Peak In Differential Conductance Research Articles

Spectroscopic signature of obstructed surface states in SrIn2P2

The century-long development of surface sciences has witnessed the discoveries of a variety of quantum states. In the recently proposed “obstructed atomic insulators”, symmetric charges are pinned at virtual sites where no real atoms reside. The cleavage through these sites could lead to a set of obstructed surface states with partial electronic occupation. Here, utilizing scanning tunneling microscopy, angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy and first-principles calculations, we observe spectroscopic signature of obstructed surface states in SrIn2P2. We find that a pair of surface states that are originated from the pristine obstructed surface states split in energy by a unique surface reconstruction. The upper branch is marked with a striking differential conductance peak followed by negative differential conductance, signaling its localized nature, while the lower branch is found to be highly dispersive. This pair of surface states is in consistency with our calculational results. Our finding not only demonstrates a surface quantum state induced by a new type of bulk-boundary correspondence, but also provides a platform for exploring efficient catalysts and related surface engineering.

Large zero bias peaks and dips in a four-terminal thin InAs-Al nanowire device

We report electron transport studies of a thin InAs-Al hybrid semiconductor-superconductor nanowire device using a four-terminal design. Compared to previous works, thinner InAs nanowire (diameter less than 40 nm) is expected to reach fewer sub-band regime. The four-terminal device design excludes electrode contact resistance, an unknown value which has inevitably affected previously reported device conductance. Using tunneling spectroscopy, we find large zero-bias peaks (ZBPs) in differential conductance on the order of $2e^2/h$. Investigating the ZBP evolution by sweeping various gate voltages and magnetic field, we find a transition between a zero-bias peak and a zero-bias dip while the zero-bias conductance sticks close to $2e^2/h$. We discuss a topologically trivial interpretation involving disorder, smooth potential variation and quasi-Majorana zero modes.

Valence fluctuations and Kondo resonance in Co adatom on Cu2N/Cu(100) surface: DFT + ED study

We report density functional theory plus exact diagonalization of the multi-orbital Anderson impurity model calculations including the spin–orbit coupling for the Co adatom on the top of Cu2N/Cu(001) surface. It is found that experimentally observed zero-bias peak in differential conductance can occur for quasi-degenerate many-body solution representing a mixed valence state of the Co adatom with the non-integer d manifold occupation of 7.4. Estimated 5 meV inelastic step energy is in a quantitative agreement with the experimental scanning tunnelling spectroscopy value of 6 meV. We find the non-zero spin and orbital magnetic moments in the applied magnetic field, in a reasonable agreement with the x-ray magnetic circular dichroism data. The presence of large orbital magnetic moment was not considered in previous spin-only theoretical interpretations, and can unravel complexity of the physics behind the experimental spectra for Co and other adatoms on Cu2N/Cu(001) surface.

Identification of the Majorana edge modes in tight-binding systems based on the Krylov method

Low dimensional structures in the non-trivial topological phase can host the in-gap Majorana bound states, identified experimentally as zero-bias peaks in differential conductance. Theoretical methods for studying Majorana modes are mostly based on the bulk-boundary correspondence or exact diagonalization of finite systems via, e.g., Bogoliubov–de Gennes formalism. In this paper, we develop an efficient method for identifying the Majorana in-gap (edge) states via looking for extreme eigenvalues of symmetric matrices. The presented approach is based on the Krylov method and allows for study the spatial profile of the modes as well as the spectrum of the system. The advantage of this method is the calculation cost, which shows linear dependence on the number of lattice sites. The latter problem may be solved for very large clusters of arbitrary shape/geometry. In order to demonstrate the efficiency of our approach, we study two- and three-dimensional clusters described by the Kitaev and Rashba models for which we determine the number of Majorana modes and calculate their spatial structures. Additionally, we discuss the impact of the system size on the physical properties of the topological phase of the magnetic nanoisland deposited on the superconducting surface. In this case, we have shown that the eigenvalues of the in-gap states depend on the length of the system edge.

Artificial Graphene on Si Substrates: Fabrication and Transport Characteristics.

