364 research outputs found
A Graphene Field-Effect Device
In this letter, a top-gated field effect device (FED) manufactured from
monolayer graphene is investigated. Except for graphene deposition, a
conventional top-down CMOS-compatible process flow is applied. Carrier
mobilities in graphene pseudo-MOS structures are compared to those obtained
from top-gated Graphene-FEDs. The extracted values exceed the universal
mobility of silicon and silicon-on-insulator MOSFETs.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figure
Bistability and oscillatory motion of natural nano-membranes appearing within monolayer graphene on silicon dioxide
The recently found material graphene is a truly two-dimensional crystal and
exhibits, in addition, an extreme mechanical strength. This in combination with
the high electron mobility favours graphene for electromechanical
investigations down to the quantum limit. Here, we show that a monolayer of
graphene on SiO2 provides natural, ultra-small membranes of diameters down to 3
nm, which are caused by the intrinsic rippling of the material. Some of these
nano-membranes can be switched hysteretically between two vertical positions
using the electric field of the tip of a scanning tunnelling microscope (STM).
They can also be forced to oscillatory motion by a low frequency ac-field.
Using the mechanical constants determined previously, we estimate a high
resonance frequency up to 0.4 THz. This might be favorable for
quantum-electromechanics and is prospective for single atom mass spectrometers.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figure
Effect of disorder on a graphene p-n junction
We propose the theory of transport in a gate-tunable graphene p-n junction,
in which the gradient of the carrier density is controlled by the gate voltage.
Depending on this gradient and on the density of charged impurities, the
junction resistance is dominated by either diffusive or ballistic contribution.
We find the conditions for observing ballistic transport and show that in
existing devices they are satisfied only marginally. We also simulate
numerically the trajectories of charge carriers and illustrate challenges in
realizing more delicate ballistic effects, such as Veselago lensing.Comment: (v2)Version accepted to Phys. Rev.
Direct Graphene Growth on Insulator
Fabrication of graphene devices is often hindered by incompatibility between
the silicon technology and the methods of graphene growth. Exfoliation from
graphite yields excellent films but is good mainly for research. Graphene grown
on metal has a technological potential but requires mechanical transfer. Growth
by SiC decomposition requires a temperature budget exceeding the technological
limits. These issues could be circumvented by growing graphene directly on
insulator, implying Van der Waals growth. During growth, the insulator acts as
a support defining the growth plane. In the device, it insulates graphene from
the Si substrate. We demonstrate planar growth of graphene on mica surface.
This was achieved by molecular beam deposition above 600{\deg}C. High
resolution Raman scans illustrate the effect of growth parameters and substrate
topography on the film perfection. Ab initio calculations suggest a growth
model. Data analysis highlights the competition between nucleation at surface
steps and flat surface. As a proof of concept, we show the evidence of electric
field effect in a transistor with a directly grown channel.Comment: 13 pages, 6 figure
Intrinsic and extrinsic corrugation of monolayer graphene deposited on SiO2
Using scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) in ultra high vacuum and atomic
force microscopy, we investigate the corrugation of graphene flakes deposited
by exfoliation on a Si/SiO2 (300 nm) surface. While the corrugation on SiO2 is
long-range with a correlation length of about 25 nm, some of the graphene
monolayers exhibit an additional corrugation with a preferential wave length of
about 15 nm. A detailed analysis shows that the long range corrugation of the
substrate is also visible on graphene, but with a reduced amplitude, leading to
the conclusion that the graphene is partly freely suspended between hills of
the substrate. Thus, the intrinsic rippling observed previously on artificially
suspended graphene can exist as well, if graphene is deposited on SiO2.Comment: 10 pages, 11 figures, including supplementary materia
Local gating of a graphene Hall bar by graphene side gates
We have investigated the magnetotransport properties of a single-layer
graphene Hall bar with additional graphene side gates. The side gating in the
absence of a magnetic field can be modeled by considering two parallel
conducting channels within the Hall bar. This results in an average penetration
depth of the side gate created field of approx. 90 nm. The side gates are also
effective in the quantum Hall regime, and allow to modify the longitudinal and
Hall resistances
Edge-functionalized and substitutional doped graphene nanoribbons: electronic and spin properties
Graphene nanoribbons are the counterpart of carbon nanotubes in
graphene-based nanoelectronics. We investigate the electronic properties of
chemically modified ribbons by means of density functional theory. We observe
that chemical modifications of zigzag ribbons can break the spin degeneracy.
