linear Pressure Effects in Perovskite Manganites: Buckling of Mn-O-Mn Bonds and Jahn-Teller Distortion of the MnO6 Octahedra Induced by Pressure
High-pressure resistivity and x-ray diffraction have been measured on La0.85MnO3-d. At low pressures the metal-insulator transition temperature (TMI) increases linearly with pressure up to a critical pressure, P* ~ 3.4 GPa, which is followed by reduction of TMI with increasing pressure. Analysis of the bond distances and bond angles reveal that a bandwidth increase drives the in-crease of TMI for pressure below P*. The reduction of TMI at higher pressures is found to result from Jahn-Teller distortions of the MnO6 octahedra. The role of anharmonic interatomic potential is discussed.
0708.1963v2
2007-08-15
Insulator to semiconductor transition and magnetic properties of the one-dimensional S = 1/2 system In_2VO_5
We report structural, magnetization, electrical resistivity and nuclear- and electron spin resonance data of the complex transition metal oxide In_2VO_5 in which structurally well-defined V-O chains are realized. An itinerant character of the vanadium d-electrons and ferromagnetic correlations, revealed at high temperatures, are contrasted with the insulating behavior and predominantly antiferromagnetic exchange between the localized V^{4+} S = 1/2-magnetic moments which develop below a certain characteristic temperature T* ~ 120 K. Eventually the compound exhibits short-range magnetic order at $T_SRO ~ 20 K. We attribute this crossover occurring around T* to the unusual anisotropic thermal contraction of the lattice which changes significantly the overlap integrals and the character of magnetic intra- and interchain interactions.
0708.2088v1
2007-11-15
Recrystallization of glass: homogeneous vs. heterogeneous nucleation in La(0.5)Ca(0.5)MnO3
We probe through magnetization and resistivity measurements a kinetically arrested glass-like but long-range ordered magnetic state. The transformation kinetics of the magnetic field-temperature induced broad first-order transition from ferromagnetic-metallic (FMM) to antiferromagnetic-insulating (AFI) state gets hindered at low temperature in a La(0.5)Ca(0.5)MnO3 sample. A fraction of high-temperature FMM phase persists to the lowest temperature, albeit as a non-ergodic state. We present a phenomenology for this glass-like but long-range order FMM phase which devitrifies on heating and converts to equilibrium AFI phase. The residual kinetically arrested FMM phase can be `recrystallized' to AFI state by annealing and more efficiently by successive annealing, presumably by heterogeneous nucleation. This glass-like state shows a stimulating feature that when the fraction of glass is larger the `recrystallization' is easier.
0711.2347v1
2007-11-28
Radiation Damage in Polarized Ammonia Solids
Solid NH3 and ND3 provide a highly polarizable, radiation resistant source of polarized protons and deuterons and have been used extensively in high luminosity experiments investigating the spin structure of the nucleon. Over the past twenty years, the UVA polarized target group has been instrumental in producing and polarizing much of the material used in these studies, and many practical considerations have been learned in this time. In this discussion, we analyze the polarization performance of the solid ammonia targets used during the recent JLab Eg4 run. Topics include the rate of polarization decay with accumulated charge, the annealing procedure for radiation damaged targets to recover polarization, and the radiation induced change in optimum microwave frequency used to polarize the sample. We also discuss the success we have had in implementing frequency modulation of the polarizing microwave frequency.
0711.4413v1
2008-03-06
Field emission from single multi-wall carbon nanotubes
Electron field emission characteristics of individual multiwalled carbon nanotubes have been investigated by a piezoelectric nanomanipulation system operating inside a scanning electron microscopy chamber. The experimental setup ensures a high control capability on the geometric parameters of the field emission system (CNT length, diameter and anode-cathode distance). For several multiwalled carbon nanotubes, reproducible and quite stable emission current behaviour has been obtained with a dependence on the applied voltage well described by a series resistance modified Fowler-Nordheim model. A turn-on field of about 30 V/um and a field enhancement factor of around 100 at a cathode-anode distance of the order of 1 um have been evaluated. Finally, the effect of selective electron beam irradiation on the nanotube field emission capabilities has been extensively investigated.
0803.0810v1
2008-04-10
Electronic properties and phase transitions in low-dimensional semiconductors
We present the first review of the current state of the literature on electronic properties and phase transitions in TlX and TlMX2 (M = Ga, In; X = Se, S, Te) compounds. These chalcogenides belong to a family of the low-dimensional semiconductors possessing chain or layered structure. They are of significant interest because of their highly anisotropic properties, semi- and photoconductivity, non-linear effects in their I-V characteristics (including a region of negative differential resistance), switching and memory effects, second harmonic optical generation, relaxor behavior and potential applications for optoelectronic devices. We review the crystal structure of TlX and TlMX2 compounds, their transport properties under ambient conditions, experimental and theoretical studies of the electronic structure, transport properties and semiconductor-metal phase transitions under high pressure, and sequences of temperature-induced structural phase transitions with intermediate incommensurate states. Electronic nature of the ferroelectric phase transitions in the above-mentioned compounds, as well as relaxor behavior, nanodomains and possible occurrence of quantum dots in doped and irradiated crystals is discussed.
0804.1639v2
2008-04-23
Superconductivity at 53.5 K in GdFeAsO1-delta
Here we report the fabrication and superconductivity of the iron-based arsenic-oxide GdFeAsO1-delta compound with oxygen-deficiency, which has an onset resistivity transition temperature at 53.5 K. This material has a same crystal structure as the newly discovered high-Tc ReFeAsO1-delta family (Re = rare earth metal) and a further reduced crystal lattice, while the Tc starts to decrease compared with the SmFeAsO1-delta system.
0804.3727v3
2008-05-28
Effect of pressure on the superconducting critical temperature of La[O_{0.89}F_{0.11}]FeAs and Ce[O_{0.88}F_{0.12}]FeAs
We have performed several high-pressure resistivity experiments on the recently discovered superconductors La[O_{0.89}F_{0.11}]FeAs and Ce[O_{0.88}F_{0.12}]FeAs. At ambient pressure, these materials have superconducting onset temperatures T_c of 28 K and 44 K, respectively. While the T_c of La[O_{0.89}F_{0.11}]FeAs goes through a maximum between 10-68 kbar, in qualitative agreement with a recent report by Takahashi et al., the T_c of Ce[O_{0.88}F_{0.12}]FeAs decreases monotonically over the measured pressure range. At 265 kbar, the T_c of the cerium-based compound has been suppressed below 1.1 K.
0805.4372v3
2008-06-18
UV-photon and electrically driven resistance switching in ZnO nanotube arrays
Vertically aligned ZnO nanotube arrays fabricated on an ITO substrate are found to exhibit strong persistent photoconductivity (PPC) effect and electrically driven conductance switching behavior, though the latter shows a gradual decay from high conductance state to a low conductance state. Unlike the electrical switching, the PPC cannot be reset or reversed by an electrical pulse. Excitation wavelength dependent conductance measurement indicates the presence of the defect localized states (DLS) ~ 240meV above the valence band edge, in support of the hypothesis that the doubly ionization of these DLS are responsible for the PPC effect.
