2,930 research outputs found
Quantum Size Effects in the Atomistic Structure of Armchair-Nanoribbons
Quantum size effects in armchair graphene nano-ribbons (AGNR) with hydrogen
termination are investigated via density functional theory (DFT) in Kohn-Sham
formulation. "Selection rules" will be formulated, that allow to extract
(approximately) the electronic structure of the AGNR bands starting from the
four graphene dispersion sheets. In analogy with the case of carbon nanotubes,
a threefold periodicity of the excitation gap with the ribbon width (N, number
of carbon atoms per carbon slice) is predicted that is confirmed by ab initio
results. While traditionally such a periodicity would be observed in electronic
response experiments, the DFT analysis presented here shows that it can also be
seen in the ribbon geometry: the length of a ribbon with L slices approaches
the limiting value for a very large width 1 << N (keeping the aspect ratio
small N << L) with 1/N-oscillations that display the electronic selection
rules. The oscillation amplitude is so strong, that the asymptotic behavior is
non-monotonous, i.e., wider ribbons exhibit a stronger elongation than more
narrow ones.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figure
Strong magnetoresistance induced by long-range disorder
We calculate the semiclassical magnetoresistivity of
non-interacting fermions in two dimensions moving in a weak and smoothly
varying random potential or random magnetic field. We demonstrate that in a
broad range of magnetic fields the non-Markovian character of the transport
leads to a strong positive magnetoresistance. The effect is especially
pronounced in the case of a random magnetic field where becomes
parametrically much larger than its B=0 value.Comment: REVTEX, 4 pages, 2 eps figure
Zero-frequency anomaly in quasiclassical ac transport: Memory effects in a two-dimensional metal with a long-range random potential or random magnetic field
We study the low-frequency behavior of the {\it ac} conductivity
of a two-dimensional fermion gas subject to a smooth random
potential (RP) or random magnetic field (RMF). We find a non-analytic
correction to , which corresponds to a
long-time tail in the velocity correlation function. This contribution
is induced by return processes neglected in Boltzmann transport theory. The
prefactor of this -term is positive and proportional to for
RP, while it is of opposite sign and proportional to in the weak RMF
case, where is the mean free path and the disorder correlation length.
This non-analytic correction also exists in the strong RMF regime, when the
transport is of a percolating nature. The analytical results are supported and
complemented by numerical simulations.Comment: 12 pages, RevTeX, 7 figure
Quantum Hall Transition in the Classical Limit
We study the quantum Hall transition using the density-density correlation
function. We show that in the limit h->0 the electron density moves along the
percolating trajectories, undergoing normal diffusion. The localization
exponent coincides with its percolation value \nu=4/3. The framework provides a
natural way to study the renormalization group flow from percolation to quantum
Hall transition. We also confirm numerically that the critical conductivity of
a classical limit of quantum Hall transition is \sigma_{xx} = \sqrt{3}/4.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures; substantial changes include the critical
conductivity calculatio
Density of states in graphene with vacancies: midgap power law and frozen multifractality
The density of states (DoS), , of graphene is investigated
numerically and within the self-consistent T-matrix approximation (SCTMA) in
the presence of vacancies within the tight binding model. The focus is on
compensated disorder, where the concentration of vacancies, and
, in both sub-lattices is the same. Formally, this model belongs to
the chiral symmetry class BDI. The prediction of the non-linear sigma-model for
this class is a Gade-type singularity . Our numerical data is compatible with this
result in a preasymptotic regime that gives way, however, at even lower
energies to , . We take this finding as an evidence that similar to the case
of dirty d-wave superconductors, also generic bipartite random hopping models
may exhibit unconventional (strong-coupling) fixed points for certain kinds of
randomly placed scatterers if these are strong enough. Our research suggests
that graphene with (effective) vacancy disorder is a physical representative of
such systems.Comment: References updated onl
Polymeric forms of carbon in dense lithium carbide
The immense interest in carbon nanomaterials continues to stimulate intense
research activities aimed to realize carbon nanowires, since linear chains of
carbon atoms are expected to display novel and technologically relevant
optical, electrical and mechanical properties. Although various allotropes of