This promotes the onset of a semiconducting-metal transition, or of an
half-semiconducting state, with the two spin channels having a different
bandgap, or of a spin-polarized half-semiconducting state -where the spins in
the valence and conduction bands are oppositely polarized. Edge
functionalization of armchair ribbons gives electronic states a few eV away
from the Fermi level, and does not significantly affect their bandgap. N and B
produce different effects, depending on the position of the substitutional
site. In particular, edge substitutions at low density do not significantly
alter the bandgap, while bulk substitution promotes the onset of
semiconducting-metal transitions. Pyridine-like defects induce a
semiconducting-metal transition.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figure
A Survey for Infall Motions toward Starless Cores. II. and Mapping Observations
We present the results of an extensive mapping survey of 53 `starless' cores
in the optically thick line of CS 2-1 and the optically thin lines of N2H+ 1-0
and C18O 1-0. The purpose of this survey was to search for signatures of
extended inward motions.
This study finds 10 `strong' and 9 `probable' infall candidates, based on
analysis and on the spectral shapes of CS lines.
From our analysis of the blue-skewed CS spectra and the
parameter, we find typical infall radii of 0.06-0.14 pc. Also, using a simple
two layer radiative transfer model to fit the profiles, we derive
one-dimensional infall speeds, half of whose values lie in the range of
0.05-0.09 km s. These values are similar to those found in L1544 by
Tafalla et al., and this result confirms that infall speeds in starless cores
are generally faster than expected from ambipolar diffusion in a strongly
sub-critical core. In addition, the observed infall regions are too extended to
be consistent with the `inside-out' collapse model applied to a very low-mass
star. In the largest cores, the spatial extent of the CS spectra with infall
asymmetry is larger than the extent of the core by a factor of
2-3. All these results suggest that extended inward motions are a common
feature in starless cores, and that they could represent a necessary stage in
the condensation of a star-forming dense core.Comment: Two tex files for manuscript and tables, and 38 figures. To appear in
ApJ
Electromechanical Piezoresistive Sensing in Suspended Graphene Membranes
Monolayer graphene exhibits exceptional electronic and mechanical properties,
making it a very promising material for nanoelectromechanical (NEMS) devices.
Here, we conclusively demonstrate the piezoresistive effect in graphene in a
nano-electromechanical membrane configuration that provides direct electrical
readout of pressure to strain transduction. This makes it highly relevant for
an important class of nano-electromechanical system (NEMS) transducers. This
demonstration is consistent with our simulations and previously reported gauge
factors and simulation values. The membrane in our experiment acts as a strain
gauge independent of crystallographic orientation and allows for aggressive
size scalability. When compared with conventional pressure sensors, the sensors
have orders of magnitude higher sensitivity per unit area.Comment: 20 pages, 3 figure
CB17: Inferring the dynamical history of a prestellar core with chemo-dynamical models
We present a detailed theoretical study of the isolated Bok globule CB17
(L1389) based on spectral maps of CS, HCO, CO, CS, and
HCO lines. A phenomenological model of prestellar core evolution, a
time-dependent chemical model, and a radiative transfer simulation for
molecular lines are combined to reconstruct the chemical and kinematical
structure of this core. We developed a general criterion that allows to
quantify the difference between observed and simulated spectral maps. By
minimizing this difference, we find that very high and very low values of the
effective sticking probability are not appropriate for the studied
prestellar core. The most probable value for CB17 is 0.3--0.5. The spatial
distribution of the intensities and self-absorption features of optically thick
lines is indicative of UV irradiation of the core. By fitting simultaneously
optically thin and optically thick transitions, we isolate the model that
reproduces all the available spectral maps to a reasonable accuracy. The line
asymmetry pattern in CB17 is reproduced by a combination of infall, rotation,
and turbulent motions with velocities km s, km
s, and km s, respectively. These parameters corresponds
to energy ratios , , and (the rotation
parameters are determined for ). The chemical age of the core is
about 2 Myrs. In particular, this is indicated by the central depletion of CO,
CS, and HCO. Based on the angular momentum value, we argue that the core is
going to fragment, i.e., to form a binary (multiple) star. (abridged)Comment: ApJ, in pres
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