Circular and linear photogalvanic effects in type-II GaSb/InAs quantum well structures in the inverted regime

The work was supported by the Elite Network of Bavaria (K-NW-2013-247), the DFG priority program SPP1666, the Volkswagen Stiftung Program, the State of Bavaria and the German Research Foundation (Ka2318/4-1). S.A.T. acknowledges support from the RFBR (projects 14-22-02102 and 16-02-00375).We report on the observation of photogalvanic effects induced by terahertz radiation in type-II GaSb/InAs quantum wells with inverted band order. Photocurrents are excited at oblique incidence of radiation and consists of several contributions varying differently with the change of the radiation polarization state; the one driven by the helicity and the other one driven by the linearly polarization of radiation are of comparable magnitudes. Experimental and theoretical analyses reveal that the photocurrent is dominated by the circular and linear photogalvanic effects in a system with a dominant structure inversion asymmetry. A microscopic theory developed in the framework of the Boltzmann equation of motion considers both photogalvanic effects and describes well all the experimental findings.PostprintPeer reviewe

Optical tuning of the charge carrier type in the topological regime of InAs/GaSb quantum wells

The work was supported by the DFG (project Ka2318/5-1) and the Elite Network of Bavaria within the graduate program “Topological Insulators”.We study the optical tunability of the charge carrier type in InAs/GaSb double quantum wells with its type-II broken band alignment and inverted band structure. Under constant optical excitation, the majority charge carrier type switches from electron to hole. Within the majority charge carrier type transition, the coexisting minority charge carrier contribution indicates electron-hole hybridization with a non-trivial topological insulating phase. The optical tuning is attributed to the negative photoconductivity of antimonide materials in combination with a persistent charge carrier build-up of photo generated charges at the surface and substrate side of the device, respectively. Our study of the tuning of an InAs/GaSb double quantum well heterostructure reveals that an electro-optical switching is possible and paves the way to an optical control of the phase diagram of InAs/GaSb topological insulators.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe

Mid-infrared GaSb-based resonant tunneling diode photodetectors for gas sensing applications

The authors are grateful for financial support by the BMBF via the national project HIRT (FKZ:13XP5003A).We present resonant tunneling diode-photodetectors (RTD-PDs) with GaAs0.15Sb0.85/AlAs0.1Sb0.9 double barrier structures combined with an additional quaternary Ga0.64In0.36As0.33Sb0.67 absorption layer covering the fingerprint absorption lines of various gases in the mid-infrared wavelength spectral region. The absorption layer cut-off wavelength is determined to be 3.5 µm and the RTD-PDs show peak-to-valley current ratios up to 4.3 with peak current densities of 12 A/cm-2.The incorporation of the quaternary absorption layer enables the RTD-PD to be sensitive to illumination with light up to the absorption lines of HCl at 3395 nm. At this wavelength, the detector shows a responsivity of 6.3 mA/W. At the absorption lines of CO2 and CO at 2004 nm and 2330 nm respectively, the RTD-PD reaches responsivities up to 0.97 A/W. Thus RTD-PDs pave the way towards high sensitive mid-infrared detectors that can be utilized in tunable laser absorption spectroscopy.PostprintPeer reviewe

Radial Sizing of Lipid Nanotubes Using Membrane Displacement Analysis

We report a novel method for the measurement of lipid nanotube radii. Membrane translocation is monitored between two nanotube-connected vesicles, during the expansion of a receiving vesicle, by observing a photobleached region of the nanotube. We elucidate nanotube radii, extracted from SPE vesicles, enabling quantification of membrane composition and lamellarity. Variances of nanotube radii were measured, showing a growth of 40-56 nm, upon increasing cholesterol content from 0 to 20%

