Optical polarization of localized hole spins in p-doped quantum wells

The initialization of spin polarization in localized hole states is investigated using time-resolved Kerr rotation. We find that the sign of the polarization depends on the magnetic field, and the power and the wavelength of the circularly polarized pump pulse. An analysis of the spin dynamics and the spin-initialization process shows that two mechanisms are responsible for spin polarization with opposite sign: The difference of the g factor between the localized holes and the trions, as well as the capturing process of dark excitons by the localized hole states.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure

Resonant spin amplification of hole spin dynamics in two‐dimensional hole systems: experiment and simulation

Spins in semiconductor structures may allow for the realization of scalable quantum bit arrays, an essential component for quantum computation schemes. Specifically, hole spins may be more suited for this purpose than electron spins, due to their strongly reduced interaction with lattice nuclei, which limits spin coherence for electrons in quantum dots. Here, we present resonant spin amplification (RSA) measurements, performed on a p-modulation doped GaAs-based quantum well at temperatures below 500 mK. The RSA traces have a peculiar, butterfly-like shape, which stems from the initialization of a resident hole spin polarization by optical orientation. The combined dynamics of the optically oriented electron and hole spins are well-described by a rate equation model, and by comparison of experiment and model, hole spin dephasing times of more than 70 ns are extracted from the measured data

Controlling hole spin dynamics in two‐dimensional hole systems at low temperatures

With the recent discovery of very long hole spin decoherence times in GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures of more than 70 ns in two-dimensional hole systems, using the hole spin as a viable alternative to electron spins in spintronic applications seems possible. Furthermore, as the hyperfine interaction with the nuclear spins is likely to be the limiting factor for electron spin lifetimes in zero dimensions, holes with their suppressed Fermi contact hyperfine interaction due to their p-like nature should be able to show even longer lifetimes than electrons. For spintronic applications, electric-field control of hole spin dynamics is desirable. Here, we report on time-resolved Kerr rotation and resonant spin amplification measurements on a two-dimensional hole system in a p-doped GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructure. Via a semitransparent gate, we tune the charge density within the sample. We are able to observe a change in the hole g factor, as well as in the hole spin dephasing time at high magnetic fields

A dataset of community perspectives on living conditions and disaster risk management in informal settlements: A case study in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa

This article describes a dataset of community perspectives on living conditions and disaster risk management in Khan Road, a non-serviced informal settlement, located in Pietermaritzburg, the capital of KwaZulu-Natal province in South Africa. The data were collected by local community researchers via a structured questionnaire of 159 informal dwellers conducted between August and September 2022, using mobile phones via KoboToolbox. The dataset was analysed using exploratory data analysis (EDA) techniques. This household survey is part of a research project aiming to develop an evidence base of opportunities, risks and vulnerabilities related to housing construction and resource management in incremental upgrading of informal settlements in South Africa. This dataset can be used by local practitioners and policymakers involved in decision-making for informal settlement upgrading and help them prioritise resources and upgrading interventions based on what informal dwellers need. Furthermore, this cleaned dataset could support the analysis of further South African data guiding the development of digital platforms as a real-time resource management tool or guide the enhancement of existing theoretical frameworks in the field of participatory design and co-production used by academic scholars

Scanning Raman spectroscopy of graphene antidot lattices: Evidence for systematic p-type doping

We have investigated antidot lattices, which were prepared on exfoliated graphene single layers via electron-beam lithography and ion etching, by means of scanning Raman spectroscopy. The peak positions, peak widths and intensities of the characteristic phonon modes of the carbon lattice have been studied systematically in a series of samples. In the patterned samples, we found a systematic stiffening of the G band mode, accompanied by a line narrowing, while the 2D mode energies are found to be linearly correlated with the G mode energies. We interpret this as evidence for p-type doping of the nanostructured graphene

Spin dynamics in p-doped semiconductor nanostructures subject to a magnetic field tilted from the Voigt geometry

