Energy Levels Of Quantum Dots Research Articles

A highly tunable quadruple quantum dot in a narrow bandgap semiconductor InAs nanowire.

Quantum dots (QDs) made from semiconductors are among the most promising platforms for the development of quantum computing and simulation chips, and they have the advantages of high density integration and compatibility with the standard semiconductor chip fabrication technology compared to other platforms. However, the development of a highly tunable semiconductor multiple QD system still remains a major challenge. Here, we demonstrate the realization of a highly tunable linear quadruple QD (QQD) in a narrow bandgap semiconductor InAs nanowire via a fine finger gate technique. The QQD is studied by electron transport measurements in the linear response regime. Characteristic two-dimensional charge stability diagrams containing four groups of resonant current lines of different slopes are obtained for the QQD. It is shown that these current lines arise from and can be individually assigned to resonant electron transport through the energy levels of different QDs. Benefitting from the excellent gate tunability, we also demonstrate the tuning of the QQD to regimes where the energy levels of two QDs, three QDs and all four QDs are energetically in resonance, respectively, with the Fermi level of the source and drain contacts. A capacitance network model is developed for the linear QQD and the simulated charge stability diagrams based on this model show good agreement with the experiments. Our work provides solid experimental evidence that narrow bandgap semiconductor nanowire multiple QDs could be used as a versatile platform to achieve integrated qubits for quantum computing and to perform quantum simulations of complex many-body systems.

Carrier transport regulation with hole transport trilayer for efficiency enhancement in quantum dot light-emitting devices

Due to deep valence energy level of colloidal quantum dots (QDs), it's challenge to achieve efficient hole injection from organic function materials to QDs. To improve hole injection, hole transport trilayer (HTTL), consisting of 4,4′-bis(N-carbazolyl)-1,1′-biphenyl (CBP)/4,4′,4″-tris(carbazol-9-yl) triphenylamine (TCTA)/di-[4-(N,N-di(p-tolyl)-amino)-phenyl]cyclohexane (TAPC) is introduced into inverted quantum dot light-emitting devices (QLEDs). Due to the formation of cascade energy levels, the HTTL is expected to facilitate hole injection, decrease hole accumulation at QDs/hole transport layer (HTL) interface and reach better carrier balance. As a result, compared with control device without cascade energy levels, 64% enhancement in device performances is achieved for the optimized green QLED with cascade energy levels. It is proved that the reduced holes accumulation and improved carrier balance are the main reasons for the considerable efficiency enhancement.

Design Strategy of Quantum Dot Thin-Film Solar Cells.

Quantum dots (QDs) are emerging photovoltaic materials that display exclusive characteristics that can be adjusted through modification of their size and surface chemistry. However, designing a QD-based optoelectronic device requires specialized approaches compared with designing conventional bulk-based solar cells. In this paper, design considerations for QD thin-film solar cells are introduced from two different viewpoints: optics and electrics. The confined energy level of QDs contributes to the adjustment of their band alignment, enabling their absorption characteristics to be adapted to a specific device purpose. However, the materials selected for this energy adjustment can increase the light loss induced by interface reflection. Thus, management of the light path is important for optical QD solar cell design, whereas surface modification is a crucial issue for the electrical design of QD solar cells. QD thin-film solar cell architectures are fabricated as a heterojunction today, and ligand exchange provides suitable doping states and enhanced carrier transfer for the junction. Lastly, the stability issues and methods on QD thin-film solar cells are surveyed. Through these strategies, a QD solar cell study can provide valuable insights for future-oriented solar cell technology.

Landau quantization of a circular Quantum Dot using the BenDaniel-Duke boundary condition

We derive the energy levels of a circular Quantum Dot (QD) under a transverse magnetic field, incorporating the Ben-Daniel Duke boundary condition (BDD). The parameters in our model are the confinement barrier height, the size of the QD, the magnetic field strength, and a mass ratio highlighting the effect of using BDD. Charge densities, transition energies, and the dependence of energies on magnetic field has been calculated to show the strong influence of BDD. We find that our numerical calculations agree well with experimental results on the GaAs-InGaAs Quantum Dot and can be used further. We also provide an insightful analytical approximation to our numerical results, which converges well for larger values of size and confinement.

