352 research outputs found
Single-Electron Effects in a Coupled Dot-Ring System
Aharonov-Bohm oscillations are studied in the magnetoconductance of a
micron-sized open quantum ring coupled capacitively to a Coulomb-blockaded
quantum dot. As the plunger gate of the dot is modulated and tuned through a
conductance resonance, the amplitude of the Aharonov-Bohm oscillations in the
transconductance of the ring displays a minimum. We demonstrate that the effect
is due to a single-electron screening effect, rather than to dephasing.
Aharonov-Bohm oscillations in a quantum ring can thus be used for the detection
of single charges.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Fano effect in a ring-dot system with tunable coupling
Transport measurements are presented on a quantum ring that is tunnel-coupled
to a quantum dot. When the dot is in the Coulomb blockade regime, but strongly
coupled to the open ring, Fano line shapes are observed in the current through
the ring, when the electron number in the dot changes by one. The symmetry of
the Fano resonances is found to depend on the magnetic flux penetrating the
area of the ring and on the strength of the ring-dot coupling. At temperatures
above T=0.65 K the Fano effect disappears while the Aharonov-Bohm interference
in the ring persists up to T=4.2 K. Good agreement is found between these
experimental observations and a single channel scattering matrix model
including decoherence in the dot.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure
Quartiere kultivieren Quartierbilder : Quartierbilder kultivieren Quartiere
No abstract available
Long-term changes in the acid and salt concentrations of the Greenland Ice Core Project ice core from electrical stratigraphy
Continuous electrical records covering a climatic cycle are presented for the Greenland Ice Core Project deep ice core from Greenland. Electrical conductivity measurement (ECM) measures the acid content of the ice, and the dielectric profile (DEP) responds to acid, ammonium, and chloride. All features seen can be explained by chemical changes in the ice, and there is no evidence so far for any major change in electrical response with depth or age of the ice. Both records are dominated by the acidity of the ice which varies strongly from acidic in warm periods to alkaline in cold periods, controlled by neutralization by alkaline dust (calcareous and other mineral dust). When Ca is low, the acidity (mainly nitric acid) has a fairly constant background level throughout the cycle, with slightly lower values in ice believed to be from the last interglacial. Ca has to rise only slightly to neutralize the available acidity, so that acidity is a highly nonlinear reflection of climate changes. If neutralization occurred in the aerosol (rather than in the ice), then the number of cloud condensation nuclei over parts of the northern hemisphere could have been reduced, leading to reduced cloud albedo. This nonlinear feedback may have some importance for modeling of climate change. When both acid and ammonium levels are low, the DEP signal can be used to give a rapid indication of chloride trends
Metabolic landscape of the male mouse gut identifies different niches determined by microbial activities.
Distinct niches of the mammalian gut are populated by diverse microbiota, but the contribution of spatial variation to intestinal metabolism remains unclear. Here we present a map of the longitudinal metabolome along the gut of healthy colonized and germ-free male mice. With this map, we reveal a general shift from amino acids in the small intestine to organic acids, vitamins and nucleotides in the large intestine. We compare the metabolic landscapes in colonized versus germ-free mice to disentangle the origin of many metabolites in different niches, which in some cases allows us to infer the underlying processes or identify the producing species. Beyond the known impact of diet on the small intestinal metabolic niche, distinct spatial patterns suggest specific microbial influence on the metabolome in the small intestine. Thus, we present a map of intestinal metabolism and identify metabolite-microbe associations, which provide a basis to connect the spatial occurrence of bioactive compounds to host or microorganism metabolism
Nanolithography and manipulation of graphene using an atomic force microscope
We use an atomic force microscope (AFM) to manipulate graphene films on a
nanoscopic length scale. By means of local anodic oxidation with an AFM we are
able to structure isolating trenches into single-layer and few-layer graphene
flakes, opening the possibility of tabletop graphene based device fabrication.
Trench sizes of less than 30 nm in width are attainable with this technique.
Besides oxidation we also show the influence of mechanical peeling and
scratching with an AFM of few layer graphene sheets placed on different
substrates.Comment: 11 pages text, 5 figure
Geometry-dependent scattering through quantum billiards: Experiment and theory
We present experimental studies of the geometry-specific quantum scattering
in microwave billiards of a given shape. We perform full quantum mechanical
scattering calculations and find an excellent agreement with the experimental
results. We also carry out the semiclassical calculations where the conductance
is given as a sum of all classical trajectories between the leads, each of them
carrying the quantum-mechanical phase. We unambiguously demonstrate that the
characteristic frequencies of the oscillations in the transmission and
reflection amplitudes are related to the length distribution of the classical
trajectories between the leads, whereas the frequencies of the probabilities
can be understood in terms of the length difference distribution in the pairs
of classical trajectories. We also discuss the effect of non-classical "ghost"
trajectories that include classically forbidden reflection off the lead mouths.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Correlating the nanostructure and electronic properties of InAs nanowires
The electronic properties and nanostructure of InAs nanowires are correlated
by creating multiple field effect transistors (FETs) on nanowires grown to have
low and high defect density segments. 4.2 K carrier mobilities are ~4X larger
in the nominally defect-free segments of the wire. We also find that dark field
optical intensity is correlated with the mobility, suggesting a simple route
for selecting wires with a low defect density. At low temperatures, FETs
fabricated on high defect density segments of InAs nanowires showed transport
properties consistent with single electron charging, even on devices with low
resistance ohmic contacts. The charging energies obtained suggest quantum dot
formation at defects in the wires. These results reinforce the importance of
controlling the defect density in order to produce high quality electrical and
optical devices using InAs nanowires.Comment: Related papers at http://pettagroup.princeton.ed
Estimating the frequency of extremely energetic solar events, based on solar, stellar, lunar, and terrestrial records
The most powerful explosions on the Sun [...] drive the most severe
space-weather storms. Proxy records of flare energies based on SEPs in
principle may offer the longest time base to study infrequent large events. We
conclude that one suggested proxy, nitrate concentrations in polar ice cores,
does not map reliably to SEP events. Concentrations of select radionuclides
measured in natural archives may prove useful in extending the time interval of
direct observations up to ten millennia, but as their calibration to solar
flare fluences depends on multiple poorly known properties and processes, these
proxies cannot presently be used to help determine the flare energy frequency
distribution. Being thus limited to the use of direct flare observations, we
evaluate the probabilities of large-energy solar explosions by combining solar
flare observations with an ensemble of stellar flare observations. We conclude
that solar flare energies form a relatively smooth distribution from small
events to large flares, while flares on magnetically-active, young Sun-like
stars have energies and frequencies markedly in excess of strong solar flares,
even after an empirical scaling with the mean activity level of these stars. In
order to empirically quantify the frequency of uncommonly large solar flares
extensive surveys of stars of near-solar age need to be obtained, such as is
feasible with the Kepler satellite. Because the likelihood of flares larger
than approximately X30 remains empirically unconstrained, we present indirect
arguments, based on records of sunspots and on statistical arguments, that
solar flares in the past four centuries have likely not substantially exceeded
the level of the largest flares observed in the space era, and that there is at
most about a 10% chance of a flare larger than about X30 in the next 30 years.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures (in press as of 2012/06/18); Journal of
Geophysical Research (Space Physics), 201
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