Conductance quantization and snake states in graphene magnetic waveguides

We consider electron waveguides (quantum wires) in graphene created by suitable inhomogeneous magnetic fields. The properties of uni-directional snake states are discussed. For a certain magnetic field profile, two spatially separated counter-propagating snake states are formed, leading to conductance quantization insensitive to backscattering by impurities or irregularities of the magnetic field.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, final version accepted as Rapid Comm. in PR

Superconducting non-equilibrium transport through a weakly interacting quantum dot

We study the out-of-equilibrium current through an interacting quantum dot modelled as an Anderson impurity contacted by two BCS superconductors held at fixed voltage bias. In order to account for multiple Andreev reflections, we develop a Keldysh Green's function scheme perturbative in the dot's interaction strength. We find an unexpected enhancement of the current due to repulsive interactions for small lead-to-dot couplings.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures, replaced with published versio

The dynamical structure factor in topologically disordered systems

A computation of the dynamical structure factor of topologically disordered systems, where the disorder can be described in terms of euclidean random matrices, is presented. Among others, structural glasses and supercooled liquids belong to that class of systems. The computation describes their relevant spectral features in the region of the high frequency sound. The analytical results are tested with numerical simulations and are found to be in very good agreement with them. Our results may explain the findings of inelastic X-ray scattering experiments in various glassy systems.Comment: Version to be published in J. Chem. Phy

Synthesis and activity of -Fe2O3 nanoparticles in the catalytic reduction of halonitroarenes under sustainable conditions

Abstract. The catalytic reduction of nitroarenes towards anilines is an important reaction from both academic and industrial points of view, being the resulting products important intermediates to produce dyes, agrochemicals, pigments, and pharmaceuticals. In addition, removal of nitroarene pollutants from water by reducing them into anilines is a valuable method to purify contaminated matrices. Such reductive reactions are frequently carried out by using noble metal catalysts [1], which are usually very active and recyclable in some cases. Recently, the use of earth abundant metal catalysts has gained great interest especially for economic reasons, as these materials are generally cheap and easy to be reached [2]. In this framework, iron oxides catalysts are very attractive because they are cheap and not toxic. Herein, we report on the synthesis of α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles (NPs) of size ranging from 50 to 80 nm starting from a porous organic polymer (POP) containing Fe(III) sites, which was in turn annealed at 400°C. The obtained NPs were characterized by SEM-EDX, XRPD, IR and TXRF and were employed as active and recyclable catalysts in the reduction of p-bromonitrobenzene into p-bromo-aniline, using hydrazine hydrate in ethanol, taken as the model reaction. [1] Dell’Anna, M.M.; Intini, S.; Romanazzi, G.; Rizzuti, A.; Leonelli, C.; Piccinni, F.; Mastrorilli, P. J. Mol. Catal. A: Chem. 2014, 395, 307–314. [2] Romanazzi, G.; Fiore, A.M.; Mali, M.; Rizzuti, A.; Leonelli, C.; Nacci, A.; Mastrorilli, P.; Dell'Anna, M. M. Mol. Catal., 2018, 446, 31–3

Observation of Umklapp processes in non-crystalline materials

Umklapp processes are known to exist in cristalline materials, where they control important properties such as thermal conductivity, heat capacity and electrical conductivity. In this work we report the provocative observation of Umklapp processes in a non-periodical system, namely liquid Lithium. The lack of a well defined periodicity seems then not to prevent the existence of these scattering processes mechanisms provided that the local order of the systems i.e. the maxima of the static structure factor supply the equivalent of a reciprocal lattice vector in the case of cristalline materials.Comment: 13 pages P

Raman scattering from fractals. Simulation on large structures by the method of moments

We have employed the method of spectral moments to study the density of vibrational states and the Raman coupling coefficient of large 2- and 3- dimensional percolators at threshold and at higher concentration. We first discuss the over-and under-flow problems of the procedure which arise when -like in the present case- it is necessary to calculate a few thousand moments. Then we report on the numerical results; these show that different scattering mechanisms, all {\it a priori} equally probable in real systems, produce largely different coupling coefficients with different frequency dependence. Our results are compared with existing scaling theories of Raman scattering. The situation that emerges is complex; on the one hand, there is indication that the existing theory is not satisfactory; on the other hand, the simulations above threshold show that in this case the coupling coefficients have very little resemblance, if any, with the same quantities at threshold.Comment: 26 pages, RevTex, 8 figures available on reques

