scholarly journals Inducing metallicity in graphene nanoribbons via zero-mode superlattices

Science ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 369 (6511) ◽  
pp. 1597-1603 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Rizzo ◽  
Gregory Veber ◽  
Jingwei Jiang ◽  
Ryan McCurdy ◽  
Ting Cao ◽  
...  

The design and fabrication of robust metallic states in graphene nanoribbons (GNRs) are challenging because lateral quantum confinement and many-electron interactions induce electronic band gaps when graphene is patterned at nanometer length scales. Recent developments in bottom-up synthesis have enabled the design and characterization of atomically precise GNRs, but strategies for realizing GNR metallicity have been elusive. Here we demonstrate a general technique for inducing metallicity in GNRs by inserting a symmetric superlattice of zero-energy modes into otherwise semiconducting GNRs. We verify the resulting metallicity using scanning tunneling spectroscopy as well as first-principles density-functional theory and tight-binding calculations. Our results reveal that the metallic bandwidth in GNRs can be tuned over a wide range by controlling the overlap of zero-mode wave functions through intentional sublattice symmetry breaking.

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hrag Karakachian ◽  
T. T. Nhung Nguyen ◽  
Johannes Aprojanz ◽  
Alexei A. Zakharov ◽  
Rositsa Yakimova ◽  
...  

AbstractThe ability to define an off state in logic electronics is the key ingredient that is impossible to fulfill using a conventional pristine graphene layer, due to the absence of an electronic bandgap. For years, this property has been the missing element for incorporating graphene into next-generation field effect transistors. In this work, we grow high-quality armchair graphene nanoribbons on the sidewalls of 6H-SiC mesa structures. Angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy (ARPES) and scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurements reveal the development of a width-dependent semiconducting gap driven by quantum confinement effects. Furthermore, ARPES demonstrates an ideal one-dimensional electronic behavior that is realized in a graphene-based environment, consisting of well-resolved subbands, dispersing and non-dispersing along and across the ribbons respectively. Our experimental findings, coupled with theoretical tight-binding calculations, set the grounds for a deeper exploration of quantum confinement phenomena and may open intriguing avenues for new low-power electronics.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Juba Bouaziz ◽  
Filipe Souza Mendes Guimarães ◽  
Samir Lounis

AbstractMany-body phenomena are paramount in physics. In condensed matter, their hallmark is considerable on a wide range of material characteristics spanning electronic, magnetic, thermodynamic and transport properties. They potentially imprint non-trivial signatures in spectroscopic measurements, such as those assigned to Kondo, excitonic and polaronic features, whose emergence depends on the involved degrees of freedom. Here, we address systematically zero-bias anomalies detected by scanning tunneling spectroscopy on Co atoms deposited on Cu, Ag and Au(111) substrates, which remarkably are almost identical to those obtained from first-principles. These features originate from gaped spin-excitations induced by a finite magnetic anisotropy energy, in contrast to the usual widespread interpretation relating them to Kondo resonances. Resting on relativistic time-dependent density functional and many-body perturbation theories, we furthermore unveil a new many-body feature, the spinaron, resulting from the interaction of electrons and spin-excitations localizing electronic states in a well defined energy.


2015 ◽  
Vol 91 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hajo Söde ◽  
Leopold Talirz ◽  
Oliver Gröning ◽  
Carlo Antonio Pignedoli ◽  
Reinhard Berger ◽  
...  

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 46-50
Author(s):  
Rita John ◽  
Benita Merlin

In this study, we have analyzed the electronic band structure and optical properties of AA-stacked bilayer graphene and its 2D analogues and compared the results with single layers. The calculations have been done using Density Functional Theory with Generalized Gradient Approximation as exchange correlation potential as in CASTEP. The study on electronic band structure shows the splitting of valence and conduction bands. A band gap of 0.342eV in graphene and an infinitesimally small gap in other 2D materials are generated. Similar to a single layer, AA-stacked bilayer materials also exhibit excellent optical properties throughout the optical region from infrared to ultraviolet. Optical properties are studied along both parallel (||) and perpendicular ( ) polarization directions. The complex dielectric function (ε) and the complex refractive index (N) are calculated. The calculated values of ε and N enable us to analyze optical absorption, reflectivity, conductivity, and the electron loss function. Inferences from the study of optical properties are presented. In general the optical properties are found to be enhanced compared to its corresponding single layer. The further study brings out greater inferences towards their direct application in the optical industry through a wide range of the optical spectrum.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kuanysh Zhussupbekov ◽  
Lida Ansari ◽  
John B. McManus ◽  
Ainur Zhussupbekova ◽  
Igor V. Shvets ◽  
...  

