1,500 research outputs found
Nonlinear electromagnetic response of graphene: Frequency multiplication and the self-consistent-field effects
Graphene is a recently discovered carbon based material with unique physical
properties. This is a monolayer of graphite, and the two-dimensional electrons
and holes in it are described by the effective Dirac equation with a vanishing
effective mass. As a consequence, electromagnetic response of graphene is
predicted to be strongly non-linear. We develop a quasi-classical kinetic
theory of the non-linear electromagnetic response of graphene, taking into
account the self-consistent-field effects. Response of the system to both
harmonic and pulse excitation is considered. The frequency multiplication
effect, resulting from the non-linearity of the electromagnetic response, is
studied under realistic experimental conditions. The frequency up-conversion
efficiency is analysed as a function of the applied electric field and
parameters of the samples. Possible applications of graphene in terahertz
electronics are discussed.Comment: 14 pages, 7 figures, invited paper written for a special issue of
JPCM "Terahertz emitters
Entanglement distribution for a practical quantum-dot-based quantum processor architecture
We propose a quantum dot (QD) architecture for enabling universal quantum information processing. Quantum registers, consisting of arrays of vertically stacked self-assembled semiconductor QDs, are connected by chains of in-plane self-assembled dots. We propose an entanglement distributor, a device for producing and distributing maximally entangled qubits on demand, communicated through in-plane dot chains. This enables the transmission of entanglement to spatially separated register stacks, providing a resource for the realization of a sizeable quantum processor built from coupled register stacks of practical size. Our entanglement distributor could be integrated into many of the present proposals for self-assembled QD-based quantum computation (QC). Our device exploits the properties of simple, relatively short, spin-chains and does not require microcavities. Utilizing the properties of self-assembled QDs, after distribution the entanglement can be mapped into relatively long-lived spin qubits and purified, providing a flexible, distributed, off-line resource. © IOP Publishing Ltd and Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft
Evaluating the genetic consequences of population subdivision as it unfolds and how to best mitigate them: A rare story about koalas
The genetic consequences of the subdivision of populations are regarded as significant to long-term evolution, and research has shown that the scale and speed at which this is now occurring is critically reducing the adaptive potential of most species which inhabit human-impacted landscapes. Here, we provide a rare and, to our knowledge, the first analysis of this process while it is happening and demonstrate a method of evaluating the effect of mitigation measures such as fauna crossings. We did this by using an extensive genetic data set collected from a koala population which was intensely monitored during the construction of linear transport infrastructure which resulted in the subdivision of their population. First, we found that both allelic richness and effective population size decreased through the process of population subdivision. Second, we predicted the extent to which genetic drift could impact genetic diversity over time and showed that after only 10 generations the resulting two subdivided populations could experience between 12% and 69% loss in genetic diversity. Lastly, using forward simulations we estimated that a minimum of eight koalas would need to disperse from each side of the subdivision per generation to maintain genetic connectivity close to zero but that 16 koalas would ensure that both genetic connectivity and diversity remained unchanged. These results have important consequences for the genetic management of species in human-impacted landscapes by showing which genetic metrics are best to identify immediate loss in genetic diversity and how to evaluate the effectiveness of any mitigation measures
Thin-Film Metamaterials called Sculptured Thin Films
Morphology and performance are conjointed attributes of metamaterials, of
which sculptured thin films (STFs) are examples. STFs are assemblies of
nanowires that can be fabricated from many different materials, typically via
physical vapor deposition onto rotating substrates. The curvilinear--nanowire
morphology of STFs is determined by the substrate motions during fabrication.
The optical properties, especially, can be tailored by varying the morphology
of STFs. In many cases prototype devices have been fabricated for various
optical, thermal, chemical, and biological applications.Comment: to be published in Proc. ICTP School on Metamaterials (Augsut 2009,
Sibiu, Romania
Spectral/hp element simulation of flow past a Formula One front wing: validation against experiments
Emerging commercial and academic tools are regularly being applied to the design of road and race cars, but there currently are no well-established benchmark cases to study the aerodynamics of race car wings in ground effect. In this paper we propose a new test case, with a relatively complex geometry, supported by the availability of CAD model and experimental results. We refer to the test case as the Imperial Front Wing, originally based on the front wing and endplate design of the McLaren 17D race car. A comparison of different resolutions of a high fidelity spectral/hp element simulation using under-resolved DNS/implicit LES approach with fourth and fifth polynomial order is presented. The results demonstrate good correlation to both the wall-bounded streaklines obtained by oil flow visualization and experimental PIV results, correctly predicting key characteristics of the time-averaged flow structures, namely intensity, contours and locations. This study highlights the resolution requirements in capturing salient flow features arising from this type of challenging geometry, providing an interesting test case for both traditional and emerging high-fidelity simulations
Strong-field terahertz-optical mixing in excitons
Driving a double-quantum-well excitonic intersubband resonance with a
terahertz (THz) electric field of frequency \omega_{THz} generated terahertz
optical sidebands \omega=\omega_{THz}+\omega_{NIR} on a weak NIR probe. At high
THz intensities, the intersubband dipole energy which coupled two excitons was
comparable to the THz photon energy. In this strong-field regime the sideband
intensity displayed a non-monotonic dependence on the THz field strength. The
oscillating refractive index which gives rise to the sidebands may be
understood by the formation of Floquet states, which oscillate with the same
periodicity as the driving THz field.Comment: 4 pages, 6 figure
High-precision gigahertz-to-terahertz spectroscopy of aqueous salt solutions as a probe of the femtosecond-to-picosecond dynamics of liquid water
Because it is sensitive to fluctuations occurring over femtoseconds to
picoseconds, gigahertz-to-terahertz dielectric relaxation spectroscopy can
provide a valuable window into water's most rapid intermolecular motions. In
response, we have built a vector network analyzer dielectric spectrometer
capable of measuring absorbance and index of refraction in this frequency
regime with unprecedented precision. Using this to determine the complex
dielectric response of water and aqueous salt solutions from 5.9 GHz to 1.12
THz (which we provide in the SI), we have obtained strong new constraints on
theories of water's collective dynamics. For example, while the
salt-dependencies we observe for water's two slower relaxations (8 and 1 ps)
are easily reconciled with suggestions that they arise due to rotations of
fully and partially hydrogen bonded molecules, respectively, the
salt-dependence of the fastest relaxation (180 fs) appears difficult to
reconcile with its prior assignment to liberations of single hydrogen bonds.Comment: 14 pages, 3 figures, Published in Journal of Chemical Physic
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