Low-temperature Electronic Properties Research Articles

Low-Temperature Layer-by-Layer Growth of Semiconducting Few-Layer γ-Graphyne to Exploit Robust Biocompatibility.

The sp-hybridized carbon network in single- or few-layer γ-graphyne (γ-GY) has a polarized electron distribution, which can be crucial in overcoming biosafety issues. Here, we report the low-temperature synthesis, electronic properties, and amyloid fibril nanostructures of electrostatic few-layer γ-GY. ABC stacked γ-GY is synthesized by layer-by-layer growth on a catalytic copper surface, exhibiting intrinsic p-type semiconducting properties in few-layer γ-GY. Thickness-dependent electronic properties of γ-GY elucidate interlayer interactions by electron doping between electrostatic layers and layer stacking-involved modulation of the band gap. Electrostatic few-layer γ-GY induces high electronic sensitivity and intense interaction with amyloid beta (i.e., Aβ40) peptides assembling into elongated mature Aβ40 fibrils. Two-dimensional biocompatible nanostructures of Aβ40 fibrils/few-layer γ-GY enable excellent cell viability and high neuronal differentiation of living cells without external stimulation.

Tuning of the magnetotransport properties of a spin-polarized 2D electron system using visible light

We report on the effects of visible light on the low temperature electronic properties of the spin-polarized two dimensional electron system (2DES) formed at the interfaces between LaAlO_{3}, EuTiO_{3} and (001) SrTiO_{3}. A strong, persistent modulation of both longitudinal and transverse conductivity was obtained using light emitting diodes (LEDs) with emissions at different wavelengths in the visible spectrum range. In particular, Hall effect data show that visible light induces a non-volatile electron filling of bands with mainly 3d_{xz,yz} character, and at the same time an enhancement of the anomalous Hall effect associated to the magnetic properties of the system. Accordingly, a suppression of the weak-anti localization corrections to the magneto-conductance is found, which correlates with an enhancement of the spin-polarization and of the ferromagnetic character of 2DES. The results establish the LED-induced photo-doping as a viable route for the control of the ground state properties of artificial spin-polarized oxide 2DES.

Charge order, frustration relief, and spin-orbit coupling in U3O8

Research efforts on the description of the low-temperature magnetic order and electronic properties of ${\mathrm{U}}_{3}{\mathrm{O}}_{8}$ have been inconclusive so far. Reinterpreting neutron scattering results, we use group representation theory to show that the ground state presents collinear out-of-plane magnetic moments, with antiferromagnetic coupling both in-layer and between layers. Charge order relieves the initial geometric frustration, generating a slightly distorted honeycomb sublattice with N\'eel-type order. The precise knowledge of the characteristics of this magnetic ground state is then used to explain the fine features of the band gap. In this system, spin-orbit coupling (SOC) is of critical importance, as it strongly affects the electronic structure, narrowing the gap by $\ensuremath{\sim}38%$, compared to calculations neglecting SOC. The predicted electronic structure actually explains the salient features of recent optical absorption measurements, further demonstrating the excellent agreement between the calculated ground state properties and experiment.

Non‐Destructive X‐Ray Imaging of Patterned Delta‐Layer Devices in Silicon

AbstractThe progress of miniaturization in integrated electronics has led to atomic and nanometer‐sized dopant devices in silicon. Such structures can be fabricated routinely by hydrogen resist lithography, using various dopants such as P and As. However, the ability to non‐destructively obtain atomic‐species‐specific images of the final structure, which would be an indispensable tool for building more complex nano‐scale devices, such as quantum co‐processors, remains an unresolved challenge. Here, X‐ray fluorescence is exploited to create an element‐specific image of As dopants in Si, with dopant densities in absolute units and a resolution limited by the beam focal size (here ≈1 µm), without affecting the device's low temperature electronic properties. The As densities provided by the X‐ray data are compared to those derived from Hall effect measurements as well as the standard non‐repeatable, scanning tunneling microscopy and secondary ion mass spectroscopy, techniques. Before and after the X‐ray experiments, we also measured the magneto‐conductance, which is dominated by weak localization, a quantum interference effect extremely sensitive to sample dimensions and disorder. Notwithstanding the 1.5 × 1010 Sv (1.5 × 1016 Rad cm−2) exposure of the device to X‐rays, all transport data are unchanged to within experimental errors, corresponding to upper bounds of 0.2 Angstroms for the radiation‐induced motion of the typical As atom and 3% for the loss of activated, carrier‐contributing dopants. With next generation synchrotron radiation sources and more advanced optics, the authors foresee that it will be possible to obtain X‐ray images of single dopant atoms within resolved radii of 5 nm.

