272 research outputs found
Shot noise in tunneling transport through molecules and quantum dots
We consider electrical transport through single molecules coupled to metal
electrodes via tunneling barriers. Approximating the molecule by the Anderson
impurity model as the simplest model which includes Coulomb charging effects,
we extend the ``orthodox'' theory to expand current and shot noise
systematically order by order in the tunnel couplings. In particular, we show
that a combined measurement of current and shot noise reveals detailed
information of the system even in the weak-coupling limit, such as the ratio of
the tunnel-coupling strengths of the molecule to the left and right electrode,
and the presence of the Coulomb charging energy. Our analysis holds for
single-level quantum dots as well.Comment: 8 page
Stable CoO Nanoscrolls With Outstanding Electrical Properties
Layered CoO is of great interest for its promising properties but is
meta-stable in its bulk form. CoO was synthesized in a long-term stable
nanotubular or scrolled form by converting the quasi-one-dimensional crystal
structure of bulk CaCoO via a hydrothermal treatment. The resulting
one-dimensional nanostructures with very thin walls are investigated in detail.
The CoO_ is found to crystallize in monoclinic form, similar to the related
CaCoO-CoO misfit structure. Individual nanoscrolls are characterized
electrically and show a p-type semiconducting nature with a high
current-carrying capacity of A/cm and an extremely high
breakdown voltage of 27 kV/cm. The results demonstrate the possibility to
stabilize meta-stable materials in low-dimensional forms and a promising
application of the nanoscrolls as interconnect in high-voltage electronic
circuitry
Coherent Transport through an interacting double quantum dot: Beyond sequential tunneling
Various causes for negative differential conductance in transport through an
interacting double quantum dot are investigated. Particular focus is given to
the interplay between the renormalization of the energy levels due to the
coupling to the leads and the decoherence of the states. The calculations are
performed within a basis of many-particle eigenstates and we consider the
dynamics given by the von Neumann-equation taking into account also processes
beyond sequential tunneling. A systematic comparison between the levels of
approximation and also with different formalisms is performed. It is found that
the current is qualitatively well described by sequential processes as long as
the temperature is larger than the level broadening induced by the contacts.Comment: 11 pages, 5 figures included in tex
Carbon‐film‐based Zernike phase plates with smooth thickness gradient for phase‐contrast transmission electron microscopy with reduced fringing artefacts
Phase plates (PPs) in transmission electron microscopy (TEM) improve the contrast of weakly scattering objects under in-focus imaging conditions. A well-established PP type is the Zernike (Z)PP, which consists of a thin amorphous carbon (aC) film with a microscaled hole in the centre. The mean inner potential of the aC film is exploited to shift the phase of the scattered electrons while the unscattered electrons in the zero-order beam propagate through the hole and remain unaffected. However, the abrupt thickness increase at the hole edge induces an abrupt change of the phase-shift distribution and leads to fringing, that is, intensity oscillations around imaged objects, in TEM images. In this work, we have used focused-ion-beam milling to fabricate ZPPs with abrupt and graded thickness profiles around the centre hole. Depending on the thickness gradient and inner hole radius, graded-ZPP-TEM images of an aC/vacuum interface and bundles of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) show strongly reduced fringing. Image simulations were performed with ZPP-phase-shift distributions derived from measured thickness profiles of graded ZPPs, which show good agreement with the experimental images.
- Fringing artefacts, that is, intensity oscillations around imaged objects, are strongly reduced for Zernike phase plates with a graded thickness profile around the centre hole.
- Focused-ion-beam milling is used to fabricate graded Zernike phase plates with specific inner hole radius and thickness gradients.
- The phase-shift distribution is obtained from measured thickness profiles around the centre hole.
