Abstract: Electron transport through a spin-orbit-coupled quantum ring is investigated within linear response theory. We show that the finite width of the ring results in the appearance of Fano resonances in the conductance. This turns out to be a consequence of the spin-orbit interaction that leads to a breaking of the parity of the states localized in the ring. The resonances appear when the system is close to maxima of Aharonov-Casher conductance oscillations where spin transfer is heavily modified. When the spin-orbit coupling strength is detuned from the Aharonov-Casher maxima the resonances are broadened resulting in a dependence of the spin transport on the electron Fermi energy in contrast to predictions from one-dimensional models.

Abstract: We investigate the ground and excited states of a bipolar artificial molecule composed of two vertically coupled quantum dots containing different type of carriers-electrons and holes-in equilibrium. The approach based on exact diagonalization is used and reveals an intricate pattern of ground-state angular momentum switching and a rearrangement of approximate single-particle levels as a function of the interdot coupling strength.

Abstract: The complex dielectric susceptibility and spin glass properties of polycrystalline CuCr0.5V 0.5O2 delafossite have been investigated. Electron diffraction, high resolution electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy show that the Cr3+ and V 3+ magnetic cations are randomly distributed on the triangular network of CdI2-type layers. In contrast to CuCrO2, CuCr0.5V 0.5O2 exhibits two distinctive (magnetic and electric) glassy states evidenced by memory effects in electric and magnetic susceptibilities. A large magnetodielectric coupling is observed at low temperature.

Abstract: To date, several experimental groups reported measurements of the thickness dependence of T-c of atomically uniform single-crystalline Pb nanofilms. The reported amplitude of the T-c oscillations varies significantly from one experiment to another. Here we propose that the reason for this unresolved issue is an interplay of the quantum-size variations in the single-electron density of states with thickness-dependent oscillations in the phonon-mediated electron-electron coupling. Such oscillations in the coupling depend on the substrate material, the quality of the interface, the protection cover, and other details of the fabrication process, changing from one experiment to another. This explains why the available data do not exhibit one-voice consistency about the amplitude of the T-c oscillations. Our analyses are based on a numerical solution of the Bogoliubov-de Gennes equations for a superconducting slab.

Abstract: Using the quasiclassical formalism, we determine the low-temperature phase diagram of a quasi-one-dimensional superconductor, taking into account the interchain Josephson coupling and the paramagnetic spin splitting. We show that the anisotropy of the onset of superconductivity changes in the FFLO state as compared with the conventional superconducting phase. It can result in anomalous peaks in the field-direction dependence of the upper critical field when the magnetic field length equals to the FFLO period. This regime is characterized by the lock-in effect of the FFLO modulation wave vector, which is governed by the magnetic length. Furthermore, in the FFLO phase, the anisotropy of the upper critical field is inverted at T-1(**) = 0.5T(c0), where the orbital anisotropy disappears. We suggest that an experimental study of the anisotropy of the upper critical field can provide very reach information about the parameters of the FFLO phase in quasi-1D samples.

Abstract: Within the time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau theory we study the dynamic properties of current-carrying superconducting strips in the presence of a perpendicular magnetic field. We found pronounced voltage peaks as a function of the magnetic field, the amplitude of which depends both on sample dimensions and external parameters. These voltage oscillations are a consequence of moving vortices, which undergo alternating static and dynamic phases. At higher fields or for high currents, the continuous motion of vortices is responsible for the monotonic background on which the resistance oscillations due to the entry of additional vortices are superimposed. Mechanisms for such vortex-assisted resistance oscillations are discussed. Qualitative changes in the magnetoresistance curves are observed in the presence of random defects, which affect the dynamics of vortices in the system.

Abstract: The interaction of monolayer graphene with specific substrates may break its sublattice symmetry and results in unidirectional chiral states with opposite group velocities in the different Dirac cones (Zarenia et al 2012 Phys. Rev. B 86 085451). Taking advantage of this feature, we propose a valley filter based on a transversal mass kink for low energy electrons in graphene, which is obtained by assuming a defect region in the substrate that provides a change in the sign of the substrate-induced mass and thus creates a non-biased channel, perpendicular to the kink, for electron motion. By solving the time-dependent Schrodinger equation for the tight-binding Hamiltonian, we investigate the time evolution of a Gaussian wave packet propagating through such a system and obtain the transport properties of this graphene-based substrate-induced quantum point contact. Our results demonstrate that efficient valley filtering can be obtained, provided: (i) the electron energy is sufficiently low, i.e. with electrons belonging mostly to the lowest sub-band of the channel, and (ii) the channel length (width) is sufficiently long (narrow). Moreover, even though the transmission probabilities for each valley are significantly affected by impurities and defects in the channel region, the valley polarization in this system is shown to be robust against their presence.

Abstract: We describe a semianalytic approach to the two-band Ginzburg-Landau theory, which predicts the behavior of vortices in two-band superconductors. We show that the character of the short-range vortex-vortex interaction is determined by the sign of the normal domain-superconductor interface energy, in analogy with the conventional differentiation between type I and type II superconductors. However, we also show that the long-range interaction is determined by a modified Ginzburg-Landau parameter κ*, different from the standard κ of a bulk superconductor. This opens the possibility for nonmonotonic vortex-vortex interaction, which is temperature dependent, and can be further tuned by alterations of the material on the microscopic scale.

Abstract: We investigate how the interplay of quantum confinement and particle number-parity fluctuations affects superconducting correlations in ultra-small metallic grains. Using the number-parity projected BCS formalism we calculate the critical temperature and the excitation gap as a function of the grain size for grains with even and odd number of confined carriers. We show that the experimentally observed anomalous increase of the coupling ratio ΔE/kBTc with decreasing superconducting grain size can be attributed to an enhancement of the number-parity fluctuations in ultra-small grains.

Abstract: We present a generalized Galitskii approach for the Bethe-Salpeter equation for the two-particle vertex function of a Fermi system with the resonant interaction by accounting for the resonant state in the scattering potential and utilizing the universal form of the resonant scattering amplitude. The procedure can be carried out both for the normal as well as for the condensate state. In both cases, the vertex function in the vicinity of the resonance is shown to formally coincide with that obtained for a weakly attractive Fermi gas. Thus we justify the popular calculational framework in which results for the weakly attractive Fermi gas are formally extrapolated into the domain of strong coupling, and further to the repulsive side of the resonance, where molecular states are formed.