298 research outputs found
Modulated Rashba interaction in a quantum wire: Spin and charge dynamics
It was recently shown that a spatially modulated Rashba spin-orbit coupling
in a quantum wire drives a transition from a metallic to an insulating state
when the wave number of the modulation becomes commensurate with the Fermi wave
length of the electrons in the wire. It was suggested that the effect may be
put to practical use in a future spin transistor design. In the present article
we revisit the problem and present a detailed analysis of the underlying
physics. First, we explore how the build-up of charge density wave correlations
in the quantum wire due to the periodic gate configuration that produces the
Rashba modulation influences the transition to the insulating state. The
interplay between the modulations of the charge density and that of the
spin-orbit coupling turns out to be quite subtle: Depending on the relative
phase between the two modulations, the joint action of the Rashba interaction
and charge density wave correlations may either enhance or reduce the Rashba
current blockade effect. Secondly, we inquire about the role of the Dresselhaus
spin-orbit coupling that is generically present in a quantum wire embedded in
semiconductor heterostructure. While the Dresselhaus coupling is found to work
against the current blockade of the insulating state, the effect is small in
most materials. Using an effective field theory approach, we also carry out an
analysis of effects from electron- electron interactions, and show how the
single-particle gap in the insulating state can be extracted from the more
easily accessible collective charge and spin excitation thresholds. The
smallness of the single-particle gap together with the anti-phase relation
between the Rashba and chemical potential modulations pose serious difficulties
for realizing a Rashba-controlled current switch in an InAs-based device. Some
alternative designs are discussed.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figure
Measuring Luttinger Liquid Correlations from Charge Fluctuations in a Nanoscale Structure
We suggest an experiment to study Luttinger liquid behavior in a
one-dimensional nanostructure, avoiding the usual complications associated with
transport measurements. The proposed setup consists of a quantum box, biased by
a gate voltage, and side-coupled to a quantum wire by a point contact. Close to
the degeneracy points of the Coulomb blockaded box, and in the presence of a
magnetic field sufficiently strong to spin polarize the electrons, the setup
can be described as a Luttinger liquid interacting with an effective Kondo
impurity. Using exact nonperturbative techniques we predict that the
differential capacitance of the box will exhibit distinctive Luttinger liquid
scaling with temperature and gate voltage.Comment: REVTeX, 4 pages, 1 figure included. Final version, two references
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Metal-insulator transition in a quantum wire driven by a modulated Rashba spin-orbit coupling
We study the ground-state properties of electrons confined to a quantum wire
and subject to a smoothly modulated Rashba spin-orbit coupling. When the period
of the modulation becomes commensurate with the band filling, the Rashba
coupling drives a quantum phase transition to a nonmagnetic insulating state.
Using bosonization and a perturbative renormalization group approach, we find
that this state is robust against electron-electron interactions. The gaps to
charge- and spin excitations scale with the amplitude of the Rashba modulation
with a common interaction-dependent exponent. An estimate of the expected size
of the charge gap, using data for a gated InAs heterostructure, suggests that
the effect can be put to practical use in a future spin transistor design.Comment: 4 pages; published version (added references, typos corrected
Fermi-LAT Observations of High- and Intermediate-Velocity Clouds: Tracing Cosmic Rays in the Halo of the Milky Way
It is widely accepted that cosmic rays (CRs) up to at least PeV energies are
Galactic in origin. Accelerated particles are injected into the interstellar
medium where they propagate to the farthest reaches of the Milky Way, including
a surrounding halo. The composition of CRs coming to the solar system can be
measured directly and has been used to infer the details of CR propagation that
are extrapolated to the whole Galaxy. In contrast, indirect methods, such as
observations of gamma-ray emission from CR interactions with interstellar gas,
have been employed to directly probe the CR densities in distant locations
throughout the Galactic plane. In this article we use 73 months of data from
the Fermi Large Area Telescope in the energy range between 300 MeV and 10 GeV
to search for gamma-ray emission produced by CR interactions in several high-
and intermediate-velocity clouds located at up to ~ 7 kpc above the Galactic
plane. We achieve the first detection of intermediate-velocity clouds in gamma
rays and set upper limits on the emission from the remaining targets, thereby
tracing the distribution of CR nuclei in the halo for the first time. We find
that the gamma-ray emissivity per H atom decreases with increasing distance
from the plane at 97.5% confidence level. This corroborates the notion that CRs
at the relevant energies originate in the Galactic disk. The emissivity of the
upper intermediate-velocity Arch hints at a 50% decline of CR densities within
2 kpc from the plane. We compare our results to predictions of CR propagation
models.Comment: Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa
Transporting ideas between marine and social sciences: experiences from interdisciplinary research programs.
