Single exciton spectroscopy of single-Mn doped InAs quantum dots

The optical spectroscopy of a single InAs quantum dot doped with a single Mn atom is studied using a model Hamiltonian that includes the exchange interactions between the spins of the quantum dot electron-hole pair, the Mn atom and the acceptor hole. Our model permits to link the photoluminescence spectra to the Mn spin states after photon emission. We focus on the relation between the charge state of the Mn, $A^0$ or $A^-$, and the different spectra which result through either band-to-band or band-to-acceptor transitions. We consider both neutral and negatively charged dots. Our model is able to account for recent experimental results on single Mn doped InAs PL spectra and can be used to account for future experiments in GaAs quantum dots. Similarities and differences with the case of single Mn doped CdTe quantum dots are discussed.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figure

Orbital Magnetization of Quantum Spin Hall Insulator Nanoparticles

Both spin and orbital degrees of freedom contribute to the magnetic moment of isolated atoms. However, when inserted in crystals, atomic orbital moments are quenched because of the lack of rotational symmetry that protects them when isolated. Thus, the dominant contribution to the magnetization of magnetic materials comes from electronic spin. Here we show that nanoislands of quantum spin Hall insulators can host robust orbital edge magnetism whenever their highest occupied Kramers doublet is singly occupied, upgrading the spin edge current into a charge current. The resulting orbital magnetization scales linearly with size, outweighing the spin contribution for islands of a few nm in size. This linear scaling is specific of the Dirac edge states and very different from Schrodinger electrons in quantum rings. Modelling Bi(111) flakes, whose edge states have been recently observed, we show that orbital magnetization is robust with respect to disorder, thermal agitation, shape of the island and crystallographic direction of the edges, reflecting its topological protection.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, + Supporting Informatio

Majorana Zero Modes in Graphene

A clear demonstration of topological superconductivity (TS) and Majorana zero modes remains one of the major pending goal in the field of topological materials. One common strategy to generate TS is through the coupling of an s-wave superconductor to a helical half-metallic system. Numerous proposals for the latter have been put forward in the literature, most of them based on semiconductors or topological insulators with strong spin-orbit coupling. Here we demonstrate an alternative approach for the creation of TS in graphene/superconductor junctions without the need of spin-orbit coupling. Our prediction stems from the helicity of graphene's zero Landau level edge states in the presence of interactions, and on the possibility, experimentally demonstrated, to tune their magnetic properties with in-plane magnetic fields. We show how canted antiferromagnetic ordering in the graphene bulk close to neutrality induces TS along the junction, and gives rise to isolated, topologically protected Majorana bound states at either end. We also discuss possible strategies to detect their presence in graphene Josephson junctions through Fraunhofer pattern anomalies and Andreev spectroscopy. The latter in particular exhibits strong unambiguous signatures of the presence of the Majorana states in the form of universal zero bias anomalies. Remarkable progress has recently been reported in the fabrication of the proposed type of junctions, which offers a promising outlook for Majorana physics in graphene systems.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures. Included simulations of Andreev spectroscopy and mor

Spin depolarization in the transport of holes across GaMnAs/GaAlAs/p-GaAs

We study the spin polarization of tunneling holes injected from ferromagnetic GaMnAs into a p-doped semiconductor through a tunneling barrier. We obtain an upper limit to the spin injection rate. We find that spin-orbit interaction interaction in the barrier and in the drain limits severely spin injection. Spin depolarization is stronger when the magnetization is parallel to the current than when is perpendicular to it.Comment: Accepted in Phys. Rev. B. 4 pages, 4 figure

Coherently photo-induced ferromagnetism in diluted magnetic semiconductors

Ferromagnetism is predicted in undoped diluted magnetic semiconductors illuminated by intense sub-bandgap laser radiation . The mechanism for photo-induced ferromagnetism is coherence between conduction and valence bands induced by the light which leads to an optical exchange interaction. The ferromagnetic critical temperature T_C depends both on the properties of the material and on the frequency and intensity of the laser and could be above 1 K.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures, preprint styl

Electric-Field Tuning of Spin-Dependent Exciton-Exciton Interactions in Coupled Quantum Wells

We have shown experimentally that an electric field decreases the energy separation between the two components of a dense spin-polarized exciton gas in a coupled double quantum well, from a maximum splitting of $\sim 4$ meV to zero, at a field of $\sim$35 kV/cm. This decrease, due to the field-induced deformation of the exciton wavefunction, is explained by an existing calculation of the change in the spin-dependent exciton-exciton interaction with the electron-hole separation. However, a new theory that considers the modification of screening with that separation is needed to account for the observed dependence on excitation power of the individual energies of the two exciton components.Comment: 5 pages, 4 eps figures, RevTeX, Physical Review Letters (in press

Anisotropic intrinsic spin relaxation in graphene due to flexural distortions

We propose an intrinsic spin scattering mechanism in graphene originated by the interplay of atomic spin-orbit interaction and the local curvature induced by flexural distortions of the atomic lattice. Starting from a multiorbital tight-binding Hamiltonian with spin-orbit coupling considered non-perturbatively, we derive an effective Hamiltonian for the spin scattering of the Dirac electrons due to flexural distortions. We compute the spin lifetime due to both flexural phonons and ripples and we find values in the microsecond range at room temperature. Interestingly, this mechanism is anisotropic on two counts. First, the relaxation rate is different for off-plane and in-plane spin quantization axis. Second, the spin relaxation rate depends on the angle formed by the crystal momentum with the carbon-carbon bond. In addition, the spin lifetime is also valley dependent. The proposed mechanism sets an upper limit for spin lifetimes in graphene and will be relevant when samples of high quality can be fabricated free of extrinsic sources of spin relaxation.Comment: extended version with 7 pages, 4 figures and several new results; a numerical error has been corrected leading to longer spin lifetimes than in the previous versio