Artificial graphene (AG) based on a honeycomb lattice of semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) has been of great interest for exploration and applications of massless Dirac Fermions in semiconductors thanks to the tunable interplay between the carrier interactions and the honeycomb topology. Here, an innovative strategy to realize AG on Si substrates is developed by fabricating a honeycomb lattice of Au nanodisks on a Si/GeSi quantum well. The lateral potential modulation induced by the nanoscale Au/Si Schottky junction results in the formation of quantum dots arranged in a honeycomb lattice to form AG. Nonlinear current-voltage curves of the AG reveal conductance phase transitions with switch on/off voltages, a large electric hysteresis loop, and a strong sharp current peak accompanied by a group of differential-conductance peaks and negative differential conductance around the switch-on voltage, which can be modulated by temperature and light. These features are interpreted by a model based on the Coulomb blockade effect, the collective resonant tunneling, and the coupling of holes in the AG. Our results not only demonstrate an approach to the formation but also will greatly stimulate the characterizations and the applications of innovative semiconductor-based AG.

Differential conductance and spin current in hybrid quantum dot-topological superconducting nanowire

Majorana bound states (MBSs) are topologically protected and follow the non-abelian rather than the usual Fermi–Dirac statistical rule, and then are ideal choice for the preparation of quantum bits in topologically fault-tolerant quantum computing. The MBSs also have significant influences on the electron transport processes in mesoscopic systems and have been studied in the field of fabricating efficient and energy-saving quantum devices. In this study, we investigated electron transport through a hybridized system composed of a topological superconducting nanowire and quantum dot (QD). Effects of MBSs prepared at the nanowire on differential conductance are calculated and analyzed. It is proved that the differential conductance peak near the superconducting nanowires at zero bias reflects the existence of Majorana fermions. By using the Green's function equation of motion method, we found that a pure spin current without the accompany of charge current can be generated by changing the coupling strength between the QD and MBSs, as well as the accumulation of spin heat in the leads. In the presence of Coulomb interaction in the QD, the direction of pure spin current can be changed by modulating the dot energy level and the coupling strength between dot and MBSs.

Sensitive terahertz-wave detector responses originated by negative differential conductance of resonant-tunneling-diode oscillator

We present an experimental characterization of frequency- and bias-dependent detector responses in a resonant-tunneling-diode (RTD) terahertz (THz)-wave oscillator. By tuning the incident THz-wave frequency and the bias voltage applied to the RTD device, the origins of detection signals are identified to be two distinct detection modes. One is based on square-law detection near the peak and valley points of the negative differential conductance (NDC) region, with the detection bandwidth determined by an integrated slot antenna. The other is based on detectable current changes induced by injection locking within the NDC region when the frequency of the incident THz-wave radiation to be detected is coincident with that of the bias-dependent RTD self-oscillation between 0.74 and 0.81 THz, resulting in a minimum noise equivalent power (NEP) of 7.7 pW/√Hz at 0.78 THz at room temperature. Our conclusions demonstrate that an RTD oscillator can be used as a sensitive THz-wave detector within and around the NDC region.

Temperature induced shifts of Yu\u2013Shiba\u2013Rusinov resonances in nanowire-based hybrid quantum dots

The strong coupling of a superconductor to a spinful quantum dot results in Yu–Shiba–Rusinov discrete subgap excitations. In isolation and at zero temperature, the excitations are sharp resonances. In transport experiments, however, they show as broad differential conductance peaks. Here we obtain the lineshape of the peaks and their temperature dependence in superconductor–quantum dot–metal nanowire-based devices. Unexpectedly, we find that the peaks shift in energy with temperature, with the shift magnitude and sign depending on ground state parity and bias voltage. Additionally, we empirically find a power-law trend of the peak area versus temperature. These observations are not explained by current models.

