2,679 research outputs found
Pseudo-magnetic field distribution and pseudo-Landau levels in suspended graphene flakes
Combining the tight-binding approximation and linear elasticity theory for a
planar membrane, we investigate stretching of a graphene flake assuming that
two opposite edges of the sample are clamped by the contacts. We show that,
depending on the aspect ratio of the flake and its orientation, gapped states
may form in the membrane in the vicinity of the contacts. This gap in the
pre-contact region should be biggest for the armchair orientation of the flake
and width to length ratio of around 1.Comment: 7 pages + 3 figure
Landau levels in deformed bilayer graphene at low magnetic fields
We review the effect of uniaxial strain on the low-energy electronic
dispersion and Landau level structure of bilayer graphene. Based on the
tight-binding approach, we derive a strain-induced term in the low-energy
Hamiltonian and show how strain affects the low-energy electronic band
structure. Depending on the magnitude and direction of applied strain, we
identify three regimes of qualitatively different electronic dispersions. We
also show that in a weak magnetic field, sufficient strain results in the
filling factor ff=+-4 being the most stable in the quantum Hall effect
measurement, instead of ff=+-8 in unperturbed bilayer at a weak magnetic field.
To mention, in one of the strain regimes, the activation gap at ff=+-4 is, down
to very low fields, weakly dependent on the strength of the magnetic field.Comment: 14 single-column pages, 5 figures, more details on material presented
in arXiv:1104.502
Influence of Zeeman splitting and thermally excited polaron states on magneto-electrical and magneto-thermal properties of magnetoresistive polycrystalline manganite La_{0.8}Sr_{0.2}MnO_3
Some possible connection between spin and charge degrees of freedom in
magneto-resistive manganites is investigated through a thorough experimental
study of the magnetic (AC susceptibility and DC magnetization) and transport
(resistivity and thermal conductivity) properties. Measurements are reported in
the case of well characterized polycrystalline La_{0.8}Sr_{0.2}MnO_3 samples.
The experimental results suggest rather strong field-induced polarization
effects in our material, clearly indicating the presence of ordered FM regions
inside the semiconducting phase. Using an analytical expression which fits the
spontaneous DC magnetization, the temperature and magnetic field dependences of
both electrical resistivity and thermal conductivity data are found to be well
reproduced through a universal scenario based on two mechanisms: (i) a
magnetization dependent spin polaron hopping influenced by a Zeeman splitting
effect, and (ii) properly defined thermally excited polaron states which have
to be taken into account in order to correctly describe the behavior of the
less conducting region. Using the experimentally found values of the magnetic
and electron localization temperatures, we obtain L=0.5nm and m_p=3.2m_e for
estimates of the localization length (size of the spin polaron) and effective
polaron mass, respectively.Comment: Accepted for publication in Journal of Applied Physic
Spectroscopic Signatures of Electronic Excitations in Raman Scattering in Thin Films of Rhombohedral Graphite
Rhombohedral graphite features peculiar electronic properties, including
persistence of low-energy surface bands of a topological nature. Here, we study
the contribution of electron-hole excitations towards inelastic light
scattering in thin films of rhombohedral graphite. We show that, in contrast to
the featureless electron-hole contribution towards Raman spectrum of graphitic
films with Bernal stacking, the inelastic light scattering accompanied by
electron-hole excitations in crystals with rhombohedral stacking produces
distinct features in the Raman signal which can be used both to identify the
stacking and to determine the number of layers in the film.Comment: 15 pages in preprint format, 4 figures, accepted versio
Spectral features due to inter-Landau-level transitions in the Raman spectrum of bilayer graphene
We investigate the contribution of the low-energy electronic excitations
towards the Raman spectrum of bilayer graphene for the incoming photon energy
Omega >> 1eV. Starting with the four-band tight-binding model, we derive an
effective scattering amplitude that can be incorporated into the commonly used
two-band approximation. Due to the influence of the high-energy bands, this
effective scattering amplitude is different from the contact interaction
amplitude obtained within the two-band model alone. We then calculate the
spectral density of the inelastic light scattering accompanied by the
excitation of electron-hole pairs in bilayer graphene. In the absence of a
magnetic field, due to the parabolic dispersion of the low-energy bands in a
bilayer crystal, this contribution is constant and in doped structures has a
threshold at twice the Fermi energy. In an external magnetic field, the
dominant Raman-active modes are the n_{-} to n_{+} inter-Landau-level
transitions with crossed polarisation of in/out photons. We estimate the
quantum efficiency of a single n_{-} to n_{+} transition in the magnetic field
of 10T as I_{n_{-} to n_{+}}~10^{-12}.Comment: 7 pages, 3 figures, expanded version published in PR