0806.2907v2
2008-06-20
Ferromagnetic spin fluctuation in LaFeAsO1-xFx
The F doped LaFeAsO, a recently discovered superconductor with the high Tc of 26 K, has been studied by the resistivity, magnetic susceptibility, and heat capacity measurements in the F doping range from 0 to 0.14 (x in LaFeAsO1-xFx). In the low temperature region, a T3lnT term in the heat capacity and a T2 term in the magnetic susceptibility, which are derived from the spin fluctuation, are observed. The nearly ferromagnetic nature evidenced by a large Wilson ratio (6.5 for x = 0, and 11.2 for x = 0.025) suggests that the superconductivity in the LaFeAsO system is mediated by ferromagnetic spin fluctuation.
0806.3304v1
2008-06-27
Magnetoresistance oscillations and relaxation effects at the SrTiO3-LaAlO3 interface
We present low-temperature and high-field magnetotransport data on SrTiO3-LaAlO3 interfaces. The resistance shows hysteresis in magnetic field and a logarithmic relaxation as a function of time. Oscillations in the magnetoresistance are observed, showing a square root periodicity in the applied magnetic field, both in large-area unstructured samples as well as in a structured sample. An explanation in terms of a commensurability condition of edge states in a highly mobile two-dimensional electron gas between substrate step edges is suggested.
0806.4450v1
2008-07-24
Fishtail effect and the vortex phase diagram of single crystal Ba0.6K0.4Fe2As2
By measuring the magnetization hysteresis loops of superconducting Ba0.6K0.4Fe2As2 single crystals, we obtained the high upper critical field and large current carrying ability, which point to optimistic applications. The fishtail (or second peak) effect is also found in the material, and the position of the vortex pinning force shows a maximum at 1/3 of the reduced field, being consistent with the picture of vortex pinning by small size normal cores in the sample. Together with the resistive measurements, for the first time the vortex phase diagram is obtained for superconductor Ba0.6K0.4Fe2As2.
0807.3786v3
2008-07-25
Adaptation of the Bridgman anvil cell to liquid pressure mediums
The advantage of Bridgman anvil pressure cells is their wide pressure range and the large number of wires which can be introduced into the pressure chamber. In these pressure cells soft solid pressure mediums like steatite are used. We have succeeded in adapting the Bridgman cell to liquid pressure mediums. With this breakthrough it is now possible to measure in very good hydrostatic pressure conditions up to 7 GPa, which is about twice the pressure attainable in piston-cylinder cells. The pressure gradient in the cell, estimated from the superconducting transition width of lead, is reduced by a factor of five in the liquid medium with respect to steatite. By the use of non-magnetic materials for the anvils and the clamp and due to the small dimensions of the latter, our device is specially suitable for magneto-transport measurements in dilution fridges. This pressure cell has been developed to measure very fragile and brittle samples like organic conductors. Resistivity measurements of (TMTTF)2BF4 performed in a solid and liquid pressure medium demonstrate the necessity of hydrostatic pressure conditions for the study of organic conductors at high pressures.
0807.4137v1
2008-08-15
Localization and the Anomalous Hall Effect in a "Dirty" Metallic Ferromagnet
We report magnetoresistance measurements over an extensive temperature range (0.1 K $\leq T \leq$ 100 K) in a disordered ferromagnetic semiconductor (\gma). The study focuses on a series of metallic \gma~ epilayers that lie in the vicinity of the metal-insulator transition ($k_F l_e\sim 1$). At low temperatures ($T < 4$ K), we first confirm the results of earlier studies that the longitudinal conductivity shows a $T^{1/3}$ dependence, consistent with quantum corrections from carrier localization in a ``dirty'' metal. In addition, we find that the anomalous Hall conductivity exhibits universal behavior in this temperature range, with no pronounced quantum corrections. We argue that observed scaling relationship between the low temperature longitudinal and transverse resistivity, taken in conjunction with the absence of quantum corrections to the anomalous Hall conductivity, is consistent with the side-jump mechanism for the anomalous Hall effect. In contrast, at high temperatures ($T \gtrsim 4$ K), neither the longitudinal nor the anomalous Hall conductivity exhibit universal behavior, indicating the dominance of inelastic scattering contributions down to liquid helium temperatures.
0808.2079v2
2008-08-22
Phase Coherence Effects in the Vortex Transport Entropy
Nernst and electrical resistivity measurements in superconducting YBCO and BSCCO with and without columnar defects show a distinctive thermodynamics of the respective liquid vortex matter. At a field dependent high temperature region in the phase diagram the Nernst signal is independent of structural defects in both materials. At lower temperatures, in YBCO, defects contribute only to the vortex mobility and the transport entropy is that of a system of vortex lines. The transition to lower temperatures in BSCCO has a different origin, the maximum in the Nernst signal when decreasing temperature is not associated with transport properties but with the entropy behavior of pancake vortices in the presence of structural defects.
0808.3015v1
2009-02-05
Itinerant antiferromagnetism in BaCr$_2$As$_2$
We report single crystal synthesis, specific heat and resistivity measurements and electronic structure calculations for BaCr$_2$As$_2$. This material is a metal with itinerant antiferromagnetism, similar to the parent phases of Fe-based high temperature superconductors, but differs in magnetic order. Comparison of bare band structure density of states and the low temperature specific heat implies a mass renormalization of $\sim$ 2. BaCr$_2$As$_2$ shows stronger transition metal - pnictogen covalency than the Fe compounds, and in this respect is more similar to BaMn$_2$As$_2$. This provides an explanation for the observation that Ni and Co doping is effective in the Fe-based superconductors, but Cr or Mn doping is not.
0902.0945v2
2009-04-05
Superconductivity in Ir-doped LaFe1-xIrxAsO
We report the realization of superconductivity by 5d element Ir doping in LaFeAsO, a prototype parent compound of high-temperature iron based superconductors. X-ray diffraction patterns indicate that the material has formed the ZrCuSiAs-type structure with a space group P4/nmm. The systematic evolution of the lattice constants demonstrated that the Fe ions were successfully replaced by the Ir. Both electrical resistance and magnetization measurements show superconductivity up to 11 K in LaFe1-xIrxAsO. The superconducting transitions at different magnetic fields were also measured yielding a slope of -dHc2/dT = 6.7 T / K near Tc, and the upper critical field at zero K is found to be about 55 T. This is the first example of bulk superconductivity induced by replacing the Fe sites with higher d-orbital electrons in FeAs-1111 family, which should add more ingredients to the underlying physics of the iron-based superconductors.
0904.0772v4
2009-04-06
Gap opening in the zeroth Landau level of graphene
We have measured a strong increase of the low-temperature resistivity $\rho_{xx}$ and a zero-value plateau in the Hall conductivity $\sigma_{xy}$ at the charge neutrality point in graphene subjected to high magnetic fields up to 30 T. We explain our results by a simple model involving a field dependent splitting of the lowest Landau level of the order of a few Kelvin, as extracted from activated transport measurements. The model reproduces both the increase in $\rho_{xx}$ and the anomalous $\nu=0$ plateau in $\sigma_{xy}$ in terms of coexisting electrons and holes in the same spin-split zero-energy Landau level.