Signatures of Majorana bound state in an Aharonov-Bohm interferometer embedded with quantum dot

Abstract We consider a ring geometry with a quantum dot (QD) embedded in one of its arms, which is coupled symmetrically to two normal leads and threaded by Aharonov-Bohm (AB) flux φ. The QD is coupled to a topological nanowire. Using scattering matrix method, the differential conductance and current cross correlation are investigated. By varying the external magnetic field strength and the coupling strength between the QD and Majorana bound state (MBS), the zero-bias conductance peak (ZBCP) will split and oscillate due to the overlapping of the two MBSs. Due to the sum rule in a pair of well-separated MBSs, the total differential conductance at zero bias voltage is quantized to 2e2/h. The total differential conductance and the current cross correlation show the periodicity of π with zero QD energy level and 2π with nonzero QD energy level.

Design of spaser-like nanoparticle systems for nonclassical optical states generation

The quantum features of photon generation in multiparticle spaser systems consisting of metal nanoparticles and semiconductor quantum dots are investigated. We found the conditions for stationary regime of single-photon generation in spaser systems. In particular, in order to achieve a balance between gain and loss in the system, we determined the chemical and geometric characteristics of nanoparticles and quantum dots by using the optimization algorithm. The strong dipole-dipole interaction between nanoparticles in the spaser system is studied. We show that these conditions can lead to the violation of Cauchy-Schwartz inequality and appearance of nonclassical correlations in the system. The generation of entangled photons in a three-particle spaser system with nonlinear plasmon-exciton interaction is theoretically demonstrated. The introduction of an additional degree of freedom in the form of an external magnetic field leads to a change in the energy levels of quantum dots and provides the possibility to control the quantum properties of generated photons. We proposed the model of an effective subwavelength source of entangled photons controlled by an external magnetic field.

Continuous two-photon source using a single quantum dot in a photonic crystal cavity

We propose methods for the realization of a continuous two-photon source using a coherently driven quantum dot embedded inside a photonic crystal cavity. We analyze the steady state population in quantum dot energy levels and field inside the cavity mode. We find conditions for population inversion in coherently driven and incoherently driven quantum dots. We discuss the effect of phonon coupling using the recently developed polaron transformed master equation at low temperatures. We show that on increasing temperature, two-photon gain decreases and single photon gain increases, due to phonon-assisted cavity mode feeding. We also propose a scheme for generating a squeezed state of field using four wave mixing.

Scanned Single-Electron Probe inside a Silicon Electronic Device.

Solid-state devices can be fabricated at the atomic scale, with applications ranging from classical logic to current standards and quantum technologies. Although it is very desirable to probe these devices and the quantum states they host at the atomic scale, typical methods rely on long-ranged capacitive interactions, making this difficult. Here, we probe a silicon electronic device at the atomic scale using a localized electronic quantum dot induced directly within the device at a desired location, using the biased tip of a low-temperature scanning tunneling microscope. We demonstrate control over short-ranged tunnel coupling interactions of the quantum dot with the device's source reservoir using sub-nanometer position control of the tip and the quantum dot energy level using a voltage applied to the device's gate reservoir. Despite the ∼1 nm proximity of the quantum dot to the metallic tip, we find that the gate provides sufficient capacitance to enable a high degree of electric control. Combined with atomic-scale imaging, we use the quantum dot to probe applied electric fields and charge in individual defects in the device. This capability is expected to aid in the understanding of atomic-scale devices and the quantum states realized in them.

The modulation of Majorana bound states comb through quantum dots

Performing the scattering matrix approach, we calculate the current noise cross correlation and the differential conductance in the Majorana bound states (MBSs) comb. The teeth on the comb consist of topological super-conducting nanowire sandwiched between two quantum dots (QDs). We find that the nonlocal property of MBSs comb can be effectively modulated by the quantum dots. For only one “QD-MBSs-QD” building block, N = 1, the current noise cross correlation is negative at small bias and becomes positive at lager bias. A zero bias conductance peak of 2e2/h can be found, and it splits with ϵu increasing, where ϵu is the energy level of up-part QD. For N ≥ 2, the current noise cross correlation is zero at small bias and becomes positive at larger bias. Different from the case of N = 1, the zero bias conductance peak is 4e2/h due to the local Andreev reflection. Besides, we find that the differential conductance is robust against the influence of N.

Temperature and hydrostatic pressure effects on the electronic structure, optical properties of spherical segment quantum dot/wetting layer and group velocity of light

To investigate hydrostatic pressure and temperature effects on electron energy levels of an InAs spherical segment quantum dot with wetting layer embedded in GaAs barrier, we use the finite element method to solve the Schrödinger equation in the effective mass approximation. Results show that the ground, the first and the second excited state energies decrease (increase) as the hydrostatic pressure (temperature) increases for the constant temperature (pressure). Moreover, given the optical properties of the system interacting with two laser fields, red (blue) shifts are observed in the linear and nonlinear absorptions and dispersions for the probe pulse as the hydrostatic pressure (temperature) increases. Furthermore, as the hydrostatic pressure increases, the maximum of the group velocity of light inside the slow light frequency range increases and the slow light frequency range shifts to the lower probe frequencies.