Electronic Raman Scattering in Twistronic Few-Layer Graphene
We study electronic contribution to the Raman scattering signals of two-,
three- and four-layer graphene with layers at one of the interfaces twisted by
a small angle with respect to each other. We find that the Raman spectra of
these systems feature two peaks produced by van Hove singularities in moir\'{e}
minibands of twistronic graphene, one related to direct hybridization of Dirac
states, and the other resulting from band folding caused by moir\'{e}
superlattice. The positions of both peaks strongly depend on the twist angle,
so that their detection can be used for non-invasive characterization of the
twist, even in hBN-encapsulated structures.Comment: 7 pages (including 4 figures) + 10 pages (3 figures) supplemen
Anomalous thermoelectric power of Mg1-xAlxB2 system with x = 0.0 to 1.0
Thermoelectric power, S(T) of the Mg1-xAlxB2 system has been measured for x =
0.0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0. XRD, resistivity and magnetization
measurements are also presented. It has been found that the thermoelectric
power is positive for x = 0.4 and is negative for x = 0.6 over the entire
temperature range studied up to 300 K. The thermoelectric power of x = 0.4
samples vanishes discontinuously below a certain temperature, implying
existence of superconductivity. In general, the magnitude of the thermoelectric
power increases with temperature up to a certain temperature, and then it
starts to decrease towards zero base line. In order to explain the observed
behavior of the thermoelectric power, we have used a model in which both
diffusion and phonon drag processes are combined by using a phenomenological
interpolation between the low and high temperature behaviors of the
thermoelectric power. The considered model provides an excellent fit to the
observed data. It is further found that Al doping enhances the Debye
temperature.Comment: 19 pages Text + Figs.
suggestions/comments([email protected]
A caricature of a singular curvature flow in the plane
We study a singular parabolic equation of the total variation type in one
dimension. The problem is a simplification of the singular curvature flow. We
show existence and uniqueness of weak solutions. We also prove existence of
weak solutions to the semi-discretization of the problem as well as convergence
of the approximating sequences. The semi-discretization shows that facets must
form. For a class of initial data we are able to study in details the facet
formation and interactions and their asymptotic behavior. We notice that our
qualitative results may be interpreted with the help of a special composition
of multivalued operators
Sandy beaches as biogeochemical hotspots : the metabolic role of macroalgal wrack on low-productive shores
Sandy beaches, which represent the most common type of land-sea interface, harbor distinctive biotic communities and regulate the flow of energy between marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Accumulations of sea wrack on sandy beaches are of crucial importance for recycling beach nutrients and for regulating trophic connectivity and coastal functioning. We investigated the role of beaches as biogeochemical hotspots by examining the metabolic activity in accumulations of different species of wrack on two exposed beaches affected by different levels of human pressure. Experimental wrack patches provided large amounts of different sedimentary nutrients over time due to remineralization of the algae. Unsurprisingly, the variation in the nutrients present in the beach sediments was related to the species of wrack considered. Macroalgal wrack was metabolically very active and supported high respiration rates represented by intense CO2 fluxes. Importantly, we demonstrated that the wrack metabolic rate differed significantly depending on the algal species considered. Different macrofauna and bacterial assemblages were identified in the different wrack patches and on the different beaches. We suggest that human activities such as beach grooming can modify the wrack-associated communities, thus contributing to the variability in the biogeochemical processes and metabolic rates. Significant changes in the type and amount of wrack deposited on beaches can change fundamental processes related to the marine-terrestrial transfer of nutrients and energy and to the marine-atmospheric transfer of CO2 emissions, with ecological consequences for nearshore environments.Peer reviewe
Moiré miniband features in the angle-resolved photoemission spectra of graphene/hBN heterostructures
We identify features in the angle-resolved photoemission spectra (ARPES)
arising from the periodic pattern characteristic for graphene heterostructure
with hexagonal boron nitride (hBN). For this, we model ARPES spectra and
intensity maps for five microscopic models used previously to describe moire
superlattice in graphene/hBN systems. We show that detailed analysis of these
features can be used to pin down the microscopic mechanism of the interaction
between graphene and hBN. We also analyze how the presence of a moire-periodic
strain in graphene or scattering of photoemitted electrons off hBN can be
distinguished from the miniband formation.Comment: 8.5 pages and 9 figures; version published in Phys. Rev.
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