Energy-gap driven low-temperature magnetic and transport properties inCr1/3MS2(M= Nb, Ta)

The helimagnets Cr$_{1/3}M$S$_2$ ($M$ = Nb or Ta) have attracted renewed attention due to the discovery of a chiral soliton lattice (CSL) stabilized in an applied magnetic field, but reports of unusual low-temperature transport and magnetic properties in this system lack a unifying explanation. Here we present electronic structure calculations that demonstrate the materials are half-metals. There is also a gap-like feature (width in range 40-100 meV) in the density of states of one spin channel. This electronic structure explains the low-temperature electronic and magnetic properties of Cr$_{1/3}M$S$_2$ ($M$ = Nb or Ta), with the gap-like feature particularly important for explaining the magnetic behavior. Our magnetometry measurements confirm the existence of this gap. Dynamic spin fluctuations driven by excitations across this gap are seen over a wide range of frequencies (0.1 Hz to MHz) with AC susceptibility and muon-spin relaxation ($\mu^+$SR) measurements. We show further how effects due to the CSL in Cr$_{1/3}$NbS$_2$, as detected with $\mu^+$SR, dominate over the gap-driven magnetism when the CSL is stabilized as the majority phase.

Highly Efficient and Super Stable Full-Color Quantum Dots Light-Emitting Diodes with Solution-Processed All-Inorganic Charge Transport Layers.

High performance and super stable all-inorganic full-color quantum dot light-emitting diodes (QLEDs) are constructed by adopting solution-processed Mg-doped NiOx (Mg-NiOx ) nanoparticles as hole transport layer (HTL) and Al-doped ZnO (AZO) as electron transport layer (ETL). Mg-NiOx nanoparticles possess the advantages of low-temperature solution processability, intrinsic stability, and controllable electronic properties. UV-ozone (UVO) treatment is applied to the Mg-NiOx film to modulate its surface composition. By carefully controlling the UVO treating time, favorable energy levels can be achieved to minimize the energy barrier for hole injection. At the cathode side, Al-doping can reduce the conductivity of ZnO ETL and decrease the interface charge transfer, effectively, thus leading to more balanced charge injection and consequent high luminance and efficiency. The maximum luminance and EQE can reach as high as 38444cd m-2 and 5.09% for R-QLEDs, 177825cd m-2 and 10.1% for G-QLEDs, and 3103cd m-2 and 2.19% for B-QLEDs. The luminance values are the highest ever reported for all-inorganic QLEDs. Furthermore, the all-inorganic devices show much better resistance to water and oxygen existing in air. The results show that the ion-doped NiOx and AZO nanoparticles would facilitate the design and development of highly efficient and super stable QLEDs.

Anisotropic Fully Gapped Superconductivity Possibly Mediated by Charge Fluctuations in a Nondimeric Organic Complex.

We investigate low-temperature electronic properties of the nondimeric organic superconductor β^{''}-(ET)_{4}[(H_{3}O)Ga(C_{2}O_{4})_{3}]PhNO_{2}. By examining ultrasonic properties, charge disproportionation (CD) without magnetic field dependence is detected below T_{CD}∼8 K just above the superconducting critical temperature T_{c}∼6 K. From quantum oscillations in high fields, we find variation in the Fermi surface and mass enhancement induced by the CD. Heat capacity studies elucidate that the superconducting gap function is fully gapped in the Fermi surface, but anisotropic with fourfold symmetry. We point out that the pairing mechanism of the superconductivity is possibly dominated by charge fluctuations.

Atomistic T -matrix theory of disordered two-dimensional materials: Bound states, spectral properties, quasiparticle scattering, and transport