0904.0948v1
2009-07-09
Agglomeration and filtration of colloidal suspensions with DVLO interactions in simulation and experiment
Cake filtration is a widely used solid-liquid separation process. However, the high flow resistance of the nanoporous filter cake lowers the efficiency of the process significantly. The structure and thus the permeability of the filter cakes depend on the compressive load acting on the particles, the particles size, and the agglomeration of the particles. The latter is determined by the particle charge and the ionic strength of the suspension, as described by the Derjaguin-Landau-Verwey-Overbeek (DLVO) theory. In this paper, we propose a combined stochastic rotation dynamics (SRD) and molecular dynamics (MD) methodology to simulate the cake formation. The simulations give further insight into the dependency of the filter cakes' structure on the agglomeration of the particles, which cannot be accessed experimentally. The permeability, as investigated with lattice Boltzmann (LB) simulations of flow through the discretized cake, depends on the particle size and porosity, and thus on the agglomeration of the particles. Our results agree qualitatively with experimental data obtained from colloidal boehmite suspensions.
0907.1551v2
2009-07-12
Vortex-like state observed in ferromagnetic contacts
Point-contacts (PC) offer a simple way to create high current densities, 10^9 A/cm^2 and beyond, without substantial Joule heating. We have shown recently (Nano Letters, 7 (2007) 927) that conductivity of nanosized PCs between a normal and ferromagnetic metals exhibits bi-stable hysteretic states versus both bias current and external magnetic field - the effect typical for spin-valve structures. Here we report that apart from the bi-stable state a third intermediate-resistance state is occasionally observed. We interpret this state as due to a spin-vortex in the PC, nucleated either by Oersted field of the bias current and/or by the circular geometry of PC. The observed three-level-states in the PC conductivity testify that the interface spins are both weakly coupled to the spins in the bulk and have depressed exchange interaction within the surface layer.
0907.2027v2
2009-07-16
Dynamical correlations in electronic transport through a system of coupled quantum dots
Current auto- and cross-correlations are studied in a system of two capacitively coupled quantum dots. We are interested in a role of Coulomb interaction in dynamical correlations, which occur outside the Coulomb blockade region (for high bias). After decomposition of the current correlation functions into contributions between individual tunneling events, we can show which of them are relevant and lead to sub-/supper-Poissonian shot noise and negative/positive cross-correlations. The results are differentiated for a weak and strong inter-dot coupling. Interesting results are for the strong coupling case when electron transfer in one of the channel is strongly correlated with charge drag in the second channel. We show that cross-correlations are non-monotonic functions of bias voltage and they are in general negative (except some cases with asymmetric tunnel resistances). This is effect of local potential fluctuations correlated by Coulomb interaction, which mimics the Pauli exclusion principle.
0907.2879v1
2009-07-30
Solvothermal Reduction of Chemically Exfoliated Graphene Sheets
Graphene has attracted much attention due to its interesting properties and potential applications. Chemical exfoliation methods have been developed to make graphene recently, aimed at large-scale assembly and applications such as composites and Li ion batteries. Although efficient, the chemical exfoliation methods involve oxidation of graphene and introduce defects in the as-made sheets. Hydrazine reduction at 100 has shown to partially restore the structure and conductance of graphite oxide. However, the reduced GO still shows strong defect peaks in Raman spectra with higher resistivity than pristine graphene by 2 to 3 orders of magnitude. It is important to produce much less defective graphene sheets than GO, and develop more effective graphene reduction. Recently, we reported a mild exfoliation-reintercalation-expansion method to form high-quality GS with higher conductivity and lower oxidation degree than GO.5 Here, we present a 180 solvothermal reduction method for our GS and GO. The solvothermal reduction is more effective than the earlier reduction methods in lowering the oxygen and defect levels in GS, increasing the graphene domains, and bringing the conductivity of GS close to pristine graphene. The reduced GS possess the highest degree of pristinity among chemically derived graphene.
0907.5417v1
2009-09-23
Intermediate-valence behavior of the transition-metal oxide CaCu$_3$Ru$_4$O$_{12}$
The transition--metal oxide CaCu$_3$Ru$_4$O$_{12}$ with perovskite--type structure shows characteristic properties of an intermediate--valence system. The temperature--dependent susceptibility exhibits a broad maximum around $150 - 160$ K. At this temperature, neutron powder diffraction reveals a small but significant volume change whereby the crystal structure is preserved. Moreover, the temperature--dependent resistivity changes its slope. NMR Knight shift measurements of Ru reveal a cross--over from high temperature paramagnetic behavior of localized moments to itinerant band states at low temperatures. Additional density--functional theory calculations can relate the structural anomaly with the $d$--electron number. The different experimental and calculational methods result in a mutually consistent description of CaCu$_3$Ru$_4$O$_{12}$ as an intermediate--valent system in the classical sense of having low--energy charge fluctuations.
0909.4208v1
2009-10-09
Observation of a d-wave nodal liquid in highly underdoped Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+δ}
We use angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy to probe the electronic excitations of the non-superconducting state that exists between the antiferromagnetic Mott insulator at zero doping and the superconducting state at larger dopings in Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+\delta}. We find that this state is a nodal liquid whose excitation gap becomes zero only at points in momentum space. Despite exhibiting a resistivity characteristic of an insulator and the absence of coherent quasiparticle peaks, this material has the same gap structure as the d-wave superconductor. We observe a smooth evolution of the spectrum across the insulator-to-superconductor transition, which suggests that high temperature superconductivity emerges when quantum phase coherence is established in a non-superconducting nodal liquid.
0910.1648v1
2009-10-26
Wafer-scale synthesis and transfer of graphene films
We developed means to produce wafer scale, high-quality graphene films as large as 3 inch wafer size on Ni and Cu films under ambient-pressure and transfer them onto arbitrary substrates through instantaneous etching of metal layers. We also demonstrated the applications of the large-area graphene films for the batch fabrication of field-effect transistor (FET) arrays and stretchable strain gauges showing extraordinary performances. Transistors showed the hole and electron mobilities of the device of 1,100 cm2/Vs and 550 cm2/Vs at drain bias of -0.75V, respectively. The piezo-resistance gauge factor of strain sensor was ~6.1. These methods represent a significant step toward the realization of graphene devices in wafer scale as well as application in optoelectronics, flexible and stretchable electronics.
0910.4783v1
2009-11-25
RETGEM with polyvinylchloride (PVC) electrodes
This paper presents a new design of the RETGEM (Resistive Electrode Thick GEM) based on electrodes made of a polyvinylchloride material (PVC). Our device can operate with gains of 10E5 as a conventional TGEM at low counting rates and as RPC in the case of high counting rates without of the transit to the violent sparks. The distinct feature of present RETGEM is the absent of the metal coating and lithographic technology for manufacturing of the protective dielectric rms. The electrodes from PVC permit to do the holes by a simple drilling machine. Detectors on a RETGEM basis could be useful in many fields of an application requiring a more cheap manufacturing and safe operation, for example, in a large neutrino experiments, in TPC, RICH systems.
