Abstract: Characterization methods for the structural investigation of biotemplates for nanodevices remain widely unexplored, despite the fact that biotemplating methods for nanodevice fabrication are becoming more widespread. In this study several techniques are used to characterize the morphology and 3D distribution of silver nanoparticles deposited on insulin fibrils.

Abstract: Low-temperature magnetoconductance measurements were made in the vicinity of the charge neutrality point (CNP). Two origins for the fluctuations were identified close to the CNP. At very low magnetic fields there exist only mesoscopic magnetoconductance quantum interference features which develop rapidly as a function of density. At slightly higher fields (>0.5 T), close to the CNP, additional fluctuations track the quantum Hall (QH) sequence expected for monolayer graphene. These additional features are attributed to effects of locally charging individual QH localized states. These effects reveal a precursor to the quantum Hall effect since, unlike previous transport observations of QH dot charging effects, they occur in the absence of quantum Hall plateaus or Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations. From our transport data we are able to extract parameters that characterize the inhomogeneities in our device.

Abstract: Using the time-dependent GinzburgLandau formalism, we study the dynamic properties of a submicron superconducting loop in applied current and in presence of a perpendicular magnetic field. The resistive state of the sample is caused by the motion of kinematic vortexantivortex pairs. Vortices and antivortices move in opposite directions to each other, perpendicularly to the applied drive, and the periodic creation and annihilation of such pairs results in periodic oscillations of the voltage across the sample. The dynamics of these kinematic pairs is strongly influenced by the applied magnetic field, which for high fields leads to the flow of just vortices. Kinematic vortices can be temporarily pinned inside the loop with observable trace in the voltage vs. time characteristics.

Abstract: The dynamics of vortex matter in mesoscopic superconducting Corbino disk is strongly influenced by the discrete vortex structure arranged in shells. While in previous works the vortex dynamics has been studied in large (macroscopic) and in very small mesoscopic disks (containing only few shells), in the intermediate-size regime it is much more complex and unusual, due to: (i) the competition between the vortexvortex interaction and confinement and (ii) (in)commensurability among the vortex shells. We found that the interplay between these effects can result in a very unusual vortex dynamical behavior: (i) unconventional angular melting (i.e., propagating from the boundary, where the shear stress is minimum, towards the center) and (ii) unconventional dynamics of shells (i.e., the inversion of shell velocities with respect to the gradient driving force). This unusual behavior is found for different number of shells.

Abstract: We studied the optical Aharonov-Bohm effect for an exciton in a semiconductor quantum ring. A perpendicular electric field applied to a quantum ring with large height, is able to tune the exciton ground state energy such that it exhibits a weak observable Aharonov-Bohm oscillations. This Aharonov-Bohm effect is tunable in strength and period.

Abstract: We introduce a new method to measure structure factors from parallel beam electron diffraction (PBED) patterns. Bloch wave refinement routines were developed which can minimise the difference between simulated and experimental Bragg intensities via variation of structure factors, Debye parameters, specimen thickness and -orientation. Due to plane wave illumination, the PBED refinement is highly efficient not only in computational respect, but also concerning the experimental effort since energy filtering is shown to have no significant effect on the refinement results. The PBED method was applied to simulated GaAs diffraction patterns to derive systematic errors and rules for the identification of plausible refinement results. The evaluation of experimental GaAs PBED patterns yields a 200 X-ray structure factor of -6.33±0.14. Additionally, we obtained -6.35±0.13 from two-dimensional convergent beam electron diffraction refinements. Both results confirm density functional theory calculations published by Rosenauer et al. and indicate the inaccuracy of isolated atom scattering data, which is crucial e.g. for the composition evaluation by lattice fringe analysis.

Abstract: The three-dimensional (3D) distribution of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) grown inside semiconductor contact holes is studied by electron tomography. The use of a specialized tomography holder results in an angular tilt range of ±90°, which means that the so-called missing wedge is absent. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) sample for this purpose consists of a micropillar that is prepared by a dedicated procedure using the focused ion beam (FIB) but keeping the CNTs intact. The 3D results are combined with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) to study the relation between the CNTs and the catalyst particles used during their growth. The reconstruction, based on the full range of tilt angles, is compared with a reconstruction where a missing wedge is present. This clearly illustates that the missing wedge will lead to an unreliable interpretation and will limit quantitative studies

Abstract: The electronic properties of two-dimensional hexagonal germanium, so called germanene, are investigated using first-principles simulations. Consistent with previous reports, the surface is predicted to have a poor metallic behavior, i.e., being metallic with a low density of states at the Fermi level. It is found that biaxial compressively strained germanene is a gapless semiconductor with linear energy dispersions near the K pointslike graphene. The calculated Fermi velocity of germanene is almost independent of the strain and is about 1.7×10⁶ m/s, quite comparable to the value in graphene.

Abstract: X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy at 3.5 keV photon energy, in combination with high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, is used to follow the formation of the interface between rhodium and carbon nanotubes. Rh nucleates at defect sites, whether initially present or induced by oxygen-plasma treatment. More uniform Rh cluster dispersion is observed on plasma-treated CNTs. Experimental results are compared to DFT calculations of small Rh clusters on pristine and defective graphene. While Rh interacts as strongly with the carbon as Ti, it is less sensitive to the presence of oxygen, suggesting it as a good candidate for nanotube contacts.