Super-Andreev reflection and longitudinal shift of pseudospin-1 fermions

Novel fermions with a pseudospin-1 structure can be realized as emergent quasiparticles in condensed matter systems. Here, we investigate its unusual properties during the Andreev reflection at a normal-metal/superconductor (NS) interface. We show that distinct from the previously studied pseudospin-1/2 and two dimensional electron gas models, the pseudospin-1 fermions exhibit a strongly enhanced Andreev reflection probability, and remarkably, can be further tuned to approach perfect Andreev reflection with unit efficiency for all incident angles, exhibiting a previously unknown {super-Andreev reflection effect}. The super-Andreev reflection leads to perfect transparency of the NS interface that strongly promotes charge injection into the superconductor, and directly manifests as a differential conductance peak which can be readily probed in experiment. Additionally, we find that sizable longitudinal shifts exist in the normal and Andreev reflections of pseudospin-1 fermions. Distinct from the pseudospin-1/2 case, the shift is always in the forward direction in the subgap regime, regardless of whether the reflection is of retro- or specular type.

Tunneling in two-layer systems with electron-hole coupling (Review article)

A phase-coherent state of electron–hole pairs may emerge in two-layer n–p systems, which is generated by the Coulomb attraction of electrons of the n-layer to holes of the p-layer. Unlike a Josephson junctions, the order parameter phase in n–p bilayers is locked by interlayer tunneling matrix elements T12. The phase locking determines the response of the electron–hole condensate to the electric voltage between the layers: the phase is constant at low voltages V Vc. The change in the system dynamics at V = Vc results in a peak along the differential tunneling conductance. The width of the Vc peak is proportional to the absolute value of the tunneling matrix element |T12|, while its height does not depend on |T12|. Thus, for small |T12| the peak is tall and narrow. In the case of long two-layer systems, a magnetic field parallel to the layers significantly reduces the peak height. In small two-layer systems, the height of the tunneling conductance peak as a function of a parallel magnetic field is similar to the Fraunhofer diffraction pattern. The interlayer differential tunneling conductance peak is also strongly suppressed by temperature, due to thermal interlayer voltage fluctuations.

Robust atomic-structure of the 6 × 2 reconstruction surface of Ge(110) protected by the electronically transparent graphene monolayer.

Wafer-scale growth of the unidirectional graphene monolayer on Ge surfaces has rejuvenated the intense study of the surfaces and interfaces of semiconductors underneath graphene. Recently, it was reported that the Ge atoms in the Ge(110) surface beneath a graphene monolayer underwent a rearrangement and formed an ordered (6 × 2) reconstruction. However, a plausible atomic model related to this (6 × 2) reconstruction is still lacking. Here, by using scanning tunnelling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/S) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations, we deeply investigated the structural and electronic properties of the Ge(110) (6 × 2) surface encapsulated by a graphene monolayer. The (6 × 2) surface reconstruction was confirmed for the post-annealing-graphene-covered Ge(110) surface via STM, and was found to be quite air-stable, owing to the protection of the graphene monolayer against surface oxidation. Our study disclosed that the topographic features of the topmost graphene monolayer and the Ge(110) surface could be selectively imaged by utilizing suitable scanning biases. According to the STM results and DFT calculations, a rational ball-and-stick model of the (6 × 2) reconstruction was successfully provided, in which an elemental building block comprising two Ge triangles and two isolated Ge atoms adsorbed on the unreconstructed ideal Ge(110) surface. Local density of states of the graphene/Ge surface was explored via scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS), presenting four well-defined differential conductance (dI/dV) peaks, protruding at energies of 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 0.8 eV, respectively. The four peaks predominantly originated from the surface states of the reconstructing adatoms and were well reproduced by our theoretical simulation. This result means that the Ge surface is very robust after being encapsulated by the epitaxial graphene, which could be advantageous for directly fabricating graphene/Ge-hybrid high-speed electronics and optoelectronics based on conventional microelectronics technology.