0911.4807v1
2009-12-03
Atomic-scale patterning of hydrogen terminated Ge(001) by scanning tunneling microscopy
In this paper we demonstrate atomic-scale lithography on hydrogen terminated Ge(001. The lithographic patterns were obtained by selectively desorbing hydrogen atoms from a H resist layer adsorbed on a clean, atomically flat Ge(001) surface with a scanning tunneling microscope tip operating in ultra-high vacuum. The influence of the tip-to-sample bias on the lithographic process have been investigated. Lithographic patterns with feature-sizes from 200 nm to 1.8 nm have been achieved by varying the tip-to-sample bias. These results open up the possibility of a scanning-probe lithography approach to the fabrication of future atomic-scale devices in germanium.
0912.0754v1
2009-12-10
Highly Uniform 300 mm Wafer-Scale Deposition of Single and Multilayered Chemically Derived Graphene Thin Films
The deposition of atomically thin highly uniform chemically derived graphene (CDG) films on 300 mm SiO2/Si wafers is reported. We demonstrate that the very thin films can be lifted off to form uniform membranes than can be free-standing or transferred onto any substrate. Detailed maps of thickness using Raman spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM) height profiles reveal that the film thickness is very uniform and highly controllable, ranging from 1-2 layers up to 30 layers. After reduction using a variety of methods, the CDG films are transparent and electrically active with FET devices yielding exceptionally high mobilities of ~ 15 cm2/Vs and sheet resistance of ~ 1 k Ohm/sq at ~ 70 % transparency.
0912.2087v1
2009-12-21
Microstructure and superconductivity of Ir-doped BaFe2As2 superconductor
Polycrystalline samples with nominal composition of Ba(Fe1-xIrx)2As2 (x=0.10, 0.15, and 0.20) were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electrical resistivity, and magnetization measurements. XRD and SEM results showed that almost single phase samples were obtained. Bulk superconductivity with TC~28 K was observed in the x=0.10 sample. TC~28 K is the highest superconducting critical temperature among the reported data for electron-doped AFe2As2-type (A=Ca, Sr, and Ba) superconductors. The upper critical field Hc2(0) reaches as high as 65 T for the x=0.10 sample. The underlying physics is discussed in connection with Co-doping case.
0912.4113v1
2010-01-21
Photon assisted tunneling as an origin of the Dynes density of states
We show that the effect of a high-temperature environment in current transport through a normal metal-insulator-superconductor tunnel junction can be described by an effective density of states (DOS) in the superconductor. In the limit of a resistive low-ohmic environment, this DOS reduces into the well-known Dynes form. Our theoretical result is supported by experiments in engineered environments. We apply our findings to improve the performance of a single-electron turnstile, a potential candidate for a metrological current source.
1001.3853v3
2010-02-07
Time-Dependent Transport Through Molecular Junctions
We investigate transport properties of molecular junctions under two types of bias--a short time pulse or an AC bias--by combining a solution for the Green functions in the time domain with electronic structure information coming from ab initio density functional calculations. We find that the short time response depends on lead structure, bias voltage, and barrier heights both at the molecule-lead contacts and within molecules. Under a low frequency AC bias, the electron flow either tracks or leads the bias signal (capacitive or resistive response) depending on whether the junction is perfectly conducting or not. For high frequency, the current lags the bias signal due to the kinetic inductance. The transition frequency is an intrinsic property of the junctions.
1002.1441v1
2010-03-16
All Magnesium diboride Josephson Junctions with MgO and native oxide barriers
We present results on all-MgB2 tunnel junctions, where the tunnel barrier is deposited MgO or native-oxide of base electrode. For the junctions with MgO, the hysteretic I-V curve resembles a conventional underdamped Josephson junction characteristic with critical current-resistance product nearly independent of the junction area. The dependence of the critical current with temperature up to 20 K agrees with the [Ambegaokar and Baratoff, Phys. Rev. Lett. 10, 486 (1963)] expression. For the junctions with native-oxide, conductance at low bias exhibits subgap features while at high bias reveals thick barriers. As a result no supercurrent was observed in the latter, despite the presence of superconducting-gaps to over 30 K.
1003.3158v1
2010-03-31
Magneto-transport Effects in Topological Insulator Bi$_2$Se$_3$ Nanoribbons
Magneto-resistance (MR) of Bi$_2$Se$_3$ nanoribbons is studied over a broad range of temperature ($T$=300K-2K) and under various magnetic field ($B$) orientations. The MR is strongly anisotropic with the perpendicular MR much larger than the longitudinal and transverse MRs. The perpendicular MR exhibits quadratic $B$-dependence in low fields and becomes linear at high $B$. However, when $T$ increases, the perpendicular MR becomes linear over the whole magnetic field range (0-9T) up to room temperature. This unusual linear MR is discussed in the context of the linear quantum MR of the topological surface-states. We also observe the boundary-scattering effect in MR at low temperatures, which indicates that the out-of-plane Fermi momentum is much smaller the in-plane Fermi momentum, excluding the simple three-dimensional Fermi surface picture.
1003.6099v4
2010-04-05
Hysteresis in the magneto-transport of Manganese-doped Germanium: evidence for carrier-mediated ferromagnetism
We report the fabrication of Ge:Mn ferromagnetic semiconductors by Mn-ion implantation into Ge followed by pulsed laser annealing. Benefiting from the short time annealing, the hole concentration in Mn-implanted Ge has been increased by two orders of magnitude from 10$^{18}$ to over 10$^{20}$ cm$^{-3}$. Likely due to the high hole concentration, we observe that the longitudinal and Hall resistances exhibit the same hysteresis as the magnetization, which is usually considered as a sign of carrier-mediated ferromagnetism.
1004.0568v1
2010-04-21
Effect of pressure on the magnetic, transport, and thermal-transport properties of the electron-doped manganite CaMn$_{1-x}$Sb$_{x}$O$_{3}$
We have demonstrated the effect of hydrostatic pressure on magnetic and transport properties, and thermal transport properties in electron-doped manganites CaMn$_{1-x}$Sb$_{x}$O$_{3}$. The substitution of Sb$^{5+}$ ion for Mn $^{4+}$site of the parent matrix causes one-electron doping with the chemical formula CaMn$^{4+}_{1-2x}$Mn$^{3+}_{x}$Sb$^{5+}_{x}$O$_{3}$ accompanied by a monotonous increase in unit cell volume as a function of $x$. Upon increasing the doping level of Sb, the magnitudes of both electrical resistivity and negative Seebeck coefficient are suppressed at high temperatures, indicating the electron doping. Anomalous diamagnetic behaviors at $x=0.05$ and 0.08 are clearly observed in field cooled dc magnetization. The effect of hydrostatic pressure on dc magnetization is in contrast to the chemical pressure effect due to Sb doping. The dynamical effect of ac magnetic susceptibility measurement points to the formation of the magnetically frustrated clusters such as FM clusters embedded in canted AFM matrix.
1004.3669v3
2010-05-06
Theoretical and Experimental Studies of Schottky Diodes That Use Aligned Arrays of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes
We present theoretical and experimental studies of Schottky diodes that use aligned arrays of single walled carbon nanotubes. A simple physical model, taking into account the basic physics of current rectification, can adequately describe the single-tube and array devices. We show that for as grown array diodes, the rectification ratio, defined by the maximum-to-minimum-current-ratio, is low due to the presence of m-SWNT shunts. These tubes can be eliminated in a single voltage sweep resulting in a high rectification array device. Further analysis also shows that the channel resistance, and not the intrinsic nanotube diode properties, limits the rectification in devices with channel length up to ten micrometer.