In this work, we present an atomistic first-principles framework for modeling the low-temperature electronic and transport properties of disordered two-dimensional (2D) materials with randomly distributed point defects (impurities). The method is based on the $T$-matrix formalism in combination with realistic density-functional theory (DFT) descriptions of the defects and their scattering matrix elements. From the $T$-matrix approximations to the disorder-averaged Green's function (GF) and the collision integral in the Boltzmann transport equation, the method allows calculations of, e.g., the density of states (DOS) including contributions from bound defect states, the quasiparticle spectrum and the spectral linewidth (scattering rate), and the conductivity/mobility of disordered 2D materials. We demonstrate the method by examining these quantities in monolayers of the archetypal 2D materials graphene and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) contaminated with vacancy defects and substitutional impurity atoms. By comparing the Born and $T$-matrix approximations, we also demonstrate a strong breakdown of the Born approximation for defects in 2D materials manifested in a pronounced renormalization of, e.g., the scattering rate by the higher-order $T$-matrix method. As the $T$-matrix approximation is essentially exact for dilute disorder, i.e., low defect concentrations ($c_\text{dis} \ll 1$) or density ($n_\text{dis}\ll A_\text{cell}^{-1}$ where $A_\text{cell}$ is the unit cell area), our first-principles method provides an excellent framework for modeling the properties of disordered 2D materials with defect concentrations relevant for devices.

Ionic and electronic properties of the topological insulator Bi2Te2Se investigated via β -detected nuclear magnetic relaxation and resonance of Li8

We report measurements on the high temperature ionic and low temperature electronic properties of the 3D topological insulator Bi$_2$Te$_2$Se using ion-implanted $^8$Li $\beta$-detected nuclear magnetic relaxation and resonance. With implantation energies in the range 5-28 keV, the probes penetrate beyond the expected range of the topological surface state, but are still within 250 nm of the surface. At temperatures above ~150 K, spin-lattice relaxation measurements reveal isolated $^8$Li$^{+}$ diffusion with an activation energy $E_{A} = 0.185(8)$ eV and attempt frequency $\tau_{0}^{-1} = 8(3) \times 10^{11}$ s$^{-1}$ for atomic site-to-site hopping. At lower temperature, we find a linear Korringa-like relaxation mechanism with a field dependent slope and intercept, which is accompanied by an anomalous field dependence to the resonance shift. We suggest that these may be related to a strong contribution from orbital currents or the magnetic freezeout of charge carriers in this heavily compensated semiconductor, but that conventional theories are unable to account for the extent of the field dependence. Conventional NMR of the stable host nuclei may help elucidate their origin.

Study of crystal-field splitting in ultrathinCePt5films by Raman spectroscopy

Low-temperature electronic properties of rare-earth intermetallics are substantially influenced by the symmetry and magnitude of the crystal electric field. The direct spectroscopic analysis of crystal field splitting can be challenging, especially in low-dimensional systems, because it requires both high spectral resolution and pronounced sensitivity. We demonstrate the eligibility of electronic Raman spectroscopy for this purpose by the direct determination of the $4f$ level splitting in ultra-thin ordered CePt$_5$ films down to 1.7 nm thickness on Pt(111). Crystal field excitations of Ce $4f$ electrons give rise to Raman peaks with energy shifts up to $\approx$ 25 meV. Three distinct peaks occur which we attribute to inequivalent Ce sites, located (i) at the interface to the substrate, (ii) next to the Pt-terminated surface, and (iii) in the CePt$_5$ layers in between. The well-resolved Raman signatures allow us to identify a reduced crystal field splitting at the interface and an enhancement at the surface, highlighting its strong dependence on the local atomic environment.

Low-temperature electronic properties and band structures of LaTE2Si2 (TE=Fe, Co, Ag and Au)

Motivated by recent discovery of a non-Fermi liquid behavior and unconventional superconductivity in YFe2Ge2 we performed physical properties studies and fully relativistic band structure calculations for a few La-based silicides, namely LaFe2Si2, LaCo2Si2, LaAg2Si2 and LaAu2Si2. Electrical resistivity and heat capacity measurements revealed decreasing influence of d-electrons of the transition elements on the conduction electron scattering and the Sommerfeld coefficient with increasing the atomic number. Band structure calculations fully corroborated the experimental findings. No superconductivity was found in the investigated compounds down to 0.35K.

Band structure and charge doping effects of the potassium-adsorbedFeSe/SrTiO3system

We theoretically study, through combining the density functional theory and an unfolding technique, the electronic band structure and the charge doping effects for the deposition of potassium on multilayer FeSe films grown on ${\mathrm{SrTiO}}_{3}$ (001) surface. These results form a theoretical baseline for further detailed studies of low-temperature electronic properties and their multiway quantum engineering of FeSe thin films. We explain the Fermi-surface topology observed in experiment and formulate the amount of doped electrons as a function of atomic K coverage. We show that the atomic K deposition efficiently dopes electrons to the top layer of FeSe. Both checkerboard- and pair-checkerboard-antiferromagnetic (AFM) FeSe layers show electron pockets at the $M$ point and no Fermi pocket at the $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Gamma}}$ point with moderate atomic K coverage. The electron transfer from the K adsorbate to the FeSe film introduces a strong electric field, which leads to a double-Weyl-cone structure at the $M$ point in the Brillouin zone of checkerboard-AFM FeSe. We demonstrate that with experimentally accessible heavy-electron doping, an electronlike Fermi pocket will emerge at the $\mathrm{\ensuremath{\Gamma}}$ point, which should manifest itself in modulating the high-temperature superconductivity of FeSe thin films.