Spin-resolved transport physics induced by a Majorana-fermion zero mode

By using the Hubbard operator Green’s function method, the spin-resolved transport properties of a quantum dot coupled to metallic leads and side-coupled to a topological superconductor wire hosting Majorana bound states (MBSs) are studied theoretically. Compared with the second quantization representation, the method can lead us to an analytical result for the retarded Green’s function with finite U. The spin-related current and conductance are discussed. In the case of zero Coulomb interaction and on-resonance, the MBS’s 1/2 signature is recovered, and furthermore, there exists a 1/2 negative differential spin conductance. In the case of infinite Coulomb interaction, the 1/2 signature does not survive due to the Coulomb correlation reducing the current and conductance. Also due to this correlation, the MBS-induced symmetry of conductance peaks around zero energy is destroyed. In addition to this, we find that there are two MBS-induced negative differential spin conductance peaks. Theoretically, our work is supplementary and contrastive to the mainstream second quantization method, and these spin-resolved results may be observed in future experiments.

Phenomenology of the soft gap, zero-bias peak, and zero-mode splitting in ideal Majorana nanowires

We theoretically consider the observed soft gap in the proximity-induced superconducting state of semiconductor nanowires in the presence of spin-orbit coupling, Zeeman splitting, and tunneling leads, but in the absence of any extrinsic disorder. We critically consider the effects of three distinct intrinsic physical mechanisms (tunnel barrier to normal leads, temperature, and dissipation) on the phenomenology of the gap softness in the tunnel spectroscopy of the normal-superconductor junction as a function of spin splitting and chemical potential. We find that all three mechanisms individually can produce a soft gap, leading to calculated conductance spectra qualitatively mimicking experimental results. We also show that the phenomenology of the soft gap is intrinsically tied to the broadening and the height of the Majorana zero mode(MZM)-induced differential conductance peak above the topological quantum phase transition point with both the soft gap and the quality of the MZM being simultaneously affected by tunnel barrier, temperature, and dissipation. We establish that the MZM splitting oscillations can be suppressed by temperature or dissipation, but not by the tunnel barrier. Since all three mechanisms are likely to be present in any realistic nanowires, discerning the effects of various mechanisms is difficult, necessitating detailed experimental data as a function of all the system parameters, some of which (e.g., dissipation, chemical potential, tunnel barrier) may not be known experimentally. While the tunneling-induced soft-gap behavior is benign with no direct adverse effect on the Majorana topological properties with the zero-bias peak remaining quantized at $2e^2/h$, the soft gap induced by finite temperature and/or finite dissipation is detrimental to topological properties and must be avoided as much as possible.

Transport properties of a quantum dot-mediated fractional Josephson junction

We consider a model of a Josephson junction mediated by a quantum dot. An additional normal electrode coupled to the dot allows its density of states to be probed. The junction is made out of two topological superconducting wires with Majorana end states. The two of them, on each side and in the proximity of the junction, convert into a Dirac fermion inside the dot. It is shown that both the density of states of the dot and the phase-biased current through the junction can exhibit periodicity in the superconducting phase difference, when the particle-hole symmetry of the junction is broken. It is realized by detuning of the dot level from the Fermi level by the gate voltage. The width of zero-bias peak in differential conductance, produced by an unpaired Majorana state, also possesses periodicity under this condition.

Kondo-like zero-bias conductance anomaly in a three-dimensional topological insulator nanowire.

Zero-bias anomalies in topological nanowires have recently captured significant attention, as they are possible signatures of Majorana modes. Yet there are many other possible origins of zero-bias peaks in nanowires—for example, weak localization, Andreev bound states, or the Kondo effect. Here, we discuss observations of differential-conductance peaks at zero-bias voltage in non-superconducting electronic transport through a 3D topological insulator (Bi1.33Sb0.67)Se3 nanowire. The zero-bias conductance peaks show logarithmic temperature dependence and often linear splitting with magnetic fields, both of which are signatures of the Kondo effect in quantum dots. We characterize the zero-bias peaks and discuss their origin.

