Two-dimensional Periodic Substrate Research Articles

Driven particle in a two-dimensional periodic substrate: Nonmonotonic dependence of drift velocity on temperature.

Motion of a driven particle in a two-dimensional (2D) periodic potential of square symmetry is studied by means of Brownian dynamics simulations. The average drift velocity and long time diffusion coefficients are obtained as a function of driving force and temperature. For driving forces above the critical depinning force, a reduction of drift velocity is observed as temperature is increased. The drift velocity reaches a minimum for temperatures at which k_{B}T is of the order of the barrier height of the substrate potential and then increases and saturates to the value of drift velocity for the substrate free case. Depending on the driving force, the drop in drift velocity can be as large as 36% of its value at low temperatures. While this phenomenon is observed in 2D for different types of substrate potentials studied and for various drive directions, studies using the exact result show no such dip in drift velocity in one dimension (1D). As in the case of 1D, a peak is observed in the longitudinal diffusion coefficient as the driving force is varied at a fixed temperature. But unlike in 1D, the location of the peak is temperature dependent. Approximate analytical expressions for the average drift velocity and the longitudinal diffusion coefficient are formulated using the exact results in 1D by finding a temperature dependent effective 1D potential to model the motion in the presence of a 2D substrate. This approximate analysis is successful in qualitatively predicting the observations.

Statics and dynamics of skyrmions interacting with disorder and nanostructures

Magnetic skyrmions are topologically stable nanoscale particle-like objects that were discovered in 2009. Since that time, intense research interest has led to the identification of numerous compounds that support skyrmions over a range of conditions spanning cryogenic to room temperatures. Skyrmions can be set into motion under various types of driving, and the combination of their size, stability, and dynamics makes them ideal candidates for numerous applications. Skyrmions represent a new class of system in which the energy scales of the skyrmion-skyrmion interactions, sample disorder, temperature, and drive can compete. A growing body of work indicates that the static and dynamic states of skyrmions can be influenced strongly by pinning or disorder in the sample; thus, an understanding of such effects is essential for the eventual use of skyrmions in applications. In this article we review the current state of knowledge regarding individual skyrmions and skyrmion assemblies interacting with quenched disorder or pinning. We outline the microscopic mechanisms for skyrmion pinning, including the repulsive and attractive interactions that can arise from impurities, grain boundaries, or nanostructures. This is followed by descriptions of depinning phenomena, sliding states over disorder, the effect of pinning on the skyrmion Hall angle, the competition between thermal and pinning effects, the control of skyrmion motion using ordered potential landscapes such as one- or two-dimensional periodic asymmetric substrates, the creation of skyrmion diodes, and skyrmion ratchet effects. We highlight the distinctions arising from internal modes and the strong gyroscopic or Magnus forces that cause the dynamical states of skyrmions to differ from those of other systems with pinning. We also discuss future directions and open questions related to the pinning and dynamics in skyrmion systems.

Directional locking in a two-dimensional Yukawa solid modulated by a two-dimensional periodic substrate.

Directional depinning dynamics of a two-dimensional (2D) dusty plasma solid modulated by a 2D square periodic substrate are investigated using Langevin dynamical simulations. We observe prominent directional locking effects when the direction of the external driving force is varied relative to the underlying square substrate. These locking steps appear when the direction of the driving force is close to the symmetry direction of the substrate, corresponding to the different dynamical flow patterns and the structures. In the conditions between the adjacent locking steps, moving ordered states are observed. Although the discontinuous transitions often occur between the locking steps and the nonlocking portion, the continuous transitions are also found around the locking step associated with the disordered plastic flow close to its termini. Our results show that directional locking also occurs for underdamped systems, which could be tested experimentally in dusty plasmas modulated by 2D substrates.

Commensuration effects on skyrmion Hall angle and drag for manipulation of skyrmions on two-dimensional periodic substrates

We examine the dynamics of an individually driven skyrmion moving through a background lattice of skyrmions coupled to a 2D periodic substrate as we vary the ratio of the number of skyrmions to the number of pinning sites across commensurate and incommensurate conditions. As the skyrmion density increases, the skyrmion Hall angle is nonmonotonic, dropping to low or zero values in commensurate states and rising to an enhanced value in incommensurate states. Under commensuration, the driven skyrmion is channeled by a symmetry direction of the pinning array and exhibits an increased velocity. At fillings for which the skyrmion Hall angle is zero, the velocity has a narrow band noise signature, while for incommensurate fillings, the skyrmion motion is disordered and the velocity noise is broad band. Under commensurate conditions, multi-step depinning transitions appear and the skyrmion Hall angle is zero at low drives but becomes finite at higher drives, while at incommensurate fillings there is only a single depinning transition. As the gyrotropic component of the skyrmion dynamics, called the Magnus force, increases, peaks in the velocity that appear in commensurate regimes cross over to dips, and new types of directional locking effects can arise in which the skyrmion travels along other symmetry directions of the background lattice. At large Magnus forces, and particularly at commensurate fillings, the driven skyrmion can experience a velocity boost in which the skyrmion moves faster than the applied drive due to the alignment of the Magnus-induced velocity with the driving direction. In some cases, an increase of the Magnus force can produce regimes of enhanced pinning when the skyrmion is forced to move along a nonsymmetry direction of the periodic pinning array. This is in contrast to systems with random pinning, where increasing the Magnus force generally reduces the pinning effect. We demonstrate these dynamics for both square and triangular substrates and map out the different regimes as a function of filling fraction, pinning force, and the strength of the Magnus force in a series of dynamic phase diagrams.