Abstract: Understanding the fundamental dynamics in carbon nanotube (CNT) catalysts is of primary importance to understand CNT nucleation. This Letter reports on calculated bond switching (BS) rates in pure and carbon containing nickel nanoclusters. The rates are analyzed in terms of their temperature dependent spatial distribution and the mobility of the cluster atoms. The BS mechanism is found to change from vibrational to diffusional at around 900 K, with a corresponding strong increase in activation energy. Furthermore, the BS activation energy is observed to decrease as the carbon content in the cluster increases, resulting in an effective liquification of the cluster.

Abstract: In this theoretical study, the electron emission from a copper surface under ultrashort pulsed laser irradiation is investigated using a one-dimensional particle in cell model. Thermionic emission as well as multiphoton photoelectron emission were taken into account. The emitted electrons create a negative space charge above the target; consequently the generated electric field reduces the electron emission by several orders of magnitude. The simulations indicate that the space charge effect should be considered when investigating electron emission related phenomena in materials under ultrashort pulsed laser irradiation of metals.

Abstract: The present study analyses a specific laser ablation cell, the High Efficiency Aerosol Dispersion (HEAD) cell (see J. Pisonero et al., J. Anal. At. Spectrom., 2006, 21, 922931), by means of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. However, this cell consists of different modular parts, therefore, the results are probably of interest for the further development of other ablation cells. In the HEAD cell, the ablation spot is positioned below an orifice in the ceiling of the sample chamber. The particle transport through this orifice has been analysed for a ceiling height of 0.8 mm. The critical velocity for the onset of particle losses was found to be independent on the ejection angle at the crater spot. The deceleration of the particles can be described as the stopping in an effectively steady gas. Particle losses were negligible in this modular part of the cell at the evaluated laser ablation conditions. The transport efficiency through the Venturi chamber was investigated for different sample gas flow rates. In this case, it was found that small particles were predominantly lost at low flow rates, the large particles at higher flow rates. Making use of the simulation results, it was possible to design a modification of the HEAD cell that results in extremely short calculated washout times. The simulations yielded a signal of less than 10 ms, which was produced by more than 99% of the introduced mass.

Abstract: The influence of the composition on the crystallographic properties of deposited Mg(M)O (with M=Al, Cr, Ti, Y, and Zr) films is studied. For a flexible control of the composition, dual reactive magnetron sputtering was used as deposition technique. Two different approaches to predict the composition are discussed. The first is an experimental way based on the simple relationship between the deposition rate and the target-substrate distance. The second is a route using a Monte Carlo based particle trajectory code. Both methods require a minimal experimental input and enable the user to quickly predict the composition of complex thin films. Good control and flexibility allow us to study the compositional effects on the growth of Mg(M)O films. Pure MgO thin films were grown with a (111) preferential out-of-plane orientation. When adding M to MgO, two trends were noticed. The first trend is a change in the MgO lattice parameters compared to pure MgO. The second tendency is a decrease in the crystallinity of the MgO phase. The experimentally determined crystallographic properties are shown to be in correspondence with the predicted properties from molecular dynamics simulations.

Abstract: The thermal signatures of superconductivity in mesoscopic disks, rings and cylinders are calculated within the Ginzburg-Landau theory. In an applied perpendicular magnetic field H the heat capacity of mesoscopic samples shows a strong dependence on the realized vortex state; discontinuities are found at the critical field for different vorticities, as well as at the superconducting-to-normal state transition. The same applies to the intermediate state of type-I superconductors. Even the subtle changes in the fluxoid distribution inside the sample leave clear signatures on heat capacity, which is particularly useful for fully three-dimensional samples whose interior is often inaccessible by magnetometry. The heat-capacity jump ΔC(H) at the critical temperature exhibits quasiperiodic modulations as a function of magnetic field. In mesoscopic superconducting rings, these oscillations provide calorimetric verification of the Little-Parks effect.

Abstract: Multifrequency electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) investigations were performed on small (2 nm) cubic ZnS nanocrystals (quantum dotsQDs) doped with 0.2% mol Mn2+, self-assembled into a mesoporous structure. The EPR data analysis shows that the substitutional Mn2+ ions are localized at Zn2+ sites subjected to a local axial lattice distortion, resulting in the observed zero-field-splitting parameter |D|=41×10−4 cm−1. The local distortion is attributed to the presence in the second shell of ligands of a stacking fault or twin, which alters the normal stacking sequence of the cubic structure. The HRTEM results confirm the presence of such extended planar defects in a large percentage of the investigated QDs, which makes possible the proposed substitutional Mn2+ impurity ions localization model. Based on these results it is suggested that the high doping levels of Mn2+ ions observed in cubic ZnS and possible in other II-VI semiconductor QDs prepared at low temperatures can be explained by the assistance of the extended lattice defects in the impurities incorporation.