12,107 research outputs found
Electrical switching and interferometry of massive Dirac particles in topological insulators constrictions
We investigate the electrical switching of charge and spin transport in a
topological insulator nanoconstriction in a four terminal device. The switch of
the edge channels is caused by the coupling between edge states which overlap
in the constriction and by the tunneling effects at the contacts and therefore
can be manipulated by tuning the applied voltages on the split-gate or by
geometrical etching. The switching mechanism can be conveniently studied by
electron interferometry involving the measurements of the current in different
configurations of the side gates, while the applied bias from the external
leads can be tuned to obtain pure charge or pure spin currents (charge- and
spin- bias configurations). Relevant signatures of quantum confinement effects,
quantum size effects and energy gap are evident in the Fabry-Perot physics of
the device allowing for a full characterization of the charge and spin
currents. The proposed electrical switching behavior offers an efficient tool
to manipulate topological edge state transport in a controllable way.Comment: 10 pages; 14 figure
Zero-conductance resonances and spin-filtering effects in ring conductors subject to Rashba coupling
We investigate the effect of Rashba spin-orbit coupling and of a tunnel
barrier on the zero conduc- tance resonances appearing in a one-dimensional
conducting Aharonov-Bohm (AB) ring symmet- rically coupled to two leads. The
transmission function of the corresponding one-electron problem is derived
within the scattering matrix approach and analyzed in the complex energy plane
with focus on the role of the tunnel barrier strength on the zero-pole
structure characteristic of trans- mission (anti)resonances. The lifting of the
real conductance zeros is related to the breaking of the spin-reversal symmetry
and time-reversal symmetry of Aharonov-Casher (AC)and AB rings, as well as to
rotational symmetry breaking in presence of a tunnel barrier. We show that the
polarization direction of transmitted electrons can be controlled via the
tunnel barrier strength and discuss a novel spin-filtering design in
one-dimensional rings with tunable spin-orbit interaction.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figure
Phase rigidity breaking in open Aharonov-Bohm ring coupled to a cantilever
The conductance and the transmittance phase shifts of a two-terminal
Aharonov-Bohm (AB) ring are analyzed in the presence of mechanical
displacements due to coupling to an external can- tilever. We show that phase
rigidity is broken, even in the linear response regime, by means of inelastic
scattering due to phonons. Our device provides a way of observing continuous
variation of the transmission phase through a two-terminal
nano-electro-mechanical system (NEMS). We also propose measurements of phase
shifts as a way to determine the strength of the electron-phonon coupling in
NEMS.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figure
Effect Of Zinc Cations On The Kinetics Of Supramolecular Assembly And The Chirality Of Porphyrin J-Aggregates
Dilute aqueous solutions of anionic meso-4-sulfonatophenyl-porphyrin (TPPS) extract zinc(ii) ions from glass or quartz surfaces at room temperature and efficiently form the corresponding metal complex (ZnTPPS). The partial or complete formation of ZnTPPS has been probed by UV/Vis spectroscopy and both static and time-resolved fluorescence. The source of zinc(ii) ions has been clearly identified through inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry. The presence of increasing amounts of ZnTPPS slows down the rate of TPPS J-aggregate formation in acid solution. This influences the nucleation step and has a profound impact on the onset of chirality in these species. This evidence indicates the important role of this adventitious metal ion in the interpretation of various spectroscopic and kinetic data for the self-assembly of the TPPS porphyrin and provides some insights into controversial findings on their chirality. The use of this metal derivative as the starting compound for in situ formation of monomeric TPPS is suggested
Teaching Teachers for the Future (TTF) Project: Development of the TTF TPACK survey instrument
This paper presents a summary of the key findings of the TTF TPACK Survey developed and administered for the Teaching the Teachers for the Future (TTF) Project implemented in 2011. The TTF Project, funded by an Australian Government ICT Innovation Fund grant, involved all 39 Australian Higher Education Institutions which provide initial teacher education. TTF data collections were undertaken at the end of Semester 1 (T1) and at the end of Semester 2 (T2) in 2011. A total of 12881 participants completed the first survey (T1) and 5809 participants completed the second survey (T2). Groups of like-named items from the T1 survey were subject to a battery of complementary data analysis techniques. The psychometric properties of the four scales: Confidence - teacher items; Usefulness - teacher items; Confidence - student items; Usefulness- student items, were confirmed both at T1 and T2. Among the key findings summarised, at the national level, the scale: Confidence to use ICT as a teacher showed measurable growth across the whole scale from T1 to T2, and the scale: Confidence to facilitate student use of ICT also showed measurable growth across the whole scale from T1 to T2. Additional key TTF TPACK Survey findings are summarised