AbstractThe properties and performance of two-dimensional (2D) materials can be greatly affected by point defects. PtTe2, a 2D material that belongs to the group 10 transition metal dichalcogenides, is a type-II Dirac semimetal, which has gained a lot of attention recently due to its potential for applications in catalysis, photonics, and spintronics. Here, we provide an experimental and theoretical investigation of point defects on and near the surface of PtTe2. Using scanning tunneling microscopy and scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS) measurements, in combination with first-principle calculations, we identify and characterize five common surface and subsurface point defects. The influence of these defects on the electronic structure of PtTe2 is explored in detail through grid STS measurements and complementary density functional theory calculations. We believe these findings will be of significance to future efforts to engineer point defects in PtTe2, which is an interesting and enticing approach to tune the charge-carrier mobility and electron–hole recombination rates, as well as the site reactivity for catalysis.


2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (02) ◽  
pp. 2050028 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Abbassa ◽  
A. Labdelli ◽  
S. Meskine ◽  
Y. Benaissa Cherif ◽  
A. Boukortt

First-principles calculations based on density functional theory (DFT) confirm the half-metallic ferromagnetism in both [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], and the nearly half-metallic ferromagnetism in [Formula: see text] Heusler alloys with the [Formula: see text]-type structure [Formula: see text]. The electronic band structures and density of states (DOS) calculations of the [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] compounds show that the spin-up electrons are metallic, whereas the spin-down bands are semiconducting with a gap of 0.47 eV and 0.53 eV, respectively, with 0.21 eV and 0.36 eV as a spin-flip gap, respectively. The [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] Heusler were half-metal compounds with magnetic moment of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] at the equilibrium lattice constants [Formula: see text] Å and [Formula: see text] Å, respectively, which agrees with the Slater–Pauling rule, and have 100% polarization for a wide range of lattice parameters. The [Formula: see text] is a nearly half-metal (NHF) compound with magnetic moment of [Formula: see text] and 92.9% polarization at the equilibrium lattice constants [Formula: see text] Å and acquire half-metal behavior under the pressure 16.70 GPa.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (9) ◽  
pp. eaay0443 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ching-Kai Chiu ◽  
T. Machida ◽  
Yingyi Huang ◽  
T. Hanaguri ◽  
Fu-Chun Zhang

The iron-based superconductor FeTexSe1−x is one of the material candidates hosting Majorana vortex modes residing in the vortex cores. It has been observed by recent scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurement that the fraction of vortex cores having zero-bias peaks decreases with increasing magnetic field on the surface of FeTexSe1−x. The hybridization of two Majorana vortex modes cannot simply explain this phenomenon. We construct a three-dimensional tight-binding model simulating the physics of over a hundred Majorana vortex modes in FeTexSe1−x. Our simulation shows that the Majorana hybridization and disordered vortex distribution can explain the decreasing fraction of the zero-bias peaks observed in the experiment; the statistics of the energy peaks off zero energy in our Majorana simulation are in agreement with the experiment. These agreements lead to an important indication of scalable Majorana vortex modes in FeTexSe1−x. Thus, FeTexSe1−x can be one promising platform having scalable Majorana qubits for quantum computing.


Nano Letters ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 2197-2203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Okan Deniz ◽  
Carlos Sánchez-Sánchez ◽  
Tim Dumslaff ◽  
Xinliang Feng ◽  
Akimitsu Narita ◽  
...  

2001 ◽  
Vol 692 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Barvosa-Carter ◽  
Frank Grosse ◽  
James H. G. Owen ◽  
Jennifer J. Zinck

AbstractWe have studied the structure of MBE-grown InAs(001)-(2×4) surfaces exposed to low Sb2 fluxes by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and ab initio density functional theory (DFT). Experimentally, we observe an Sb-terminated α2(2×4) phase over a wide range of temperatures (400–510 °C) for low Sb2 flux (<0.1 ML/s), whereas temperature and As2 flux must be carefully controlled to achieve the same As-terminated surface structure. At lower temperatures, we observe indications of an Sb-terminated (2×8) symmetry surface phase, and we report briefly on its proposed structure and stability, as well as its possible role in subsequent formation of the Sb-terminated (1×3) phase found at typical Sb2 fluxes used during heterostructure growth.


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