Current cross-correlations and waiting time distributions in Andreev transport through Cooper pair splitters based on a triple quantum dot system

We study the spin-resolved subgap transport in a triple quantum-dot system coupled to one superconducting and two ferromagnetic leads. We examine the Andreev processes in the parallel and antiparallel alignments of ferromagnets magnetic moments in both the linear and nonlinear response regimes. The emphasis is put on the analysis of the current cross-correlations between the currents flowing through the left and right arms of the device and relevant electron waiting time distributions. We show that both quantities can give an important insight into the subgap transport processes and their analysis can help optimizing the system parameters for achieving the considerable Andreev current and efficient Cooper pair splitting. Strong positive values of cross-correlations are associated with the presence of tunneling processes enhancing the Cooper pair splitting efficiency, while short waiting times for electrons tunneling through distinct ferromagnetic contacts indicate fast splitting of emitted Cooper pairs. In particular, we study two detuning schemes and show that antisymmetric shift of side quantum dots energy levels is favorable for efficient Cooper pair splitting. The analysis of spin-resolved waiting time distributions supports the performance enhancement due to the presence of ferromagnetic contacts, which is in particular revealed for short times. Finally, we consider the effect of changing the inter-dot hopping amplitude and predict that strong inter-dot correlations lead to a reduction of Andreev transport properties in low-bias limit.

Emerging Atomic Energy Levels in Zero-Dimensional Silicon Quantum Dots.

Driven by the emergence of colloidal semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) of tunable emission wavelengths, characteristic of exciton absorption peaks, outstanding photostability and solution processability in device fabrication have become a key tool in the development of nanomedicine and optoelectronics. Diamond cubic crystalline silicon (Si) QDs, with a diameter larger than 2 nm, terminated with hydrogen atoms are known to exhibit bulk-inherited spin and valley properties. Herein, we demonstrate a newly discovered size region of Si QDs, in which a fast radiative recombination on the order of hundreds of picoseconds is responsible for photoluminescence (PL). Despite retaining a crystallographic structure like the bulk, controlling their diameters in the 1.1-1.7 nm range realizes the strong PL with continuous spectral tunability in the 530-580 nm window, the narrow spectral line widths without emission tails, and the fast relaxation of photogenerated carriers. In contrast, QDs with diameters greater than 1.8 nm display the decay times on the microsecond order as well as the previous Si QDs. In addition to the five-orders-of-magnitude variation in the PL decay time, a systematic study on the temperature dependence of PL properties suggests that the energy structure of the smaller QDs does not retain an indirect band gap character. It is discussed that a 1.7 nm diameter is critical to undergo changes in energy structure from bulky to molecular configurations.

Antiresonance and its application in tri-quantum-dot systems

Antiresonance and its application in triple-quantum-dot systems are studied theoretically using nonequilibrium Green’s function method. The presence or absence of antiresonance point can be used to determine whether quantum dot impurity exists in the system. For a tri-quantum-dot ring, the conversion between 0 and 1 for the conductance can be realized by adjusting the energy levels of quantum dots, which makes the system applicable as a quantum switch. The coupling strength can be measured according to the energy level of the antiresonance point. Once the intradot Coulomb interactions are taken into account, three new Fano antiresonances emerge in the conductance spectrum. Under the action of the magnetic field, two antiresonance points disappear simultaneously. Our work sheds lights onto the design and implementation of new quantum functional devices for electronic measurements.

Energy levels of graphene magnetic circular quantum dot

We study the energy levels of graphene magnetic circular quantum dot surrounded by an infinite graphene sheet in the presence of an electrostatic potential. We solve Dirac equation to derive the solutions of energy spectrum associated with different regions composing our system. Using the continuum model and applying boundary conditions at the interface, we obtain analytical results for the energy levels. The dependence of the energy levels on the quantum dot radius, magnetic field and electrostatic potential is analyzed for the two valleys K and . We show that the energy levels exhibit characteristics of interface states and have an energy gap.