Active rheology and anticommensuration effects for driven probe particles on two-dimensional periodic pinning substrates

For an assembly of particles interacting with a two-dimensional periodic substrate, a series of commensuration effects can arise when the number of particles is an integer multiple of the number of substrate minima. Such commensuration effects can appear for vortices in type-II superconductors with periodic pinning or for colloidal particles on optical landscapes. Under bulk external driving, the pinning or drag on the particles is strongly enhanced at commensuration. Here we consider the active rheology of a single particle driven through an assembly of particles coupled to a periodic substrate at different commensurate conditions. For increasing density at fixed driving force, we observe nonmonotonic drag along with what we call an anticommensuration effect where the drag or pinning effectiveness is reduced in commensurate states, opposite from the behavior typically observed under bulk driving. The velocity enhancement or drag reduction appears when the background particles form a crystalline state that is coupled more strongly to the substrate than to the driven particle, while under incommensurate conditions, the background particles are disordered and produce enhanced drag on the probe particle. The velocity noise of the driven particle has a narrow band signature at commensuration and a broad band signature away from commensuration. We map out the regions in which viscous flow, periodic flow, and a pinned phase appear. We show that the effects we observe are robust on both square and triangular substrate arrays and for both vortices in type-II superconductors and colloidal particles on optical landscapes.

Phonon spectra of a two-dimensional solid dusty plasma modified by two-dimensional periodic substrates.

Phonon spectra of a two-dimensional (2D) solid dusty plasma modulated by 2D square and triangular periodic substrates are investigated using Langevin dynamical simulations. The commensurability ratio, i.e., the ratio of the number of particles to the number of potential well minima, is set to 1 or 2. The resulting phonon spectra show that propagation of waves is always suppressed due to the confinement of particles by the applied 2D periodic substrates. For a commensurability ratio of 1, the spectra indicate that all particles mainly oscillate at one specific frequency, corresponding to the harmonic oscillation frequency of one single particle inside one potential well. At a commensurability ratio of 2, the substrate allows two particles to sit inside the bottom of each potential well, and the resulting longitudinal and transverse spectra exhibit four branches in total. We find that the two moderate branches come from the harmonic oscillations of one single particle and two combined particles in the potential well. The other two branches correspond to the relative motion of the two-body structure in each potential well in the radial and azimuthal directions. The difference in the spectra between the square and triangular substrates is attributed to the anisotropy of the substrates and the resulting alignment directions of the two-body structure in each potential well.

Shapiro steps and nonlinear skyrmion Hall angles for dc and ac driven skyrmions on a two-dimensional periodic substrate

For an overdamped particle moving over a two-dimensional periodic substrate under combined dc and ac drives, a series of steps can appear in the velocity force curves that are known as Shapiro steps. Here we show that for skyrmions driven over a two-dimensional periodic obstacle array with a dc drive and an ac drive that is either parallel or perpendicular to the dc drive, the system exhibits numerous transverse and longitudinal synchronization dynamics due to the Magnus force. These phenomena originate in interactions between two different types of phase locking effects: Shapiro steps and directional locking. In some cases, the skyrmion Hall angle is constant but longitudinal Shapiro steps appear, while in other regimes the skyrmion Hall angle can either increase or decrease with increasing dc drive during the phase locking as the skyrmion locks to different symmetry directions of the obstacle lattice. For a transverse ac drive we find that strong Hall angle overshoots can occur in certain locked phases where the skyrmion is moving at an angle that is considerably larger than the intrinsic Hall angle. For the strongest Magnus force, the phase locking effects are reduced and there are larger regions of disordered dynamics. We show that the skyrmion Hall angle can be controlled by fixing the dc drive and changing the amplitude of the ac drive.