Transfering spin into an extendedπorbital of a large molecule

By means of low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and spectroscopy (STS), we have investigated the adsorption of single Au atoms on a PTCDA monolayer physisorbed on the Au(111) surface. A chemical reaction between the Au atom and the PTCDA molecule leads to the formation of a radical that has an unpaired electron in its highest occupied orbital. This orbital is a $\ensuremath{\pi}$ orbital that extends over the whole Au-PTCDA complex. Because of the large Coulomb repulsion in this orbital, the unpaired electron generates a local moment when the molecule is adsorbed on the Au(111) surface. We demonstrate the formation of the radical and the existence of the local moment after adsorption by observing a zero-bias differential conductance peak that originates from the Kondo effect. By temperature dependent measurements of the zero-bias differential conductance, we determine the Kondo temperature to be ${T}_{\mathrm{K}}=(38\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}8)\phantom{\rule{0.16em}{0ex}}\mathrm{K}$. For the theoretical description of the properties of the Au-PTCDA complex we use a hierarchy of methods, ranging from density functional theory (DFT) including a van der Waals correction to many-body perturbation theory (MBPT) and the numerical renormalization group (NRG) approach. Regarding the high-energy orbital spectrum, we obtain an excellent agreement with experiments by both spin-polarized DFT/MBPT and NRG. Moreover, the NRG provides an accurate description of the low-energy excitation spectrum of the spin degree of freedom, predicting a Kondo temperature very close to the experimental value. This is achieved by a detailed analysis of the universality of various definitions of ${T}_{\mathrm{K}}$ and by taking into account the full energy dependence of the coupling function between the molecule-metal complex and the metallic substrate.

Parity independence of the zero-bias conductance peak in a nanowire based topological superconductor-quantum dot hybrid device.

We explore the signatures of Majorana fermions in a nanowire based topological superconductor-quantum dot-topological superconductor hybrid device by charge transport measurements. At zero magnetic field, well-defined Coulomb diamonds and the Kondo effect are observed. Under the application of a finite, sufficiently strong magnetic field, a zero-bias conductance peak structure is observed. It is found that the zero-bias conductance peak is present in many consecutive Coulomb diamonds, irrespective of the even-odd parity of the quasi-particle occupation number in the quantum dot. In addition, we find that the zero-bias conductance peak is in most cases accompanied by two differential conductance peaks, forming a triple-peak structure, and the separation between the two side peaks in bias voltage shows oscillations closely correlated to the background Coulomb conductance oscillations of the device. The observed zero-bias conductance peak and the associated triple-peak structure are in line with Majorana fermion physics in such a hybrid topological system.

Signatures of tunable Majorana-fermion edge states

Chiral Majorana-fermion modes are shown to emerge as edge excitations in a superconductor–topological-insulator hybrid structure that is subject to a magnetic field. The velocity of this mode is tunable by changing the magnetic-field magnitude and/or the superconductor's chemical potential. We discuss how quantum-transport measurements can yield experimental signatures of these modes. A normal lead coupled to the Majorana-fermion edge state through electron tunneling induces resonant Andreev reflections from the lead to the grounded superconductor, resulting in a distinctive pattern of differential-conductance peaks.

Above-gap and subgap differential conductance anomaly in concentrated magnetic semiconductor Zn0.32Co0.68O1−v/Pb superconductor hybrid junctions

The Zn0.32Co0.68O1-v/Pb hybrid junctions were prepared, where the concentrated magnetic semiconductor Zn0.32Co0.68O1-v is in the region of variable range hopping transport instead of the ballistic or diffusive transport. The high differential conductance peak at gap voltage and two above-gap peaks were observed below the superconducting critical temperature. Moreover, both the zero bias conductance peak and the finite bias conductance peak were observed below the gap voltage. All these differential conductance peaks systematically evolve and finally disappear as the temperature or the magnetic field increases. These transport phenomena were explained by phase coherent Andreev reflection in the presence of strong disorder, magnetic impurity scattering, and spin polarization. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Scaling of the Kondo zero-bias peak in a hole quantum dot at finite temperatures

We have measured the zero bias peak in differential conductance in a hole quantum dot. We have scaled the experimental data with applied bias and compared to real time renormalization group calculations of the differential conductance as a function of source-drain bias in the limit of zero temperature and at finite temperatures. The experimental data show deviations from the T=0 calculations at low bias, but are in very good agreement with the finite T calculations. The Kondo temperature T_K extracted from the data using T=0 calculations, and from the peak width at 2/3 maximum, is significantly higher than that obtained from finite T calculations.