We develop a theoretical description of the spin dynamics of resident holes in a p-doped semiconductor quantum well (QW) subject to a magnetic field tilted from the Voigt geometry. We find the expressions for the signals measured in time-resolved Faraday rotation (TRFR) and resonant spin amplification (RSA) experiments and study their behavior for a range of system parameters. We find that an inversion of the RSA peaks can occur for long hole spin dephasing times and tilted magnetic fields. We verify the validity of our theoretical findings by performing a series of TRFR and RSA experiments on a p-modulation doped GaAs/Al_{0.3}Ga_{0.7}As single QW and showing that our model can reproduce experimentally observed signals.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures; corrected typo

Low-temperature photocarrier dynamics in monolayer MoS2

The band structure of MoS$_2$ strongly depends on the number of layers, and a transition from indirect to direct-gap semiconductor has been observed recently for a single layer of MoS$_2$. Single-layer MoS$_2$ therefore becomes an efficient emitter of photoluminescence even at room temperature. Here, we report on scanning Raman and on temperature-dependent, as well as time-resolved photoluminescence measurements on single-layer MoS$_2$ flakes prepared by exfoliation. We observe the emergence of two distinct photoluminescence peaks at low temperatures. The photocarrier recombination at low temperatures occurs on the few-picosecond timescale, but with increasing temperatures, a biexponential photoluminescence decay with a longer-lived component is observed.Comment: 3 pages, 4 figure

Engineering ultralong spin coherence in two-dimensional hole systems at low temperatures

For the realisation of scalable solid-state quantum-bit systems, spins in semiconductor quantum dots are promising candidates. A key requirement for quantum logic operations is a sufficiently long coherence time of the spin system. Recently, hole spins in III-V-based quantum dots were discussed as alternatives to electron spins, since the hole spin, in contrast to the electron spin, is not affected by contact hyperfine interaction with the nuclear spins. Here, we report a breakthrough in the spin coherence times of hole ensembles, confined in so called natural quantum dots, in narrow GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells at temperatures below 500 mK. Consistently, time-resolved Faraday rotation and resonant spin amplification techniques deliver hole-spin coherence times, which approach in the low magnetic field limit values above 70 ns. The optical initialisation of the hole spin polarisation, as well as the interconnected electron and hole spin dynamics in our samples are well reproduced using a rate equation model.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figure

Unraveling the Equine Lymphocyte Proteome: Differential Septin 7 Expression Associates with Immune Cells in Equine Recurrent Uveitis

Equine recurrent uveitis is a spontaneous, lymphocyte-driven autoimmune disease. It affects horses worldwide and presents with painful remitting-relapsing inflammatory attacks of inner eye structures eventually leading to blindness. Since lymphocytes are the key players in equine recurrent uveitis, we were interested in potential changes of their protein repertoire which may be involved in disease pathogenesis. To create a reference for differential proteome analysis, we first unraveled the equine lymphocyte proteome by two-dimensional sodium dodecyl sulfate - polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and subsequently identified 352 protein spots. Next, we compared lymphocytes from ERU cases and healthy horses with a two-dimensional fluorescence difference in gel electrophoresis approach. With this technique, we identified seven differentially expressed proteins between conditions. One of the significantly lower expressed candidates, septin 7, plays a role in regulation of cell shape, motility and migration. Further analyses revealed T cells as the main cell type with decreased septin 7 abundance in equine recurrent uveitis. These findings point to a possible pathogenetic role of septin 7 in this sight-threatening disease

Theory of Flux-Flow Resistivity near Hc2H_{c2} for s-wave Type-II Superconductors

This paper presents a microscopic calculation of the flux-flow resistivity $\rho_{f}$ for s-wave type-II superconductors with arbitrary impurity concentrations near the upper critical field $H_{c2}$. It is found that, as the mean free path $l$ becomes longer, $\rho_{f}$ increases gradually from the dirty-limit result of Thompson [Phys. Rev. B{\bf 1}, 327 (1970)] and Takayama and Ebisawa [Prog. Theor. Phys. {\bf 44}, 1450 (1970)]. The limiting behaviors suggest that $\rho_{f}(H)$ at low temperatures may change from convex downward to upward as $l$ increases, thus deviating substantially from the linear dependence $\rho_{f}\propto H/H_{c2}$ predicted by the Bardeen-Stephen theory [Phys. Rev. {\bf 140}, A1197 (1965)]