43 research outputs found
Resonant electron-lattice cooling in graphene
Controlling energy flows in solids through switchable electron-lattice
cooling can grant access to a range of interesting and potentially useful
energy transport phenomena. Here we discuss a unique switchable
electron-lattice cooling mechanism arising in graphene due to phonon emission
mediated by resonant scattering on defects in crystal lattice, which displays
interesting analogy to the Purcell effect in optics. This mechanism strongly
enhances the electron-phonon cooling rate, since non-equilibrium carriers in
the presence of momentum recoil due to disorder can access a larger phonon
phase space and emit phonons more effciently. Resonant energy dependence of
phonon emission translates into gate-tunable cooling rates, exhibiting giant
enhancement of cooling occurring when the carrier energy is aligned with the
electron resonance of the defect
Lamellar mesophase nucleated by Josephson vortices at the melting of the vortex lattice in
The local effect of the Josephson vortices on the vortex lattice melting
process in \BSCCO crystals in the presence of an in-plane field is
studied by differential magneto-optical imaging. The melting process is found
to commence along the Josephson vortex stacks, forming a mesomorphic phase of
periodic liquid and solid lamellas, the direction and spacing of which are
controlled by . The reduction of the local melting field along
the Josephson vortex stacks is more than an order of magnitude larger than the
reduction of the average bulk by .Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures (low res). Higher resolution can be found in the
Phys. Rev. Lett. equivalent pape
Electrically tunable multi-terminal SQUID-on-tip
We present a new nanoscale superconducting quantum interference device
(SQUID) whose interference pattern can be shifted electrically in-situ. The
device consists of a nanoscale four-terminal/four-junction SQUID fabricated at
the apex of a sharp pipette using a self-aligned three-step deposition of Pb.
In contrast to conventional two-terminal/two-junction SQUIDs that display
optimal sensitivity when flux biased to about a quarter of the flux quantum,
the additional terminals and junctions allow optimal sensitivity at arbitrary
applied flux, thus eliminating the magnetic field "blind spots". We demonstrate
spin sensitivity of 5 to 8 over a continuous field
range of 0 to 0.5 T, with promising applications for nanoscale scanning
magnetic imaging
Imaging resonant dissipation from individual atomic defects in graphene
Conversion of electric current into heat involves microscopic processes that
operate on nanometer length-scales and release minute amounts of power. While
central to our understanding of the electrical properties of materials,
individual mediators of energy dissipation have so far eluded direct
observation. Using scanning nano-thermometry with sub-micro K sensitivity we
visualize and control phonon emission from individual atomic defects in
graphene. The inferred electron-phonon 'cooling power spectrum' exhibits sharp
peaks when the Fermi level comes into resonance with electronic quasi-bound
states at such defects, a hitherto uncharted process. Rare in the bulk but
abundant at graphene's edges, switchable atomic-scale phonon emitters define
the dominant dissipation mechanism. Our work offers new insights for addressing
key materials challenges in modern electronics and engineering dissipation at
the nanoscale
Nanoscale imaging of equilibrium quantum Hall edge currents and of the magnetic monopole response in graphene
The recently predicted topological magnetoelectric effect and the response to
an electric charge that mimics an induced mirror magnetic monopole are
fundamental attributes of topological states of matter with broken time
reversal symmetry. Using a SQUID-on-tip, acting simultaneously as a tunable
scanning electric charge and as ultrasensitive nanoscale magnetometer, we
induce and directly image the microscopic currents generating the magnetic
monopole response in a graphene quantum Hall electron system. We find a rich
and complex nonlinear behavior governed by coexistence of topological and
nontopological equilibrium currents that is not captured by the monopole
models. Furthermore, by utilizing a tuning fork that induces nanoscale
vibrations of the SQUID-on-tip, we directly image the equilibrium currents of
individual quantum Hall edge states for the first time. We reveal that the edge
states that are commonly assumed to carry only a chiral downstream current, in
fact carry a pair of counterpropagating currents, in which the topological
downstream current in the incompressible region is always counterbalanced by
heretofore unobserved nontopological upstream current flowing in the adjacent
compressible region. The intricate patterns of the counterpropagating
equilibrium-state orbital currents provide new insights into the microscopic
origins of the topological and nontopological charge and energy flow in quantum
Hall systems