Pressure-induced amorphization and collapse of magnetic order in the type-I clathrate Eu8Ga16Ge30

We investigate the low temperature structural and electronic properties of the type-I clathrate Eu8Ga16Ge30 under pressure using x-ray powder diffraction (XRD), x-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) techniques. The XRD measurements reveal a transition to an amorphous phase above 18 GPa. Unlike previous reports on other clathrate compounds, no volume-collapse is observed prior to the crystalline-amorphous phase transition which takes place when the unit cell volume is reduced to 81% of its ambient pressure value. Fits of the pressure-dependent relative volume to a Murnaghan equation of state (EOS) yield a bulk modulus B0 = 65+-3 GPa and a pressure derivative B'0 = 3.3+-0.5. The Eu L2-edge XMCD data shows quenching of the magnetic order at the crystalline-amorphous phase transition. The XANES spectra indicate the persistence of Eu2+ valency state up to 22 GPa, therefore the suppression of XMCD intensity is due to the loss of magnetic order as a result of frustrated exchange interactions in the amorphous phase, and not due to quenching of local moments. When compared with other clathrates, the results point to the importance of guest ion-cage interactions in determining the mechanical stability of the framework structure and the critical pressure for amorphization. Finally, the crystalline structure is not found to recover after pressure release, resulting in a novel amorphous material that is at least metastable at ambient pressure and temperature.

Nitrogen-related effects on low-temperature electronic properties of two-dimensional electron gas in very dilute nitride GaNxAs1−x/AlGaAs (x = 0 and 0.08%) modulation-doped heterostructures

The low-temperature (4 K) two-dimensional (2D) electron gas mobility data versus carrier concentration in the modulation-doped dilute nitride GaAs1−xNx/Al0.3Ga0.7As (x = 0 and 0.08%) heterostructures are analyzed. Theoretical analysis is based on Fermi–Dirac statistics for the occupation of the quantum confined electronic states in the triangular quantum wells and the width of the quantum well versus 2D concentration. In addition, the mobility analysis is based on Matthiessen's rule for various scattering mechanisms. We found that the N-related neutral cluster alloy scattering together with crystal dislocations created at the interface strongly affects the electrons' mobility in the N-contained channel sample. We also found that as the electron concentration in the well increases from ∼1 × 1011 to 3.5 × 1011 cm−2 the carriers mainly occupy the first subband, tending to remain closer and closer to the hetero-interface.

Two-Dimensional Superfluid Density in an Alkali Metal-Organic Solvent Intercalated Iron Selenide SuperconductorLi(C5H5N)0.2Fe2Se2

We report the low-temperature electronic and magnetic properties of the alkali metal-organic solvent intercalated iron selenide superconductor Li(C5H5N)0.2Fe2Se2 using muon-spin-spectroscopy measurements. The zero-field muon spin relaxation (μSR) results indicate that nearly half of the sample is magnetically ordered and spatially phase separated from the superconducting region. The transverse-field μSR results reveal that the superfluid density of Li(C5H5N)0.2Fe2Se2 is two dimensional in nature. The temperature dependence of the penetration depth λ(T) can be explained using a two-gap s-wave model. This implies that, despite the 2D nature of the superfluid density, the symmetry of the superconducting gap remains unaltered to the parent compound FeSe.