Skyrmion dynamics and transverse mobility: skyrmion Hall angle reversal on 2D periodic substrates with dc and biharmonic ac drives

We numerically examine the dynamics of a skyrmion interacting with a two-dimensional periodic substrate under dc and biharmonic ac drives. We show that the Magnus force of the skyrmion produces circular orbits that can resonate with the ac drive and the periodicity of the substrate to create quantized motion both parallel and perpendicular to the dc drive. The skyrmion Hall angle exhibits a series of increasing and/or decreasing steps along with strongly fluctuating regimes. In the phase locked regimes, the skyrmion Hall angle is constant and the skyrmion motion consists of periodic orbits encircling an integer number of obstacles per every or every other ac drive cycle. We also observe phases in which the skyrmion moves at $90^\circ$ with respect to the driving direction even in the presence of damping, a phenomenon called absolute transverse mobility that can exhibit reentrance as a function of dc drive. When the biharmonic ac drives have different amplitudes, in the two directions we find regimes in which the skyrmion Hall angle shows a sign reversal from positive to negative, as well as a reentrant pinning effect in which the skyrmion is mobile at low drives but becomes pinned at higher drives. These behaviors arise due to the combination of the Magnus force with the periodic motion of the skyrmions, which produce Shapiro steps, directional locking, and ratchet effects.

The superlubricity of the special material with hexagonal symmetry in a two-dimensional Frenkel–Kontorova model

Based on a two-dimensional Frenkel–Kontorova model, the interacting atoms arranged on a two-dimensional hexagonal lattice are studied. It is made to slide by the application of an external driving force in the presence of dissipation over a two-dimensional periodic substrate potential with the hexagonal symmetry. A critical depinning force is defined. It depends on the direction and the magnitude of external driving force, the adhesive force from the substrate, the interaction strength between atoms in the upper layer and especially the misfit angle $$\theta $$ between two layers. The dependence of the state transition from the lock to sliding on the driving force is studied. For the special case of zero misfit angle, the analytical expressions for the critical depinning force are obtained which are in a good agreement with numerical ones. It seems that the superlubricity can appear.

Quantized transport for a skyrmion moving on a two-dimensional periodic substrate

We study the dynamics and velocity-force curves of a skyrmion moving over a two-dimensional periodic substrate using simulations of a particle-based skyrmion model, focusing on the role of the non-dissipative Magnus term. In the overdamped limit, the skyrmion depins into a sliding state with a Hall angle of zero. When a Magnus term is included, the Hall angle is nonzero in the absence of a substrate. On a periodic substrate, the Hall angle varies with the drive amplitude. Due to the substrate symmetry the Hall angle does not change continuously with drive, but forms a series of discrete steps at rational ratios of the skyrmion velocity components perpendicular and parallel to the drive direction, when the skyrmion motion locks to symmetry directions of the substrate for fixed intervals of the drive amplitude. On each step, the Hall angle is constant and the skyrmion motion is orderly. Transitions between locked phases generate pronounced cusps in the velocity-force curves, as well as regions of negative differential mobility. The number of observable locking steps increases when the relative strength of the Magnus term increases. We find an overshoot phenomena where the Hall angle exceeds the clean limit value, as well as an acceleration effect where the skyrmion moves faster over a substrate than through a clean sample. These effects are robust for different types of periodic substrates. With a simple model for a skyrmion interacting with a single pin, we can capture the behavior of the Hall angle. The Magnus term induces a curvature in the skrymion orbit as it moves through the pin, resulting in a side step phenomenon that decreases with increasing drive. When the Magnus term is large, the range of impact parameters that permit the skyrmion to be trapped by the pin is small, which is a reasons that strong Magnus force effects reduce the pinning in skyrmion systems.

Faraday waves on a two-dimensional periodic substrate

A vertically oscillating body of liquid will exhibit Faraday waves when forced above a threshold interface acceleration amplitude. The patterns and their wavelengths at driving frequencies of order 100 Hz are well known in the literature. However, wave interactions influenced by periodic structures on a driving substrate are less well-studied. We report results of a Faraday experiment with a specific periodically structured substrate in the strong coupling regime where the liquid depth is of the order of the structure height. We observe patterns and pattern wavelengths versus driving frequency over the range of 50–350 Hz. These observations may be of interest in situations where Faraday waves appear or are applied.

Anisotropic character of atoms in a two-dimensional Frenkel—Kontorova model

The dynamics of a certain density of interacting atoms arranged on a two-dimensional square lattice, which is made to slide over a two-dimensional periodic substrate potential with also the quare lattice symmetry, in the presence of dissipation, by an externally applied driving force, is studied. By rotating the misfit angle θ, the dynamical behaviour displays two different tribological regimes: one is smooth, the other becomes intermittent. We comment both on the nature of the atomic dynamics in the locked-to-sliding transition, and on the dynamical states displayed during the atom motion at different values of the driving force. In tribological applications, we also investigate how the main model parameters such as the stiffness strength and the magnitude of the adhesive force affect the static friction of the system. In particular, our simulation indicates that the superlubricity will appear.