Vitamin status and cognitive function in a long-term care population

BACKGROUND: Ageing can be associated with poor dietary intake, reduced nutrient absorption, and less efficient utilization of nutrients. Loss of memory and related cognitive function are also common among older persons. This study aimed to measure the prevalence of inadequate vitamin status among long-term care patients and determine if an association exists between vitamin status and each of three variables; cognitive function, vitamin supplementation, and medications which alter gastric acid levels. METHODS: Seventy-five patients in a long-term care hospital in Guelph, Ontario were recruited to a cross-sectional study. 47 were female and the mean age was 80.7 (+/-11.5) years, ranging from 48 to 100 years. Blood was used to measure levels of vitamins B12 (cobalamin), B6 (pyridoxal-5'-phosphate/PLP), erythrocyte folate, vitamin B3 (niacin) and homocysteine (Hcy). The Standardized Mini-Mental State Examination (SMMSE) was administered to measure cognitive function. A list of medications and vitamin supplementation for each patient was provided by the pharmacy. RESULTS: The prevalence of low vitamin (B12, B6, erythrocyte folate, niacin) or high metabolite (homocysteine) levels among 75 patients were as follows: B12 <148 pmol/L in 5/75 (6.7%); B12 between 148 and 221 pmol/L in 26/75 (34.7%); B6 ≤30 nmol/L in 4/75 (5.3%); erythrocyte folate <370 nmol/L in 1/75 (1.3%); niacin ratio ≤1 in 20/75 (26.7%); homocysteine >13.3 μmol/L in 31/75 (41.3%). There was no significant difference among residents grouped into marked (n = 44), mild (n = 14), or normal (n = 9) cognitive function when evaluating the effect of vitamin status. There were no significant differences in mean B12 and homocysteine levels between users and non-users of drug therapy (Losec, Zantac, or Axid). Compared to vitamin supplement non-users, supplemented residents had significantly higher mean B12 (p < 0.0001) and erythrocyte folate (p < 0.05) concentrations and significantly lower mean homocysteine (p < 0.01) levels; 229.1 versus 423.6 pmol/L for B12, 882.9 versus 1043.6 nmol/L for erythrocyte folate and 14.4 versus 12.0 μmol/L for homocysteine. CONCLUSION: Given the prevalence data on vitamin status in this sample population, the possible benefits of vitamin supplementation should be considered in clinical intervention studies using these populations of elderly

New insights into the genetic etiology of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias

Characterization of the genetic landscape of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related dementias (ADD) provides a unique opportunity for a better understanding of the associated pathophysiological processes. We performed a two-stage genome-wide association study totaling 111,326 clinically diagnosed/'proxy' AD cases and 677,663 controls. We found 75 risk loci, of which 42 were new at the time of analysis. Pathway enrichment analyses confirmed the involvement of amyloid/tau pathways and highlighted microglia implication. Gene prioritization in the new loci identified 31 genes that were suggestive of new genetically associated processes, including the tumor necrosis factor alpha pathway through the linear ubiquitin chain assembly complex. We also built a new genetic risk score associated with the risk of future AD/dementia or progression from mild cognitive impairment to AD/dementia. The improvement in prediction led to a 1.6- to 1.9-fold increase in AD risk from the lowest to the highest decile, in addition to effects of age and the APOE ε4 allele

Molecular beam epitaxial growth of Bi2Se3 nanowires and nanoflakes

Topological Insulators are in focus of immense research efforts and rapid scientific progress is obtained in that field. Bi2Se3 has proven to be a topological insulator material that provides a large band gap and a band structure with a single Dirac cone at the Gamma-point. This makes Bi2Se3 one of the most promising three dimensional topological insulator materials. While Bi2Se3 nanowires and nanoflakes so far were fabricated with different methods and for different purposes, we here present the first Bi2Se3 nanowires as well as nanoflakes grown by molecular beam epitaxy. The nanostructures were nucleated on pretreated, silicon (100) wafers. Altering the growth conditions nanoflakes could be fabricated instead of nanowires; both with high crystalline quality, confirmed by scanning electron microscopy as well as transmission electron microscopy. These nanostructures have promise for spintronic devices and Majorana fermion observation in contact to superconductor materials. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe