Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)

Abstract: Measurement is the foundation of science, and is a subtle concept especially in quantum mechanics, where the action of detection interacts with the quantum system perturbatively. The property of a quantum system is captured from the stimulated evolution of either the system or the detecting reservoir. Transport measurement, which applies an electric field and studies the migration of charged particles, i.e. the current, is the most widely used technique. In ultra-high mobility two-dimensional systems, transport measurement reveals fruitful quantum phenomena such as the quantum Hall effect, the Aharonov-Bohm oscillation and ballistic trajectory of quasiparticles, the microwave induced zero resistance, the interference of quasiparticles, etc. The general assumption that the quantum phase remains unchanged with a sufficiently small probing current, unfortunately, is rarely examined experimentally. In this work, we probe the ultra-high mobility two-dimensional electron system via its interaction with a propagating surface acoustic wave and observe that the system becomes more incompressible when hosting a current.

Abstract: We present an environmentally benign methodology for the covalent functionalization (arylation) of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanosheets with arylazo sulfones. A variety of tagged aryl units were conveniently accommodated at the rGO surface via visible light irradiation of suspensions of carbon nanostructured materials in aqueous media. Mild reaction conditions, absence of photosensitizers, functional group tolerance and high atomic fractions (XPS analysis) represent some of the salient features characterizing the present methodology. Control experiments for the mechanistic elucidation (Raman analysis) and chemical nanomanipulation of the tagged rGO surfaces are also reported.

Abstract: Quantum systems with engineered Hamiltonians can be used as simulators of many-body physics problems to provide insights beyond the capabilities of classical computers. Semiconductor gate-defined quantum dot arrays have emerged as a versatile platform for quantum simulation of generalized Fermi-Hubbard physics, one of the richest playgrounds in condensed matter physics. In this work, we employ a germanium 4$\times$2 quantum dot array and show that the naturally occurring long-range Coulomb interaction can lead to exciton formation and transport. We tune the quantum dot ladder into two capacitively-coupled channels and exploit Coulomb drag to probe the binding of electrons and holes. Specifically, we shuttle an electron through one leg of the ladder and observe that a hole is dragged along in the second leg under the right conditions. This corresponds to a transition from single-electron transport in one leg to exciton transport along the ladder. Our work paves the way for the study of excitonic states of matter in quantum dot arrays.

Abstract: The dissertation is devoted to the study of new fundamental phenomena which emerge due to electromechanical coupling in mesoscopic systems based on movable quantum dot.

Abstract: In this paper a comparative study of the electronic and magnetic properties of quasi-two-dimensional electrons in an artificial graphene-like superlattice composed of circular and elliptical quantum dots is presented. A complete orthonormal set of basis wave functions, which has previously been constructed in the frame of the Coulomb gauge for the vector potential has been implemented for calculation of the energy dispersions, the Hofstadter spectra, the density of states and the orbital magnetization of the considered systems, taking into account both the translational symmetry of the superlattice and the wave function phase-shifts due to the presence of a transverse external magnetic field. Our calculations indicate a topological change in the miniband structure due to the ellipticity of the quantum dots, and non-trivial modifications of the electron energy dispersion surfaces in reciprocal space with the change of the number of magnetic flux quanta through the unit cell of the superlattice. The ellipticity of the QDs leads to an opening of a gap and considerable modifications of the Hofstadter spectrum. The orbital magnetization is shown to reveal significant oscillations with the change of the magnetic flux. The deviation from the circular geometry of quantum dots has a qualitative impact on the dependencies of the magnetization on both the magnetic flux and the temperature.

Abstract: We investigate the electronic dispersion and transport properties of graphene/WSe$_{2}$ heterostructures in the presence of a proximity induced spin-orbit coupling (SOC) using a low-energy Hamiltonian, with different types of symmetry breaking terms, obtained from a four-band, first and second nearest-neighbour tight-binding (TB) one. The competition between different perturbation terms leads to inverted SOC bands. Further, we study the effect of symmetry breaking terms on ac and dc transport by evaluating the corresponding conductivities within linear response theory. The scattering-independent part of the valley-Hall conductivity, as a function of the Fermi energy $E_{F}$, is mostly negative in the ranges $-\lambda_{R}\leqslant E_{F}$ and $E_{F}\geqslant\lambda_{R}$ when the strength $\lambda_{R}$ of the Rashba SOC increases except for a very narrow region around $E_{F}=0$ in which it peaks sharply upward. The scattering-dependent diffusive conductivity increases linearly with electron density, is directly proportional to $\lambda_{R}$ in the low- and high-density regimes, but weakens for $\lambda_{R}=0$. We investigate the optical response in the presence of a SOC-tunable band gap for variable $E_{F}$. An interesting feature of this SOC tuning is that it can be used to switch on and off the Drude-type intraband response. Furthermore, the ac conductivity exhibits interband responses due to the Rashba SOC. We also show that the valley-Hall conductivity changes sign when $E_F$ is comparable to $\lambda_R$ and vanishes at higher values of $E_F$. It also exhibits a strong dependence on temperature and a considerable structure as a function of the frequency.

Abstract: We explore the statistical properties of energy transfer in ensembles of doubly-driven Random- Matrix Floquet Hamiltonians, based on universal symmetry arguments. The energy pumping efficiency distribution P(E) is associated with the Hamiltonian parameter ensemble and the eigenvalue statistics of the Floquet operator. For specific Hamiltonian ensembles, P(E) undergoes a transition that cannot be associated with a symmetry breaking of the instantaneous Hamiltonian. The Floquet eigenvalue spacing distribution indicates the considered ensembles constitute generic nonintegrable Hamiltonian families. As a step towards Hamiltonian engineering, we develop a machine-learning classifier to understand the relative parameter importance in resulting high conversion efficiency. We propose Random Floquet Hamiltonians as a general framework to investigate frequency conversion effects in a new class of generic dynamical processes beyond adiabatic pumps.

Abstract: We investigate the electronic dispersion and transport properties of graphene/WSe$_{2}$ heterostructures in the presence of a proximity-induced spin-orbit coupling $\lambda_{v}$, sublattice potential $\Delta$, and an off-resonant circularly polarized light of frequency $\Omega$ that renormalizes $\Delta$ to $\bar{\Delta}_{\eta p} = \Delta +\eta p \Delta_{\Omega} $ with $\eta$ and $p$ the valley and polarization indices, respectively, and $ \Delta_{\Omega} $ the gap due to the off-resonant circularly polarized light. Using a low-energy Hamiltonian we find that the interplay between different perturbation terms leads to inverted spin-orbit coupled bands. At high $\Omega$ we study the band structure and dc transport using the Floquet theory and linear response formalism, respectively. We find that the inverted band structure transfers into the direct band one when the off-resonant light is present. The valley-Hall conductivity behaves as an even function of the Fermi energy in the presence and absence of this light. At $\Delta_{\Omega}$ = $\lambda_{v}$ - $\Delta$ a transition occurs from the valley-Hall phase to the anomalous Hall phase. In addition, the valley-Hall conductivity switches sign when the polarization of the off-resonant light changes. The valley polarization vanishes for $\Delta_{\Omega}$ = 0 but it is finite for $\Delta_{\Omega}$ $\neq$ 0 and reflects the lifting of the valley degeneracy of the energy levels, for $\Delta_{\Omega} \neq 0$, when the off-resonant light is present. The corresponding spin polarization, present for $\Delta_{\Omega}$ = 0, increases for $\Delta_{\Omega}$ $\neq$ 0. Further, pure $K$ or $K^{\prime}$ valley polarization is generated when $\Delta_{\Omega}$ changes sign. Also, the charge Hall conductivity is finite for $\Delta_{\Omega}\neq 0$ and changes sign when the handedness of the light polarization changes.

Abstract: The interplay between chirality and topology nurtures many exotic electronic properties. For instance, topological chiral semimetals display multifold chiral fermions which manifest nontrivial topological charge and spin texture. They are an ideal playground for exploring chirality-driven exotic physical phenomena. In this work, we reveal a monopole-like orbital-momentum locking texture on the three-dimensional Fermi surfaces of topological chiral semimetals with B20 structures (e.g., RhSi and PdGa). This orbital texture enables a large orbital Hall effect (OHE) and a giant orbital magnetoelectric (OME) effect in the presence of current flow. Different enantiomers exhibit the same OHE which can be converted to the spin Hall effect by spin-orbit coupling in materials. In contrast, the OME effect is chirality dependent and much larger than its spin counterpart. Our work reveals the crucial role of orbital texture for understanding OHE and OME effect in topological chiral semimetals and paves the path for applications in orbitronics, spintronics and enantiomer recognition.

Abstract: We investigate the topological defect populations for superconducting vortices and magnetic skyrmions on random pinning substrates under driving amplitudes that are swept at different rates or suddenly quenched. When the substrate pinning is sufficiently strong, the system exhibits a nonequilibrium phase transition at a critical drive into a more topologically ordered state. We examine the number of topological defects that remain as we cross the ordering transition at different rates. In the vortex case, the system dynamically orders into a moving smectic, and the Kibble-Zurek scaling hypothesis gives exponents consistent with directed percolation. Due to their strong Magnus force, the skyrmions dynamically order into an isotropic crystal, producing different Kibble-Zurek scaling exponents that are more consistent with coarsening. We argue that in the skyrmion crystal, the topological defects can both climb and glide, facilitating coarsening, whereas in the vortex smectic state, the defects cannot climb and coarsening is suppressed. We also examine pulsed driving across the ordering transition and find that the defect population on the ordered side of the transition decreases with time as a power law, indicating that coarsening can occur across nonequilibrium phase transitions. Our results should be general to a wide class of nonequilibrium systems driven over random disorder where there are well-defined topological defects.