1005.0870v1
2010-06-16
Perfect Domain-Lattice Matching Between MgB2 and Al2O3: Single-Crystal MgB2 Thin Films Grown on Sapphire
We have found that single-crystal films can be grown on (0001) Al2O3 substrates through the golden relation of a perfect lattice-matching ratio between the a-axis lattice constants of MgB2 and Al2O3. Selected area electron diffraction patterns evidently indicate hexagonal MgB2 film with a 30 degrees in-plane rotation with respect to the Al2O3 substrate. The films grown on Al2O3 show a zero-resistance transition temperature of 39.6 K with a transition width of 0.1 K. The critical current density at zero field is comparable to the depairing critical current density and rapidly decreases with increasing applied field due to the lack of pinning sites, as observed for high-quality MgB2 single crystals.
1006.3169v1
2010-07-01
Chip-scale nanofabrication of single spins and spin arrays in diamond
We demonstrate a technique to nanofabricate nitrogen vacancy (NV) centers in diamond based on broad-beam nitrogen implantation through apertures in electron beam lithography resist. This method enables high-throughput nanofabrication of single NV centers on sub-100 nm length scales. Secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) measurements facilitate depth profiling of the implanted nitrogen to provide three-dimensional characterization of the NV center spatial distribution. Measurements of NV center coherence with on-chip coplanar waveguides suggest a pathway for incorporating this scalable nanofabrication technique in future quantum applications.
1007.0240v2
2010-08-04
Transport in gapped bilayer graphene: the role of potential fluctuations
We employ a dual-gated geometry to control the band gap \Delta in bilayer graphene and study the temperature dependence of the resistance at the charge neutrality point, RNP(T), from 220 to 1.5 K. Above 5 K, RNP(T) is dominated by two thermally activated processes in different temperature regimes and exhibits exp(T3/T)^{1/3} below 5 K. We develop a simple model to account for the experimental observations, which highlights the crucial role of localized states produced by potential fluctuations. The high temperature conduction is attributed to thermal activation to the mobility edge. The activation energy approaches \Delta /2 at large band gap. At intermediate and low temperatures, the dominant conduction mechanisms are nearest neighbor hopping and variable-range hopping through localized states. Our systematic study provides a coherent understanding of transport in gapped bilayer graphene.
1008.0783v1
2010-09-13
Cooper Pair Writing at the LaAlO3/SrTiO3 Interface
The LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interface provides a unique platform for controlling the electronic properties of the superconducting semiconductor SrTiO3. Prior investigations have shown that two-dimensional superconductivity can be produced at the LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interface and tuned electrostatically. The recently demonstrated reversible control of the metal-insulator transition at the same interface using conductive atomic force microscopy (c-AFM) raises the question of whether this room-temperature technique can produce structures that exhibit superconducting, normal metallic and insulating phases at sub-Kelvin temperatures. Here we report low-temperature magnetotransport experiments on conducting structures defined at an otherwise insulating LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interface. A quantum phase transition associated with the formation of Cooper pairs is observed in these predefined structures at sub-Kelvin temperatures. However, a finite resistance remains even at the lowest temperature. At higher magnetic fields, interfaces with high mobility also exhibit strong Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations as well as a larger Ginsburg-Landau coherence length. Cooper pair localization, spin-orbit coupling, and finite-size effects may factor into an explanation for some of the unusual properties observed.
1009.2424v2
2010-09-16
Overlapping-gate architecture for silicon Hall bar MOSFET devices in the low electron density regime
We report the fabrication and study of Hall bar MOSFET devices in which an overlapping-gate architecture allows four-terminal measurements of low-density 2D electron systems, while maintaining a high density at the ohmic contacts. Comparison with devices made using a standard single gate show that measurements can be performed at much lower densities and higher channel resistances, despite a reduced peak mobility. We also observe a voltage threshold shift which we attribute to negative oxide charge, injected during electron-beam lithography processing.
1009.3109v1
2010-10-01
Contactless measurement of electrical conductance of a thin film of amorphous germanium
We present a contactless method for measuring charge in a thin film of amorphous germanium (a-Ge) with a nanoscale silicon MOSFET charge sensor. This method enables the measurement of conductance of the a-Ge film even in the presence of blocking contacts. At high bias voltage, the resistance of the contacts becomes negligible and a direct measurement of current gives a conductance that agrees with that from the measurement of charge. This charge-sensing technique is used to measure the temperature- and field-dependence of the conductance, and they both agree with a model of Mott variable-range hopping. From the model, we obtain a density of states at the Fermi energy of 1.6 x 10^18 eV^-1 cm^-3 and a localization length of 1.06 nm. This technique enables the measurement of conductance as low as 10^-19 S.
1010.0045v1
2010-10-05
Optical property modification of ZnO: Effect of 1.2 MeV Ar irradiation
We report a systematic study on 1.2 MeV Ar^8+ irradiated ZnO by x-ray diffraction (XRD), room temperature photoluminescence (PL) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) absorption measurements. ZnO retains its wurtzite crystal structure up to maximum fluence of 5 x 10^16 ions/cm^2. Even, the width of the XRD peaks changes little with irradiation. The UV-Vis absorption spectra of the samples, unirradiated and irradiated with lowest fluence (1 x 10^15 ions/cm^2), are nearly same. However, the PL emission is largely quenched for this irradiated sample. Red shift of the absorption edge has been noticed for higher fluence. It has been found that red shift is due to at least two defect centers. The PL emission is recovered for 5 x 10^15 ions/cm^2 fluence. The sample colour is changed to orange and then to dark brown with increasing irradiation fluence. Huge resistivity decrease is observed for the sample irradiated with 5 x 10^15 ions/cm^2 fluence. Results altogether indicate the evolution of stable oxygen vacancies and zinc interstitials as dominant defects for high fluence irradiation.
1010.0753v1
2010-11-23
Transport in Graphene Tunnel Junctions
We present a technique to fabricate tunnel junctions between graphene and Al and Cu, with a Si back gate, as well as a simple theory of tunneling between a metal and graphene. We map the differential conductance of our junctions versus probe and back gate voltage, and observe fluctuations in the conductance that are directly related to the graphene density of states. The conventional strong-suppression of the conductance at the graphene Dirac point can not be clearly demonstrated, but a more robust signature of the Dirac point is found: the inflection in the conductance map caused by the electrostatic gating of graphene by the tunnel probe. We present numerical simulations of our conductance maps, confirming the measurement results. In addition, Al causes strong n-doping of graphene, Cu causes a moderate p-doping, and in high resistance junctions, phonon resonances are observed, as in STM studies.
1011.5067v1
2010-12-14
Reentrant spin-glass behavior in $TlFe_{2-x}Se_2$ with the $ThCr_2Si_2$-type structure
We investigated the physical properties of $TlFe_{2-x}Se_2$ single crystals. The resistivity of $TlFe_{2-x}Se_2$ shows typical semiconductor behavior with an activation energy of 25 meV. DC susceptibility indicates an antiferromagnetic transition at about 450 K. Reentrant spin-glass (RSG) behavior was found at about 130 K through DC and AC magnetic measurements. The RSG behavior suggests the existence of a strong competition between ferromagnetic (FM) and antiferromagnetic (AFM) interactions due to Fe deficiencies. Strong electron-electron correlation may exist in this material and it is possibly a candidate of parent compound for high $T_c$ superconductors.