Antiresonance in electron transport through a four quantum dots system

A four quantum dots structure is designed. The influence of the interdot coupling strength, energy levels of quantum dots, magnetic flux and intradot Coulomb interactions on the conductance is discussed. An antiresonance point exactly emerges at the location of the energy level of side-coupled quantum dots (SCQD). The conversion between resonance band and antiresonance band can be achieved as parallel-coupled di-quantum dots with or without SCQD, which suggests a physical scheme of an effective quantum switch. The Breit–Wigner resonant and Fano antiresonant peaks may merge into one resonant band. By means of the mathematical formula, we analyze how the resonance band is formed. By varying intradot Coulomb interaction, the resonance band may evolve into a Fano antiresonance with an ultra-narrow width. This study provides theoretical basis for the design of quantum computing devices.

Spatial Optimization of Modulation Doping in P-I-P QDIPs: Towards Achieving Higher Operating Temperature

We report short wavelength infrared (SWIR) photodetectors using multi-stacked modulation doped Indium-Arsenide (InAs) self-assembled quantum dots (QDs). The detriments of direct doping on the energy levels of InAs QDs have been eliminated by choosing modulation doping. We have considered three P-I-P Indium Arsenide/Gallium Arsenide (InAs/GaAs) quantum dot infrared photodetector (QDIP) heterostructures in which a thin (3 nm) P-doped GaAs layer is introduced at a distance of 7, 12 and 17 nm away from each InAs dot layer respectively. The structures have been analyzed for their morphological and optical characteristics and an optimum separation between the active layer and modulation doped layer has been achieved. The fabricated single pixel detectors exhibit a broad spectral response from 1 to 3.5 μm in the SWIR region for all the samples. The infrared photocurrent survives up to a maximum temperature of 200K for the optimized device with a peak responsivity of 1.439 A/W at wavelength λ = 1.77 μm and temperature T = 200 K.

Bound state energies of a diatomic quantum dot molecule in a magnetic field

We investigate energy levels of a diatomic quantum dot by using an analytical method. We use Schrodinger equation for spherical quantum dot molecule in the presence of a static magnetic field and a confining potential which is Morse potential. We obtain the ground state and the excited states eigen solutions which are compared with the experimental data.

Superlattice nanowire heat engines with direction-dependent power output and heat current

Heat engines (HEs) made of low dimensional structures offer promising applications in energy harvesting due to their reduced phonon thermal conductance. Many efforts have been devoted to the design of HEs made of quantum-dot (QD) superlattice nanowire (SLNW), but only SLNWs with uniform energy levels in QDs were considered. Here we propose a HE made of SLNW with staircase-like QD energy levels. It is demonstrated that the nonlinear Seebeck effect can lead to significant electron transports for such a nanowire with staircase-like energy levels. The asymmetrical alignment of energy levels of quantum dots embedded in nanowires can be controlled to allow resonant electron transport under forward temperature bias, while they are in off-resonant regime under backward bias. Under such a mechanism,the power output and efficiency of such a SLNW are better than SLNWs with uniform QD energy levels. The SLNW HE has direction-dependent power output and heat current. In addition, the HE has the functionality of a heat diode with impressive negative differential thermal conductance under open circuit condition.

Nonlinear chiral refrigerators

We investigate a mesoscopic refrigerator based on chiral quantum Hall edge channels. We discuss a three-terminal cooling device in which charge transport occurs between a pair of voltage-biased terminals only. The third terminal, which is to be cooled, is set as a voltage probe with vanishing particle flux. This largely prevents the generation of direct Joule heating which ensures a high coefficient of performance. Cooling operation is based on energy-dependent quantum transmissions. The latter are implemented with the aid of two tunable scattering resonances (quantum dots). To find the optimal performance point and the largest temperature difference created with our refrigerator, it is crucial to address the nonlinear regime of transport, accounting for electron-electron interaction effects. Our numerical simulations show that the maximal cooling power can be tuned with the quantum dot couplings and energy levels. Further, we provide analytical expressions within a weakly nonlinear scattering-matrix formalism which allow us to discuss the conditions for optimal cooling in terms of generalized thermopowers. Our results are important for the assessment of chiral conductors as promising candidates for efficient quantum refrigerators with low dissipation.

Heat capacity and entropy of Gaussian spherical quantum dot in the presence of donor impurity

The energy states of shallow donor impurity in GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dot heterostructure with Gaussian potential have been calculated by the shifted 1/N expansion method. The effects of the impurity on the ground state energy and average statistical energy have been investigated. The present calculations show that the donor impurity modifies significantly the electron energy levels of spherical quantum dot and thermal properties. In addition, we have also displayed the variations of the heat capacity and entropy of donor impurity in quantum dot with the radius, confining potential depth, dimension and temperature. The comparison shows that our results are in very good agreement with the theoretical reported work.