Mechanism For Copper(II)-Mediated Disaggregation Of A Porphyrin J-Aggregate
J-aggregates of anionic meso-tetrakis(4-sulfonatophenyl)porphyrin form at intermediate pH (2.3â3.1) in the presence of NiSOâ or ZnSOâ (ionic strength, I.S. = 3.2 M). These aggregates convert to monomeric porphyrin units via metallation with copper(II) ions. The kinetics for the disassembly process, as monitored by UV/vis spectroscopy, exhibits zeroth-order behavior. The observed zeroth-order rate constants show a two-term dependence on copper(II) ion concentrations: linear and second order. Also observed is an inverse dependence on hydrogen ion concentration. Activation parameters have been determined for the disassembly process leading to ÎH^â = (+163 ± 15) kJ·molâ»Âč and ÎS^â = (+136 ± 11) J·Kâ»Âč. A mechanism is proposed in which copper(II) cation is in pre-equilibrium with a reactive site at the rim of the J-aggregate. An intermediate copper species is thus formed that eventually leads to the final metallated porphyrin either through an assisted attack of a second metal ion or through a direct insertion of the metal cation into the macrocycle core
Local and Global Casimir Energies for a Semitransparent Cylindrical Shell
The local Casimir energy density and the global Casimir energy for a massless
scalar field associated with a -function potential in a 3+1
dimensional circular cylindrical geometry are considered. The global energy is
examined for both weak and strong coupling, the latter being the well-studied
Dirichlet cylinder case. For weak-coupling,through ,
the total energy is shown to vanish by both analytic and numerical arguments,
based both on Green's-function and zeta-function techniques. Divergences
occurring in the calculation are shown to be absorbable by renormalization of
physical parameters of the model. The global energy may be obtained by
integrating the local energy density only when the latter is supplemented by an
energy term residing precisely on the surface of the cylinder. The latter is
identified as the integrated local energy density of the cylindrical shell when
the latter is physically expanded to have finite thickness. Inside and outside
the delta-function shell, the local energy density diverges as the surface of
the shell is approached; the divergence is weakest when the conformal stress
tensor is used to define the energy density. A real global divergence first
occurs in , as anticipated, but the proof is supplied
here for the first time; this divergence is entirely associated with the
surface energy, and does {\em not} reflect divergences in the local energy
density as the surface is approached.Comment: 28 pages, REVTeX, no figures. Appendix added on perturbative
divergence
EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB: the high-brightness RF photo-injector layout proposal
At EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB, the unique combination of an advanced high-brightness
RF injector and a plasma-based accelerator will drive a new multi-disciplinary
user-facility. The facility, that is currently under study at INFN-LNF
Laboratories (Frascati, Italy) in synergy with the EuPRAXIA collaboration, will
operate the plasma-based accelerator in the external injection configuration.
Since in this configuration the stability and reproducibility of the
acceleration process in the plasma stage is strongly influenced by the
RF-generated electron beam, the main challenge for the RF injector design is
related to generating and handling high quality electron beams. In the last
decades of R&D activity, the crucial role of high-brightness RF photo-injectors
in the fields of radiation generation and advanced acceleration schemes has
been largely established, making them effective candidates to drive
plasma-based accelerators as pilots for user facilities. An RF injector
consisting in a high-brightness S-band photo-injector followed by an advanced
X-band linac has been proposed for the EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB project. The electron
beam dynamics in the photo-injector has been explored by means of simulations,
resulting in high-brightness, ultra-short bunches with up to 3 kA peak current
at the entrance of the advanced X-band linac booster. The EuPRAXIA@SPARC_LAB
high-brightness photo-injector is described here together with performance
optimisation and sensitivity studies aiming to actual check the robustness and
reliability of the desired working point.Comment: 5 pages,5 figures, EAAC201
Casimir Forces for Robin Scalar Field on Cylindrical Shell in de Sitter Space
The Casimir stress on a cylinderical shell in background of conformally flat
space-time for massless scalar field is investigated. In the general case of
Robin (mixed) boundary condition formulae are derived for the vacuum
expectation values of the energy-momentum tensor and vacuum forces acting on
boundaries. The special case of the dS bulk is considered then different
cosmological constants are assumed for the space inside and outside of the
shell to have general results applicable to the case of cylindrical domain wall
formations in the early universe.Comment: 10 pages, no figur
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