1012.2929v1
2010-12-23
Effect of chromium disorder on the thermoelectric properties of Layered-antiferromagnet CuCrS2
Layered-antiferromagnetic compound CuCrS2 has been prepared by different methods. The analysis of X-ray diffraction patterns of different samples gave significant amount of vacancy-disorder of Cr-atoms within the layers. Extended period of sintering above 9000C increases the transfer of Cr-atoms to the interstitial sites between the layers. This disorder has marginal effect on the Antiferromagnetic properties. The electrical conductivity is increased and the thermoelectric power remains positive and quite high between 150-400\muV/K in the paramagnetic state around room temperature with increase in disorder in different samples. We interpret the temperature dependence of electrical resistivity and thermoelectric power due to the localization of carriers by interstitial defects and the formation of magnetic polarons in the paramagnetic phase of CuCrS2.
1012.5147v1
2011-03-04
Giant enhancement of spin accumulation and long-distance spin precession in metallic lateral spin valves
The nonlocal spin injection in lateral spin valves is highly expected to be an effective method to generate a pure spin current for potential spintronic application. However, the spin valve voltage, which decides the magnitude of the spin current flowing into an additional ferromagnetic wire, is typically of the order of 1 {\mu}V. Here we show that lateral spin valves with low resistive NiFe/MgO/Ag junctions enable the efficient spin injection with high applied current density, which leads to the spin valve voltage increased hundredfold. Hanle effect measurements demonstrate a long-distance collective 2-pi spin precession along a 6 {\mu}m long Ag wire. These results suggest a route to faster and manipulable spin transport for the development of pure spin current based memory, logic and sensing devices.
1103.0852v2
2011-03-23
Local Electrical Stress-Induced Doping and Formation of 2D Monolayer Graphene P-N Junction
We demonstrated doping in 2D monolayer graphene via local electrical stressing. The doping, confirmed by the resistance-voltage transfer characteristics of the graphene system, is observed to continuously tunable from N-type to P-type as the electrical stressing level (voltage) increases. Two major physical mechanisms are proposed to interpret the observed phenomena: modifications of surface chemistry for N-type doping (at low-level stressing) and thermally-activated charge transfer from graphene to SiO2 substrate for P-type doping (at high-level stressing). The formation of P-N junction on 2D graphene monolayer is demonstrated with complementary doping based on locally applied electrical stressing.
1103.4568v3
2011-03-25
Giant Positive Magnetoresistance in Co@CoO Nanoparticle Arrays
We report the magnetotransport properties of self-assembled Co@CoO nanoparticle arrays at temperatures below 100 K. Resistance shows thermally activated behavior that can be fitted by the general expression of R exp{(T/T0)^v}. Efros-Shklovskii variable range hopping (v=1/2) and simple activation (hard gap, v=1) dominate the high and low temperature region, respectively, with a strongly temperature-dependent transition regime in between. A giant positive magnetoresistance of >1,400% is observed at 10K, which decreases with increasing temperature. The positive MR and most of its features can be explained by the Zeeman splitting of the localized states that suppresses the spin dependent hopping paths in the presence of on-site Coulomb repulsion.
1103.5029v1
2011-05-06
Optical excitation of Electron-Glasses
Electron-glasses can be readily driven far from equilibrium by a variety of means. Several mechanisms to excite the system and their relative merits are reviewed. In this study we focus on the process of exciting electron-glasses by interaction with near infrared radiation. The efficiency of this protocol varies considerably among different electron-glasses, but it only weakly depends on their resistance at liquid helium temperatures. A dramatic enhancement of the excitation efficiency is observed upon doping crystalline indium-oxide with Au. Some enhancement is observed also in samples doped with Pb but this enhancement fades away with time unlike the situation in the Au-doped samples. Several structural and analytical tools are used to characterize the changes in the materials that may be responsible for these effects. Possible routes by which high-frequency electromagnetic fields take the system far from equilibrium are discussed.
1105.1350v1
2011-05-22
Evidence for a capacitor network near the metal insulator transition in VO2 thin films probed by in-plane impedance spectroscopy
Impedance spectroscopy measurements were performed in high quality Vanadium dioxide (VO2) thin films. This technique allows us investigate the resistive and capacitive contribution to the dielectric response near the metal-insulator transition (MIT). A non ideal RC behavior was found in our films from room temperature up to 334 K. A decrease of the total capacitance was found in this region, possibly due to interface effects. Above the MIT, the system behaves like a metal as expected, and a modified equivalent circuit is necessary to describe the impedance data adequately. Around the MIT, an increase of the total capacitance is observed.
1105.4308v1
2011-05-24
Rectification at Graphene-Semiconductor Interfaces: Zero-Gap Semiconductor Based Diodes
Using current-voltage (I-V) and capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements, we report on the unusual physics and promising technical applications associated with the formation of Schottky barriers at the interface of a one-atom-thick zero-gap semiconductor (graphene) and conventional semiconductors. When chemical vapor deposited graphene is transferred onto n-type Si, GaAs, 4H-SiC and GaN semiconductor substrates, there is a strong van der Waals attraction that is accompanied by charge transfer across the interface and the formation of a rectifying (Schottky) barrier. Thermionic emission theory in conjunction with the Schottky-Mott model within the context of bond-polarization theory provides a surprisingly good description of the electrical properties. Applications, such as to sensors where in forward bias there is exponential sensitivity to changes in the Schottky barrier height due to the presence of absorbates on the graphene or to analogue devices for which Schottky barriers are integral components are promising because of graphene's mechanical stability, its resistance to diffusion, its robustness at high temperatures and its demonstrated capability to embrace multiple functionalities.
1105.4811v2
2011-05-27
Magnonic spin-transfer torque MRAM with low power, high speed, and error-free switching
A new class of spin-transfer torque magnetic random access memory (STT-MRAM) is discussed, in which writing is achieved using thermally initiated magnonic current pulses as an alternative to conventional electric current pulses. The magnonic pulses are used to destabilize the magnetic free layer from its initial direction, and are followed immediately by a bipolar electric current exerting conventional spin-transfer torque on the free layer. The combination of thermal and electric currents greatly reduces switching errors, and simultaneously reduces the electric switching current density by more than an order of magnitude as compared to conventional STT-MRAM. The energy efficiency of several possible electro-thermal circuit designs have been analyzed numerically. As compared to STT-MRAM with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, magnonic STT-MRAM reduces the overall switching energy by almost 80%. Furthermore, the lower electric current density allows the use of thicker tunnel barriers, which should result in higher tunneling magneto-resistance and improved tunnel barrier reliability. The combination of lower power, improved reliability, higher integration density, and larger read margin make magnonic STT-MRAM a promising choice for future non-volatile storage.