Critical temperature of non-interacting Bose gases on disordered lattices

For a non-interacting Bose gas on a lattice we compute the shift of the critical temperature for condensation when random-bond and onsite disorder are present. We evidence that the shift depends on the space dimensionality D and the filling fraction f. For D -> infinity (infinite-range model), using results from the theory of random matrices, we show that the shift of the critical temperature is negative, depends on f, and vanishes only for large f. The connections with analogous results obtained for the spherical model are discussed. For D=3 we find that, for large f, the critical temperature Tc is enhanced by disorder and that the relative shift does not sensibly depend on f; at variance, for small f, Tc decreases in agreement with the results obtained for a Bose gas in the continuum. We also provide numerical estimates for the shift of the critical temperature due to disorder induced on a non-interacting Bose gas by a bichromatic incommensurate potential.Comment: 18 pages, 8 figures; Fig. 8 improved adding results for another value of q (q=830/1076

The energy center initiative at politecnico di torino: practical experiences on energy efficiency measures in the municipality of torino

Urban districts should evolve towards a more sustainable infrastructure and greener energy carriers. The utmost challenge is the smart integration and control, within the existing infrastructure, of new information and energy technologies (such as sensors, appliances, electric and thermal power and storage devices) that are able to provide multi-services based on multi-actors and multi and interchangeable energy carriers. In recent years, the Municipality of Torino represents an experimental scenario, in which practical experiences in the below-areas have taken place through a number of projects: 1. energy efficiency in building; 2. smart energy grids management and smart metering; 3. biowaste-to-energy: mixed urban/industrial waste management with enhanced energy recovery from biogas. This work provides an overview and update on the most interesting initiatives of smart energy management in the urban context of Torino, with an analysis and quantification of the advantages gained in terms of energy and environmental efficiency

Revealing the electronic structure of a carbon nanotube carrying a supercurrent

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are not intrinsically superconducting but they can carry a supercurrent when connected to superconducting electrodes. This supercurrent is mainly transmitted by discrete entangled electron-hole states confined to the nanotube, called Andreev Bound States (ABS). These states are a key concept in mesoscopic superconductivity as they provide a universal description of Josephson-like effects in quantum-coherent nanostructures (e.g. molecules, nanowires, magnetic or normal metallic layers) connected to superconducting leads. We report here the first tunneling spectroscopy of individually resolved ABS, in a nanotube-superconductor device. Analyzing the evolution of the ABS spectrum with a gate voltage, we show that the ABS arise from the discrete electronic levels of the molecule and that they reveal detailed information about the energies of these levels, their relative spin orientation and the coupling to the leads. Such measurements hence constitute a powerful new spectroscopic technique capable of elucidating the electronic structure of CNT-based devices, including those with well-coupled leads. This is relevant for conventional applications (e.g. superconducting or normal transistors, SQUIDs) and quantum information processing (e.g. entangled electron pairs generation, ABS-based qubits). Finally, our device is a new type of dc-measurable SQUID

Voronoi-Delaunay analysis of normal modes in a simple model glass

We combine a conventional harmonic analysis of vibrations in a one-atomic model glass of soft spheres with a Voronoi-Delaunay geometrical analysis of the structure. ``Structure potentials'' (tetragonality, sphericity or perfectness) are introduced to describe the shape of the local atomic configurations (Delaunay simplices) as function of the atomic coordinates. Apart from the highest and lowest frequencies the amplitude weighted ``structure potential'' varies only little with frequency. The movement of atoms in soft modes causes transitions between different ``perfect'' realizations of local structure. As for the potential energy a dynamic matrix can be defined for the ``structure potential''. Its expectation value with respect to the vibrational modes increases nearly linearly with frequency and shows a clear indication of the boson peak. The structure eigenvectors of this dynamical matrix are strongly correlated to the vibrational ones. Four subgroups of modes can be distinguished