Low Temperature Properties of Selected Kramers Rare Earth Oxychlorides

In this work, we present low temperature magnetic and electronic properties measured on selected Kramers rare-earth oxychlorides REOCl, RE= Nd, Gd, Dy which adopt the PbFCl-type of structure. Prepared powder samples were characterized by means of standard structural, magnetic and electronic methods as X-ray diffraction (300 K), heat capacity (0.3 K - 12 K) and susceptibility measurements (2 K - 300 K, at ambient pressure and hydrostatic pressures up to 0.68 ± 0.01 GPa). Our results indicate new transition to the ordered magnetic state for GdOCl and NdOCl compound at temperatures of 5 K and 1.5 K, respectively. We found small increase of magnetization saturation value of dysprosium oxychloride with an applied hydrostatic pressure, but no remarkable changes occur to antiferromagnetic transition temperature (TN ∼ 9.2 K) when a moderate hydrostatic pressure (p ≤ 0.68 ± 0.01 GPa) was applied. Observed deviations from the Curie Weiss behavior below 26 K can be caused by the vicinity of the magnetic ordering temperature, or another magnetic effects. The single crystal experiments which will solve this opened question are in progress.

Comparative study of the centrosymmetric and noncentrosymmetric superconducting phases of Re3W using muon spin spectroscopy and heat capacity measurements

We compare the low-temperature electronic properties of the centrosymmetric (CS) and noncentrosymmetric (NCS) phases of Re${}_{3}$W using muon-spin spectroscopy and heat capacity measurements. The zero-field $\ensuremath{\mu}$SR results indicate that time-reversal symmetry is preserved for both structures of Re${}_{3}$W. Transverse-field muon-spin rotation has been used to study the temperature dependence of the penetration depth $\ensuremath{\lambda}(T)$ in the mixed state. For both phases of Re${}_{3}$W, $\ensuremath{\lambda}(T)$ can be explained using a single-gap $s$-wave BCS model. The magnetic penetration depth at zero temperature $\ensuremath{\lambda}(0)$ is $164(7)$ and $418(6)$ nm for the centrosymmetric and noncentrosymmetric phases of Re${}_{3}$W, respectively. Low-temperature-specific heat data also provide evidence for an $s$-wave gap symmetry for the two phases of Re${}_{3}$W. Both the $\ensuremath{\mu}$SR and heat capacity data show that the CS material has a higher ${T}_{c}$ and a larger superconducting gap $\ensuremath{\Delta}(0)$ at 0 K than the NCS compound. The ratio $\ensuremath{\Delta}(0)/{k}_{B}{T}_{c}$ indicates that both phases of Re${}_{3}$W should be considered as strong-coupling superconductors.

Low-Temperature Magnetic Orderings and Fermi Surface Properties of LaCd11, CeCd11, and PrCd11with a Caged Crystal Structure

We succeeded in growing single crystals of cage-structure compounds RCd11 (R: La, Ce, and Pr) and precisely studied their low-temperature magnetic and electronic properties by measuring electrical resistivity, magnetic susceptibility, magnetization, specific heat, and the de Haas–van Alphen (dHvA) effect. We found antiferromagnetic ordering at 0.44 and 0.39 K in CeCd11 and PrCd11, respectively, and clarified the magnetic phase diagrams of the compounds. In addition, low-lying crystalline electric field (CEF) schemes were proposed from the specific heat results of both compounds. From the present study, the antiferromagnetic ordering in PrCd11 is found to be of the exchange-induced type with a singlet ground state. From the dHvA experiment, we detected small dHvA branches ranging from 7 � 10 5 to 2 � 10 7 Oe, which correspond to small Fermi surfaces. This is mainly due to a small Brillouin zone based on a large unit cell. Moreover, the dHvA frequencies and cyclotron masses are approximately the same among RCd11, revealing a localized character of 4f electrons in CeCd11 and PrCd11.

Influence of HCl etching on the electronic properties of LAO-defined nanostructures

We present an investigation of the influence of etching in hydrochloric acid on the topography and electronic properties of nanostructures defined by local anodic oxidation on shallow two-dimensional electron gases. The acid concentration and etching time necessary to remove the oxide lines were determined, yielding a process to create a flat surface suitable for scanning probe experiments. Changes in the low-temperature electronic properties induced by surface oxide removal include a moderate decrease of the total electron density and an increase of the breakdown voltages of the lines defined by local anodic oxidation. The obtained data indicate that the electronic width of the nanostructures decreases after the etching process.

Magnetic and orbital fluctuations in filled skutterudites

In order to clarify what types of spin and orbital fluctuations dominate over low-temperature electronic properties of Pr-based filled skutterudites, we evaluate multipole susceptibility based on a multiorbital Anderson model constructed from a j– j coupling scheme. It is found that magnetic and quadrupole fluctuations are dominant at low temperatures. When we further include the effect of rattling as dynamical Jahn–Teller phonons, there remain quadrupole and octupole fluctuations, which may induce exotic superconducting pairing.