1105.5473v1
2011-05-27
Temperature Dependence of the Intrinsic Anomalous Hall Effect in Nickel
We investigate the unusual temperature dependence of the anomalous Hall effect in Ni. By varying the thickness of the MBE-grown Ni films, the longitudinal resistivity is uniquely tuned without resorting to doping impurities; consequently, the intrinsic and extrinsic contributions are cleanly separated out. In stark contrast to other ferromagnets such as Fe, the intrinsic contribution in Ni is found to be strongly temperature dependent with a value of 1100 (ohm*cm)^(-1) at low temperatures and 500 (ohm*cm)^(-1) at high temperatures. This pronounced temperature dependence, a cause of long-standing confusion concerning the physical origin of the AHE, is likely due to the small energy level splitting caused by the spin orbit coupling close to the Fermi surface. Our result helps pave the way for the general claim of the Berry-phase interpretation for the AHE.
1105.5664v1
2011-05-31
Interplay between topological insulators and superconductors
Topological insulators are insulating in the bulk but possess metallic surface states protected by time-reversal symmetry. Here, we report a detailed electronic transport study in high quality Bi2Se3 topological insulator thin films contacted by superconducting (In, Al and W) electrodes. The resistance of the film shows an abrupt and significant upturn when the electrodes become superconducting. In turn, the Bi2Se3 film strongly weakens the superconductivity of the electrodes, significantly reducing both their transition temperatures and critical fields. A possible interpretation of these results is that the superconducting electrodes are accessing the surface states and the experimental results are the consequence of the interplay between the Cooper pairs of the electrodes and the spin polarized current of the surface states in Bi2Se3.
1105.6174v3
2011-06-04
Facile fabrication of lateral nanowire wrap-gate devices with improved performance
We present a simple fabrication technique for lateral nanowire wrap-gate devices with high capacitive coupling and field-effect mobility. Our process uses e-beam lithography with a single resist-spinning step, and does not require chemical etching. We measure, in the temperature range 1.5-250 K, a subthreshold slope of 5-54 mV/decade and mobility of 2800-2500 $cm^2/Vs$ -- significantly larger than previously reported lateral wrap-gate devices. At depletion, the barrier height due to the gated region is proportional to applied wrap-gate voltage.
1106.0796v1
2011-06-04
Mechanochemical reaction in graphane under uniaxial tension
The quantum-mechanochemical-reaction-coordinate simulations have been performed to investigate the mechanical properties of hydrogen functionalized graphene. The simulations disclosed atomically matched peculiarities that accompany the deformation-failure-rupture process occurred in the body. A comparative study of the deformation peculiarities related to equi-carbon-core (5,5) nanographene and nanographane sheets exhibited a high stiffness of both bodies that is provided by the related hexagon units, namely benzenoid and cyclohexanoid, respectively. The two units are characterized by anisotropy in the microscopic behavior under elongation along mechanochemical internal coordinates when the later are oriented either along (zg) or normally (ach) to the C-C bonds chain. The unit feature in combination with different configuration of their packing with respect to the body C-C bond chains forms the ground for the structure-sensitive mechanical behavior that is different for zg and ach deformation modes. Hydrogenation of graphene drastically influences behavior and numerical characteristics of the body making tricotage-like pattern of the graphene failure less pronounced and inverting it from the zg to ach mode as well as providing less mechanical resistance of graphane it total.
1106.0837v2
2011-07-09
Huge Volume Expansion and Structural Transformation of Carbon Nanotube Aligned Arrays during Electrical Breakdown in Vacuum
We observed a huge volume expansion of aligned single walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) arrays accompanied by structural transformation during electrical breakdown in vacuum. The SWNT arrays were assembled between prefabricated Pd source and drain electrodes of 2 \mu m separation on Si/SiO_2 substrate via dielectrophoresis. At high electrical field, the SWNT arrays erupt into large mushroom-like structure. Systematic studies with controlled electrical bias show that above a certain field SWNTs swell and transform to nanoparticles and flower-like structures with small volume increase. Further increase in electrical bias and repeated sweeping results into amorphous carbon as determined from scanning and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Cross sectional studies using focused ion beam and TEM show the height of 2-3 nm SWNT array increased to about 1 \mu m with a volume gain of ~ 400 times. The electron energy loss spectroscopy reveals that graphitic sp^2 networks of SWNTs are transformed predominantly to sp^3. The current-voltage measurements also show an increase in the resistance of the transformed structure.
1107.1758v1
2011-07-20
Macroscopic Superconducting Current through a Silicon Surface Reconstruction with Indium Adatoms: Si(111)-(R7$\times$R3)-In
Macroscopic and robust supercurrents are observed by direct electron transport measurements on a silicon surface reconstruction with In adatoms (Si(111)-(R7xR3)-In). The superconducting transition manifests itself as an emergence of the zero resistance state below 2.8 K. $I-V$ characteristics exhibit sharp and hysteretic switching between superconducting and normal states with well-defined critical and retrapping currents. The two-dimensional (2D) critical current density $J_\mathrm{2D,c}$ is estimated to be as high as $1.8 \ \mathrm{A/m}$ at 1.8 K. The temperature dependence of $J_\mathrm{2D,c}$ indicates that the surface atomic steps play the role of strongly coupled Josephson junctions.
1107.3902v2
2011-07-30
Indications of an Electronic Phase Transition in 2D YBa2Cu3O7-x Induced by Electrostatic Doping
We successfully tuned an underdoped ultrathin YBa2Cu3O7-x film into the overdoped regime by means of electrostatic doping using an ionic liquid as a dielectric material. This process proved to be reversible. Transport measurements showed a series of anomalous features compared to chemically doped bulk samples and a different two-step doping mechanism for electrostatic doping was revealed. The normal resistance increased with carrier concentration on the overdoped side and the high temperature (180 K) Hall number peaked at a doping level of p$\sim$0.15. These anomalous behaviors suggest that there is an electronic phase transition in the Fermi surface around the optimal doping level.
1108.0083v1
2011-08-01
Evolution of Structural and Physical Properties of Sr3(Ru1-xMnx)2O7 with Mn Concentration
Layered ruthenates are prototype materials with strong structure-property correlations. We report the structural and physical properties of double-layered perovskite Sr3(Ru1-xMnx)2O7 single crystals with 0<=x<=0.7. Single crystal x-ray diffraction refinements reveal that Mn doping on the Ru site leads to the shrinkage of unit-cell volume and disappearance of (Ru/Mn)O6 octahedron rotation when x>0.16, while the crystal structure remains tetragonal. Correspondingly, the electric and magnetic properties change with x. The electrical resistivity reveals metallic character (d rho/d T>0) at high temperatures but insulating behavior (d rho/d T<0) below a characteristic temperature T_MIT. Interestingly, T_MIT is different from T_M, at which magnetic susceptibility reaches maximum. T_MIT monotonically increases with increasing x while T_M shows non-monotonic dependence with x. The difference between T_MIT and T_M (T_MIT>T_M) becomes larger when x>0.16. The constructed phase diagram consists of five distinct regions, demonstrating that the physical properties of such a system can easily be tuned by chemical doping.