carbon (e.g., diamond, nanotubes, graphene, etc.) are among the best known
materials, it remains challenging to stabilize carbon in the one-dimensional
form because of the difficulty to suitably saturate the dangling bonds of
carbon. Here, we show through first-principles calculations that ordered
polymeric carbon chains can be stabilized in solid LiC under moderate
pressure. This pressure-induced phase (above 5 GPa) consists of parallel arrays
of twofold zigzag carbon chains embedded in lithium cages, which display a
metallic character due to the formation of partially occupied carbon lone-pair
states in \emph{sp}-like hybrids. It is found that this phase remains the
most favorable one in a wide range of pressure. At extreme pressure (larger the
215 GPa) a structural and electronic phase transition towards an insulating
single-bonded threefold-coordinated carbon network is predicted.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure
On the design of an energy-efficient low-latency integrated protocol for distributed mobile sensor networks
Self organizing, wireless sensors networks are an emergent and challenging technology that is attracting large attention in the sensing and monitoring community. Impressive progress has been done in recent years even if we need to assume that an optimal protocol for every kind of sensor network applications can not exist. As a result it is necessary to optimize the protocol for certain scenarios. In many applications for instance latency is a crucial factor in addition to energy consumption. MERLIN performs its best in such WSNs where there is the need to reduce the latency while ensuring that energy consumption is kept to a minimum. By means of that, the low latency characteristic of MERLIN can be used as a trade off to extend node lifetimes. The performance in terms of energy consumption and latency is optimized by acting on the slot length. MERLIN is designed specifically to integrate routing, MAC and localization protocols together. Furthermore it can support data queries which is a typical application for WSNs. The MERLIN protocol eliminates the necessity to have any explicit handshake mechanism among nodes. Furthermore, the reliability is improved using multiple path message propagation in combination with an overhearing mechanism. The protocol divides the network into subsets where nodes are grouped in time zones. As a result MERLIN also shows a good scalability by utilizing an appropriate scheduling mechanism in combination with a contention period
Quantum superposition principle and generation of ultrashort optical pulses
We discuss the propagation of laser radiation through a medium of quantum
prepared {\Lambda}-type atoms in order to enhance the insight into the physics
of QS-PT generator suggested in Phys. Rev. A 80, 035801 (2009). We obtain
analytical results which give a qualitatively corerct description of the
outcoming series of ultrashort optical pulses and show that for the case of
alkali vapor medium QS-PT generation may be implemented under ordinary
experimental conditions
Density of quasiparticle states for a two-dimensional disordered system: Metallic, insulating, and critical behavior in the class D thermal quantum Hall effect
We investigate numerically the quasiparticle density of states
for a two-dimensional, disordered superconductor in which both time-reversal
and spin-rotation symmetry are broken. As a generic single-particle description
of this class of systems (symmetry class D), we use the Cho-Fisher version of
the network model. This has three phases: a thermal insulator, a thermal metal,
and a quantized thermal Hall conductor. In the thermal metal we find a
logarithmic divergence in as , as predicted from sigma
model calculations. Finite size effects lead to superimposed oscillations, as
expected from random matrix theory. In the thermal insulator and quantized
thermal Hall conductor, we find that is finite at E=0. At the
plateau transition between these phases, decreases towards zero as
is reduced, in line with the result
derived from calculations for Dirac fermions with random mass.Comment: 8 pages, 8 figures, published versio
Microcavities coupled to multilevel atoms
A three-level atom in the -configuration coupled to a microcavity is
studied. The two transitions of the atom are assumed couple to different
counterpropagating mode pairs in the cavity. We analyze the dynamics both, in
the strong-coupling and the bad cavity limit. We find that compared to a
two-level setup, the third atomic state and the additional control field modes
crucially modify the system dynamics and enable more advanced control schemes.
All results are explained using appropriate dressed state and eigenmode
representations. As potential applications, we discuss optical switching and
turnstile operations and detection of particles close to the resonator surface.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figure
- …