Application of Two-Dimensional Frenkel–Kontorova Model to Nanotribology

The dry friction force between two contacting surface layers is studied. The upper layer is arranged on a two-dimensional square lattice and driven by an external driving force. The lower layer is approximated by a two-dimensional periodic substrate potential. This model, usually called two-dimensional Frenkel–Kontorova model, is applied to study the friction forces in this paper. The behaviors of different substrate potential strongly affect the static friction force. It is found that the system has strong anisotropic character. The possibility to obtain superlubricity is suggested.

Re-entrant disordering of colloidal molecular crystals on two-dimensional periodicsubstrates

Using numerical simulations, we study colloidal ordering and disordering on two-dimensionalperiodic substrates where the number of colloids per substrate minima is two or three. Thecolloids form dimer or trimer states with orientational ordering, referred to as colloidalmolecular crystals. At a fixed temperature such that, in the absence of a substrate, thecolloids are in a triangular floating solid state, upon increasing the substrate strength wefind a transition to an ordered colloidal molecular crystal state, followed by atransition to a disordered state where the colloids still form dimers or trimers but theorientational order is lost. These results are in agreement with recent experiments.

Theory of Orientational Ordering in Colloidal Molecular Crystals

Freezing of charged colloids on square or triangular two-dimensional periodic substrates has recently been shown to realize a rich variety of orientational orders. We propose a theoretical framework to analyze the corresponding structures. A fundamental ingredient is that a nonspherical charged object in an electrolyte creates a screened electrostatic potential that is anisotropic at any distance. Our approach is in excellent agreement with the known experimental and numerical results, and explains in simple terms the reentrant orientational melting observed in these so-called colloidal molecular crystals. We also investigate the case of a rectangular periodic substrate and predict an unusual phase transition between orientationally ordered states, as the aspect ratio of the unit cell is changed.

Nonlinear dynamics, rectification, and phase locking for particles on symmetrical two-dimensional periodic substrates with dc and circular ac drives.

We investigate the dynamical motion of particles on a two-dimensional symmetric periodic substrate in the presence of both a dc drive along a symmetry direction of the periodic substrate and an additional circular ac drive. For large enough ac drives, the particle orbit encircles one or more potential maxima of the periodic substrate. In this case, when an additional increasing dc drive is applied in the longitudinal direction, the longitudinal velocity increases in a series of discrete steps that are integer multiples of a omega/(2 pi), where a is the lattice constant of the substrate. Fractional steps can also occur. These integer and fractional steps correspond to distinct stable dynamical orbits. A number of these phases also show a rectification in the positive or negative transverse direction where a nonzero transverse velocity occurs in the absence of a dc transverse drive. We map out the phase diagrams of the regions of rectification as a function of ac amplitude, and find a series of tongues. Most of the features, including the steps in the longitudinal velocity and the transverse rectification, can be captured with a simple toy model and by arguments from nonlinear maps. We have also investigated the effects of thermal disorder and incommensuration on the rectification phenomena, and find that for increasing disorder, the rectification regions are gradually smeared and the longitudinal velocity steps are no longer flat but show a linearly increasing velocity.

Controlling directed transport in two-dimensional periodic structures under crossed electric fields

We investigate different mechanisms for the control of directed transport of particles on two-dimensional periodic and symmetric substrates, based on the application of a crossed static and a bi-harmonic (harmonic mixing) field. We focus on inertial systems in the low friction regime, using a prototypical model for atom-surface diffusion, and demonstrate that a proper control of current reversals can be achieved at moderate field strengths by tuning either the static field or changing the relative phase of the harmonic mixing signal, respectively.

Absolute transverse mobility and ratchet effect on periodic two-dimensional symmetric substrates

We present a simple model of an overdamped particle moving on a two-dimensional symmetric periodic substrate with a dc drive in the longitudinal direction and additional ac drives in both the longitudinal and transverse directions. For certain regimes we find that a finite longitudinal dc force produces a net dc response only in the transverse direction, which we term absolute transverse mobility. Additionally, we find regimes exhibiting a ratchet effect in the absence of an applied dc drive.

Frustration and melting of colloidal molecular crystals

Using numerical simulations we show that a variety of novel colloidal crystalline states and multi-step melting phenomena occur on square and triangular two-dimensional periodic substrates. At half-integer fillings different kinds of frustration effects can be realized. A two-step melting transition can occur in which individual colloidal molecules initially rotate, destroying the overall orientational order, followed by the onset of interwell colloidal hopping, in good agreement with recent experiments.

Rectification and phase locking for particles on symmetric two-dimensional periodic substrates.

We demonstrate a rectification phenomenon for overdamped particles interacting with a 2D symmetric periodic substrate when driven with a dc and a circular ac drive. As a function of longitudinal dc amplitude, the longitudinal velocity increases in a series of quantized steps distinct from Shapiro steps with transverse rectification occurring near these transitions. The rectification phenomenon is explained using symmetry arguments and a simple model.