1108.0392v1
2011-08-15
Large conductance modulation of gold thin films by huge charge injection via electrochemical gating
By using an electrochemical gating technique with a new combination of polymer and electrolyte, we were able to inject surface charge densities n_2D as high as 3.5 \times 10^15 e/cm^2 in gold films and to observe large relative variations in the film resistance, DeltaR/R', up to 10% at low temperature. DeltaR/R' is a linear function of n_2D - as expected within a free-electron model - if the film is thick enough (> 25 nm), otherwise a tendency to saturation due to size effects is observed. The application of this technique to 2D materials will allow extending the field-effect experiments to a range of charge doping where giant conductance modulations and, in some cases, even the occurrence of superconductivity are expected.
1108.3099v1
2011-09-19
Fe-doping induced superconductivity in charge-density-wave system 1T-TaS2
We report the interplay between charge-density-wave (CDW) and superconductivity of 1$T$-Fe$_{x}$Ta$_{1-x}$S$_{2}$ ($0\leq x \leq 0.05$) single crystals. The CDW order is gradually suppressed by Fe-doping, accompanied by the disappearance of pseudogap/Mott-gap as shown by the density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The superconducting state develops at low temperatures within the CDW state for the samples with the moderate doping levels. The superconductivity strongly depends on $x$ within a narrow range, and the maximum superconducting transition temperature is 2.8 K as $x=0.02$. We propose that the induced superconductivity and CDW phases are separated in real space. For high doping level ($x>0.04$), the Anderson localization (AL) state appears, resulting in a large increase of resistivity. We present a complete electronic phase diagram of 1$T$-Fe$_{x}$Ta$_{1-x}$S$_{2}$ system that shows a dome-like $T_{c}(x)$.
1109.3962v3
2011-09-28
A combination of capillary assembly and dielectrophoresis for wafer scale integration of carbon nanotubes-based electrical and mechanical devices
The wafer scale integration of carbon nanotubes (CNT) remains a challenge for electronic and electromechanical applications. We propose a novel CNT integration process relying on the combination of controlled capillary assembly and buried electrode dielectrophoresis (DEP). This process enables to monitor the precise spatial localization of a high density of CNTs and their alignment in a pre-defined direction. Large arrays of independent and low resistivity (4.4 x 10^-5 {\Omega}.m) interconnections were achieved using this hybrid assembly with double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWNT). Finally, arrays of suspended individual CNT carpets have been realized and we demonstrate their potential use as functional nano-electromechanical systems (NEMS) by monitoring their resonance frequencies (ranging between 1.7 MHz to 10.5MHz) using a Fabry-Perot interferometer.
1109.6268v1
2011-11-14
Thermoelectric properties of Ba-Cu-Si clathrates
Thermoelectric properties of the type-I clathrates Ba$_8$Cu$_x$Si$_{46-x}$ ($3.6 \leq x \leq 7$, $x$ = nominal Cu content) are investigated both experimentally and theoretically. The polycrystalline samples are prepared either by melting, ball milling and hot pressing or by melt spinning, hand milling and hot pressing techniques. Temperature-dependent electrical resistivity, $\rho(T)$, and the Seebeck coefficient, $S(T)$, measurements reveal metal-like behavior for all samples. For $x = 5$ and 6, density functional theory calculations are performed for deriving the enthalpy of formation and the electronic structure which is exploited for the calculation of Seebeck coefficients and conductivity within Boltzmann's transport theory. For simulating the properties of doped clathrates the rigid band model is applied. On the basis of the density functional theory results the experimentally observed compositional dependence of $\rho(T)$ and $S(T)$ of the whole sample series is analyzed. The highest dimensionless thermoelectric figure of merit $ZT$ of 0.28 is reached for a melt-spun sample at $600^{\circ}$C. The relatively low $ZT$ values in this system are attributed to the too high charge carrier concentrations.
1111.3278v1
2011-12-13
The Disordered Induced Interaction and the Phase Diagram of Cuprates
There are processes in nature that resemble a true force but arise due to the minimization of the local energy. The most well-known case is the exchange interaction that leads to magnetic order in some materials. We discovered a new similar process occurring in connection with an electronic phase separation transition that leads to charge inhomogeneity in cuprate superconductors. The minimization of the local free energy, described here by the Cahn-Hilliard diffusion equation, drives the charges into regions of low and high densities. This motion leads to an effective potential with two-fold effect: creation of tiny isolated regions or micrograins, and two-body attraction, which promotes local or intra-grain superconducting pairing. Consequently, as in granular superconductors, the superconducting transition appears in two steps. First, with local intra-grain superconducting amplitudes and, at lower temperature, the superconducting phase or resistivity transition is attained by intergrain Josephson coupling. We show here that this approach reproduces the main features of the cuprates phase diagram, gives a clear interpretation to the pseudogap phase and yields the position dependent local density of states gap $\Delta(\vec r)$ measured by tunnelling experiments.
1112.2880v1
2012-05-08
Normal and intrinsic anomalous Hall effect in Nb1-yFe2+y
The Hall effect on selected samples of the dilution series Nb1-yFe2+y is studied. Normal and anomalous contributions are observed, with positive normal Hall effect dominating at high temperatures. Consistent analysis of the anomalous contribution is only possible for Fe-rich Nb0.985Fe2.015 featuring a ferromagnetic ground state. Here, a positive normal Hall coefficient is found at all temperatures with a moderate maximum at the spin-density-wave transition. The anomalous Hall effect is consistent with an intrinsic (Berry-phase) contribution which is constant below the ordering temperature TC and continuously vanishes above TC. For stoichiometric NbFe2 and Nb-rich Nb1.01Fe1.99 - both having a spin-density-wave ground state - an additional contribution to the Hall resistivity impedes a complete analysis and indicates the need for more sophisticated models of the anomalous Hall effect in itinerant antiferromagnets.
1205.1651v1
2012-05-10
Physical properties and crystal chemistry of Ce2Ga12Pt
Single crystals of the new ternary compound Ce2Ga12Pt were prepared by the self-flux technique. The crystal structure with the space group P4/nbm was established from single-crystal X-ray diffraction data and presents a derivative of the LaGa6Ni0.6 prototype. Magnetic susceptibility measurements show Curie-Weiss behaviour due to local Ce^3+ moments. At high temperatures, the magnetic anisotropy is dominated by the crystal-electric-field (CEF) effect with the easy axis along the crystallographic c direction. Ce2Ga12Pt undergoes two antiferromagnetic phase transitions at T_N,1 = 7.3K and T_N,2 = 5.5K and presents several metamagnetic transitions for the magnetic field along c. Specific-heat measurements prove the bulk nature of these magnetic transitions and reveal a doublet CEF ground state. The 4f contribution to the resistivity shows a broad maximum at T_max ~ 85K due to Kondo scattering off the CEF ground state and excited levels.
1205.2301v1
2012-05-13
Voltage-Induced Ferromagnetic Resonance in Magnetic Tunnel Junctions
We demonstrate excitation of ferromagnetic resonance in CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) by the combined action of voltage-controlled magnetic anisotropy (VCMA) and spin transfer torque (ST). Our measurements reveal that GHz-frequency VCMA torque and ST in low-resistance MTJs have similar magnitudes, and thus that both torques are equally important for understanding high-frequency voltage-driven magnetization dynamics in MTJs. As an example, we show that VCMA can increase the sensitivity of an MTJ-based microwave signal detector to the sensitivity level of semiconductor Schottky diodes.
1205.2835v2