- Image simulations based on experimentally measured thickness/phase-shift distributions show good agreement with experimental Zernike phase-plate TEM images
Analyzing contrast in cryo-transmission electron microscopy: Comparison of electrostatic Zach phase plates and hole-free phase plates
Phase plates (PPs) are beneficial devices to improve the phase contrast of life-science objects in cryo-transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The development of the hole-free (HF) PP, which consists of a thin carbon film, has led to impressive results due to its ease in fabrication, implementation and application. However, the phase shift of the HFPP can be controlled only indirectly. The electrostatic Zach PP uses a strongly localized and adjustable electrostatic potential to generate well-defined and variable phase shifts between scattered and unscattered electrons. However, artifacts in phase-contrast TEM images are induced by the presence of the PP rod in the diffraction plane. We present a detailed analysis and comparison of the contrast-enhancing capabilities of both PP types and their emerging artifacts. For this purpose, cryo-TEM images of a standard T4-bacteriophage test sample were acquired with both PP types. Simulated images reproduce the experimental images well and substantially contribute to the understanding of contrast formation. An electrostatic Zach PP was used in this work to acquire cryo-electron tomograms with enhanced contrast, which are of similar quality as tomograms obtained by HFPP TEM
Spectral functions in itinerant electron systems with geometrical frustration
The Hubbard model with geometrical frustration is investigated in a metallic
phase close to half-filling. We calculate the single particle spectral function
for the triangular lattice within dynamical cluster approximation, which is
further combined with non-crossing approximation and fluctuation exchange
approximation to treat the resulting cluster Anderson model. It is shown that
frustration due to non-local correlations suppresses short-range
antiferromagnetic fluctuations and thereby assists the formation of heavy
quasi-particles near half-filling.Comment: 4 pages, 5 eps figure
Lower Bound for the Fermi Level Density of States of a Disordered D-Wave Superconductor in Two Dimensions
We consider a disordered d--wave superconductor in two dimensions. Recently,
we have shown in an exact calculation that for a lattice model with a
Lorentzian distributed random chemical potential the quasiparticle density of
states at the Fermi level is nonzero. As the exact result holds only for the
special choice of the Lorentzian, we employ different methods to show that for
a large class of distributions, including the Gaussian distribution, one can
establish a nonzero lower bound for the Fermi level density of states. The fact
that the tails of the distributions are unimportant in deriving the lower bound
shows that the exact result obtained before is generic.Comment: 15 preprint pages, no figures, submitted to PR
Cellular Dynamical Mean Field Approach to Strongly Correlated Systems
We propose a cellular version of dynamical-mean field theory which gives a
natural generalization of its original single-site construction and is
formulated in different sets of variables. We show how non-orthogonality of the
tight-binding basis sets enters the problem and prove that the resulting
equations lead to manifestly causal self energies.Comment: RevTex, 4 pages, 1 embedded figur
Zero-bias anomalies and boson-assisted tunneling through quantum dots
We study resonant tunneling through a quantum dot with one degenerate level
in the presence of a strong Coulomb repulsion and a bosonic environment. Using
a real-time approach we calculate the spectral density and the nonlinear
current within a conserving approximation. The spectral density shows a
multiplet of Kondo peaks split by the transport voltage and boson frequencies.
As a consequence we find a zero-bias anomaly in the differential conductance
which can show a local maximum or minimum depending on the level position. The
results are compared with recent experiments.Comment: 4 pages, revtex, 5 postscript figures, submitted to Phys. Rev. Let
Superconductivity in striped and multi-Fermi-surface Hubbard models: From the cuprates to the pnictides
Single- and multi-band Hubbard models have been found to describe many of the
complex phenomena that are observed in the cuprate and iron-based
high-temperature superconductors. Simulations of these models therefore provide
an ideal framework to study and understand the superconducting properties of
these systems and the mechanisms responsible for them. Here we review recent
dynamic cluster quantum Monte Carlo simulations of these models, which provide
an unbiased view of the leading correlations in the system. In particular, we
discuss what these simulations tell us about superconductivity in the
homogeneous 2D single-orbital Hubbard model, and how charge stripes affect this
behavior. We then describe recent simulations of a bilayer Hubbard model, which
provides a simple model to study the type and nature of pairing in systems with
multiple Fermi surfaces such as the iron-based superconductors.Comment: Published as part of Superstripes 2011 (Rome) conference proceeding
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