The oceans comprise 70% of the surface area of our planet, contain some of the world’s richest natural resources and are one of the most significant drivers of global climate patterns. As the marine environment continues to increase in importance as both an essential resource reservoir and facilitator of global change, it is apparent that to find long-term sustainable solutions for our use of the sea and its resources and thus to engage in a sustainable blue economy, an integrated interdisciplinary approach is needed. As a result, interdisciplinary working is proliferating. We report here our experiences of forming interdisciplinary teams (marine ecologists, ecophysiologists, social scientists, environmental economists and environmental law specialists) to answer questions pertaining to the effects of anthropogenic-driven global change on the sustainability of resource use from the marine environment, and thus to transport ideas outwards from disciplinary confines. We use a framework derived from the literature on interdisciplinarity to enable us to explore processes of knowledge integration in two ongoing research projects, based on analyses of the purpose, form and degree of knowledge integration within each project. These teams were initially focused around a graduate program, explicitly designed for interdisciplinary training across the natural and social sciences, at the Gothenburg Centre for Marine Research at the University of Gothenburg, thus allowing us to reflect on our own experiences within the context of other multi-national, interdisciplinary graduate training and associated research programs
Kondo Resonance in a Mesoscopic Ring Coupled to a Quantum Dot: Exact Results for the Aharonov-Bohm/Casher Effects
We study the persistent currents induced by both the Aharonov-Bohm and
Aharonov-Casher effects in a one-dimensional mesoscopic ring coupled to a
side-branch quantum dot at Kondo resonance. For privileged values of the
Aharonov-Bohm-Casher fluxes, the problem can be mapped onto an integrable
model, exactly solvable by a Bethe ansatz. In the case of a pure magnetic
Aharonov-Bohm flux, we find that the presence of the quantum dot has no effect
on the persistent current. In contrast, the Kondo resonance interferes with the
spin-dependent Aharonov-Casher effect to induce a current which, in the
strong-coupling limit, is independent of the number of electrons in the ring.Comment: Replaced with published version; 5 page
Pairing and Density Correlations of Stripe Electrons in a Two-Dimensional Antiferromagnet
We study a one-dimensional electron liquid embedded in a 2D antiferromagnetic
insulator, and coupled to it via a weak antiferromagnetic spin exchange
interaction. We argue that this model may qualitatively capture the physics of
a single charge stripe in the cuprates on length- and time scales shorter than
those set by its fluctuation dynamics. Using a local mean-field approach we
identify the low-energy effective theory that describes the electronic spin
sector of the stripe as that of a sine-Gordon model. We determine its phases
via a perturbative renormalization group analysis. For realistic values of the
model parameters we obtain a phase characterized by enhanced spin density and
composite charge density wave correlations, coexisting with subleading triplet
and composite singlet pairing correlations. This result is shown to be
independent of the spatial orientation of the stripe on the square lattice.
Slow transverse fluctuations of the stripes tend to suppress the density
correlations, thus promoting the pairing instabilities. The largest amplitudes
for the composite instabilities appear when the stripe forms an antiphase
domain wall in the antiferromagnet. For twisted spin alignments the amplitudes
decrease and leave room for a new type of composite pairing correlation,
breaking parity but preserving time reversal symmetry.Comment: Revtex, 28 pages incl. 5 figure
Multiwavelength Evidence for Quasi-periodic Modulation in the Gamma-ray Blazar PG 1553+113
We report for the first time a gamma-ray and multi-wavelength nearly-periodic
oscillation in an active galactic nucleus. Using the Fermi Large Area Telescope
(LAT) we have discovered an apparent quasi-periodicity in the gamma-ray flux (E
>100 MeV) from the GeV/TeV BL Lac object PG 1553+113. The marginal significance
of the 2.18 +/-0.08 year-period gamma-ray cycle is strengthened by correlated
oscillations observed in radio and optical fluxes, through data collected in
the OVRO, Tuorla, KAIT, and CSS monitoring programs and Swift UVOT. The optical
cycle appearing in ~10 years of data has a similar period, while the 15 GHz
oscillation is less regular than seen in the other bands. Further long-term
multi-wavelength monitoring of this blazar may discriminate among the possible
explanations for this quasi-periodicity.Comment: 8 pages, 5 figures. Accepted to The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
Corresponding authors: S. Ciprini (ASDC/INFN), S. Cutini (ASDC/INFN), S.
Larsson (Stockholm Univ/KTH), A. Stamerra (INAF/SNS), D. J. Thompson (NASA
GSFC
Gamma-ray flares from the Crab Nebula
A young and energetic pulsar powers the well-known Crab Nebula. Here we
describe two separate gamma-ray (photon energy >100 MeV) flares from this
source detected by the Large Area Telescope on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space
Telescope. The first flare occurred in February 2009 and lasted approximately
16 days. The second flare was detected in September 2010 and lasted
approximately 4 days. During these outbursts the gamma-ray flux from the nebula
increased by factors of four and six, respectively. The brevity of the flares
implies that the gamma rays were emitted via synchrotron radiation from PeV
(10^15 eV) electrons in a region smaller than 1.4 10^-2 pc. These are the
highest energy particles that can be associated with a discrete astronomical
source, and they pose challenges to particle acceleration theory.Comment: Contact authors: Rolf Buehler,[email protected]; Stefan
Funk,[email protected]; Roger Blandford,rdb3@stanford ; 16 pages,2
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