208 research outputs found
Theory of condensation of indirect excitons in a trap
We present theoretical studies of condensation of indirect excitons in a
trap. Our model quantifies the effect of screening of the trap potential by
indirect excitons on exciton condensation. The theoretical studies are applied
to a system of indirect excitons in a GaAs/AlGaAs coupled quantum well
structure in a diamond-shaped electrostatic trap where exciton condensation was
studied in earlier experiments. The estimated condensation temperature of the
indirect excitons in the trap reaches hundreds of milliKelvin
Pattern Formation as a Signature of Quantum Degeneracy in a Cold Exciton System
The development of a Turing instability to a spatially modulated state in a
photoexcited electron-hole system is proposed as a novel signature of exciton
Bose statistics. We show that such an instability, which is driven by kinetics
of exciton formation, can result from stimulated processes that build up near
quantum degeneracy. In the spatially uniform 2d electron-hole system, the
instability leads to a triangular lattice pattern while, at an electron-hole
interface, a periodic 1d pattern develops. We analyze the mechanism of
wavelength selection, and show that the transition is abrupt (type I) for the
uniform 2d system, and continuous (type II) for the electron-hole interface.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure
Kinetics of Exciton Emission Patterns and Carrier Transport
We report on the measurements of the kinetics of expanding and collapsing
rings in the exciton emission pattern. The rings are found to preserve their
integrity during expansion and collapse, indicating that the observed kinetics
is controlled by charge carrier transport rather than by a much faster process
of exciton production and decay. The relation between ring kinetics and carrier
transport, revealed by our experiment and confirmed by comparison with a
theoretical model, is used to determine electron and hole transport
characteristics in a contactless fashion.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure
Kinetics of indirect excitons in the optically-induced exciton trap
We report on the kinetics of a low-temperature gas of indirect excitons in
the optically-induced exciton trap. The excitons in the region of laser
excitation are found to rapidly -- within 4 ns -- cool to the lattice
temperature T = 1.4 K, while the excitons at the trap center are found to be
cold -- essentially at the lattice temperature -- even during the excitation
pulse. The loading time of excitons to the trap center is found to be about 40
ns, longer than the cooling time yet shorter than the lifetime of the indirect
excitons. The observed time hierarchy is favorable for creating a dense and
cold exciton gas in optically-induced traps and for in situ control of the gas
by varying the excitation profile in space and time before the excitons
recombine.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure
Ring-shaped spatial pattern of exciton luminescence formed due to the hot carrier transport in a locally photoexcited electron-hole bilayer
A consistent explanation of the formation of a ring-shaped pattern of exciton
luminescence in GaAs/AlGaAs double quantum wells is suggested. The pattern
consists of two concentric rings around the laser excitation spot. It is shown
that the luminescence rings appear due to the in-layer transport of hot charge
carriers at high photoexcitation intensity. Interestingly, one of two causes of
this transport might involve self-organized criticality (SOC) that would be the
first case of the SOC observation in semiconductor physics. We test this cause
in a many-body numerical model by performing extensive molecular dynamics
simulations. The results show good agreement with experiments. Moreover, the
simulations have enabled us to identify the particular kinetic processes
underlying the formation of each of these two luminescence rings.Comment: 14 pages, 16 figures. Final versio
Ballistic spin transport in exciton gases
Traditional spintronics relies on spin transport by charge carriers, such as
electrons in semiconductor crystals. This brings several complications: the
Pauli principle prevents the carriers from moving with the same speed; Coulomb
repulsion leads to rapid dephasing of electron flows. Spin-optronics is a
valuable alternative to traditional spintronics. In spin-optronic devices the
spin currents are carried by electrically neutral bosonic quasi-particles:
excitons or exciton-polaritons. They can form highly coherent quantum liquids
and carry spins over macroscopic distances. The price to pay is a finite
life-time of the bosonic spin carriers. We present the theory of exciton
ballistic spin transport which may be applied to a range of systems where
bosonic spin transport has been reported, in particular, to indirect excitons
in coupled GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells. We describe the effect of spin-orbit
interaction of electrons and holes on the exciton spin, account for the Zeeman
effect induced by external magnetic fields, long range and short range exchange
splittings of the exciton resonances. We also consider exciton transport in the
non-linear regime and discuss the definitions of exciton spin current,
polarization current and spin conductivity.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figures to be published in Phys. Rev.
- …