Polarization-controlled modulation doping of a ferroelectric from first principles

In a ferroelectric field effect transistor (FeFET), it is generally assumed that the ferroelectric gate plays a purely electrostatic role. Recently it has been shown that in some cases, which could be called 'active FeFETs', electronic states in the ferroelectric contribute to the device conductance as the result of a modulation doping effect in which carriers are transferred from the channel into the ferroelectric layers near the interface. Here we report first-principles calculations and model analysis to elucidate the various aspects of this mechanism and to provide guidance in materials choices and interface termination for optimizing the on-off ratio, using BaTiO3/n-SrTiO3 and PbTiO3/n-SrTiO3 as prototypical systems. It is shown that the modulation doping is substantial in both cases, and that extension of an electrostatic model developed in previous work provides a good description of the transferred charge distribution. This model can be used to suggest additional materials heterostructures for the design of active FeFETs.Comment: 9 pages, 8 figure

Persistent spin texture enforced by symmetry

Persistent spin texture (PST) is the property of some materials to maintain a uniform spin configuration in the momentum space. This property has been predicted to support an extraordinarily long spin lifetime of carriers promising for spintronics applications. Here, we predict that there exists a class of noncentrosymmetric bulk materials, where the PST is enforced by the nonsymmorphic space group symmetry of the crystal. Around certain high symmetry points in the Brillouin zone, the sublattice degrees of freedom impose a constraint on the effective spin–orbit field, which orientation remains independent of the momentum and thus maintains the PST. We illustrate this behavior using density-functional theory calculations for a handful of promising candidates accessible experimentally. Among them is the ferroelectric oxide BiInO3—a wide band gap semiconductor which sustains a PST around the conduction band minimum. Our results broaden the range of materials that can be employed in spintronics

Hexagonal Rare-Earth Manganites as Promising Photovoltaics and Light Polarizers

Ferroelectric materials possess a spontaneous electric polarization and may be utilized in various technological applications ranging from non-volatile memories to solar cells and light polarizers. Recently, hexagonal rare-earth manganites, h-RMnO$_3$ (R is a rare-earth ion) have attracted considerable interest due to their intricate multiferroic properties and improper ferroelectricity characterized by a sizable remnant polarization and high Curie temperature. Here, we demonstrate that these compounds can serve as very efficient photovoltaic materials and, in addition, possess remarkable optical anisotropy properties. Using first-principles methods based on density-functional theory and considering h-TbMnO$_3$ as a representative manganite, we predict a strong light absorption of this material in the solar spectrum range, resulting in the maximum light-to-electricity energy conversion efficiency up to 33%. We also predict an extraordinary optical linear dichroism and linear birefringence properties of h-TbMnO$_3$ in a broad range of optical frequencies. These results uncover the unexplored potential of hexagonal rare-earth manganites to serve as photovoltaics in solar cells and as absorptive and birefringent light polarizers.Comment: 26 pages, 8 figure

Persistent spin texture enforced by symmetry

Persistent spin texture (PST) is the property of some materials to maintain a uniform spin configuration in the momentum space. This property has been predicted to support an extraordinarily long spin lifetime of carriers promising for spintronics applications. The PST is known to emerge when the strengths of two dominant spin-orbit couplings, the Rashba and linear Dresselhaus, are equal. This condition, however, is not trivial to achieve and requires tuning the Rashba and Dresselhaus parameters, as has been demonstrated with semiconductor quantum-well structures. Here we predict that there exist a class of non-centrosymmetric bulk materials where the PST is enforced by the non-symmorphic space group symmetry of the crystal. Around certain high symmetry points in the Brillouin zone, the sublattice degrees of freedom impose a constraint on the effective spin-orbit field, which remains independent of the momentum orientation and thus maintains the PST. We illustrate this behavior using density-functional theory calculations for a handful of promising candidates accessible experimentally. Among them is the ferroelectric oxide BiInO3-a wide band gap semiconductor which sustains a PST around the conduction band minimum. Our results broaden the range of materials, which can be employed in spintronics

Prediction of a mobile two-dimensional electron gas at the LaScO3/BaSnO3(001) interface

Two-dimensional electron gases (2DEG) at oxide interfaces, such as LaAlO3/SrTiO3 (001), have aroused significant interest due to their high carrier density (∼1014 cm−2) and strong lateral confinement (∼1 nm). However, these 2DEGs are normally hosted by the weakly dispersive and degenerate d bands (e.g., Ti-3d bands), which are strongly coupled to the lattice, causing mobility of such 2DEGs to be relatively low at room temperature (∼1 cm2/Vs). Here, we propose using oxide host materials with the conduction bands formed from s electrons to increase carrier mobility and soften its temperature dependence. Using first-principles density functional theory calculations, we investigate LaScO3/BaSnO3 (001) heterostructure and as a model system, where the conduction band hosts the s-like carriers. We find that the polar discontinuity at this interface leads to electronic reconstruction resulting in the formation of the 2DEG at this interface. The conduction electrons reside in the highly dispersive Sn-5s bands, which have a large band width and a low effective mass. The predicted 2DEG is expected to be highly mobile even at room temperature due to the reduced electron-phonon scattering via the inter-band scattering channel. A qualitatively similar behavior is predicted for a doped BaSnO3, where a monolayer of BaO is replaced with LaO. We anticipate that the quantum phenomena associated with these 2DEGs to be more pronounced owing to the high mobility of the carriers

Two-dimensional spin-valley locking spin valve

Valleytronics is an emerging field of research which employs energy valleys in the band structure of two-dimensional (2D) electronic materials to encode information. A special interest has been triggered by the associated spin-valley coupling which reveals rich fundamental physics and enables new functionalities. Here, we propose exploiting the spin-valley locking in 2D materials with a large spin-orbit coupling and electric-field reversible valley spin polarization, such as germanene, stanene, a 1T\u27 transition metal dichalcogenide (TMDC) monolayer, and a 2H-TMDC bilayer, to realize a valley spin valve (VSV). The valley spin polarization in these materials can be switched by an external electric field, which enables functionalities of a valley spin polarizer or a valley spin analyzer. When placed in series, they constitute the proposed VSV—a device whose conductance state is ON or OFF depending on the relative valley spin polarization of the polarizer and the analyzer. Using quantum-transport calculations based on an adequate tight-binding model, we predict a giant VSV ratio of nearly 100% for both germanene- and stanene-based VSV devices. Our results demonstrate the implication of the spin-valley coupling in 2D materials for the novel device concept promising for valleytronics

Two-dimensional type-II Dirac fermions in a LaAlO3/LaNiO3/LaAlO3 quantum well

The type-II Dirac fermions that are characterized by a tilted Dirac cone and anisotropic magneto-transport properties have been recently proposed theoretically and confirmed experimentally. Here, we predict the emergence of two-dimensional type-II Dirac fermions in LaAlO3/LaNiO3/LaAlO3 quantum-well structures. Using first-principles calculations and model analysis, we show that the Dirac points are formed at the crossing between the dx2-y2 and dz2 bands protected by the mirror symmetry. The energy position of the Dirac points can be tuned to appear at the Fermi energy by changing the quantum-well width. For the quantum-well structure with a two-unit cell thick LaNiO3 layer, we predict the coexistence of the type-II Dirac points and the Dirac nodal line. The results are analyzed and interpreted using a tight-binding model and symmetry arguments. Our findings offer a practical way to realize the 2D type-II Dirac fermions in oxide heterostructures