Abstract: This work compares the morphology of gold nanoparticles (NPs) produced at room temperature on single-crystalline (MgO nanocubes and plates) and amorphous (carbon/glass plates) substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The results show that similar deposition and nucleation rates (>5×1013 cm−2 s−1) are achieved irrespective of the nature of the substrate. Instead, the shape of NPs is substrate dependent, i.e., quasispheres and faceted NPs in amorphous and single-crystalline substrates, respectively. The shape of the latter is octahedral for small NPs and truncated octahedral for large ones, with the degree of truncation being well explained using the Wulff-Kaichew theorem. Furthermore, epitaxial growth at room temperature is demonstrated for single-crystalline substrate. The large fraction of ions having energies higher than 200 eV and the large flux of species arriving to the substrate (1016 at. cm−2 s−1) involved in the PLD process are, respectively, found to be responsible for the high nucleation rates and epitaxial growth at room temperature.

Abstract: We study single- and two-electron parabolic quantum dots in the presence of linear Dresselhaus and Rashba spin-orbit interactions. Contributions of both types of spin-orbit coupling are investigated in the context of the spin polarization of the system at high magnetic fields. We demonstrate that for negative Landé factors the effect of the Dresselhaus coupling is suppressed at high magnetic field, which for structures without inversion asymmetry leads to a completely spin-polarized system and a strict antisymmetry of the wave functions with respect to the interchange of spatial-electron coordinates. For negative Landé factor the Rashba coupling is preserved at high field and consequently the spin polarization of the systems as well as the spatial antisymmetry of the two-electron wave function remain approximate.

Abstract: Both even- and odd-numbered neutral carbon clusters Cn (n=210) are systematically studied using the energy minimization method and the modified Brenner potential for the carbon-carbon interactions. Many stable configurations were found, and several new isomers are predicted. For the lowest energy stable configurations we obtained their binding energies and bond lengths. We found that for n5 the linear isomer is the most stable one while for n>5 the monocyclic isomer becomes the most stable. The latter was found to be regular for all studied clusters. The dependence of the binding energy for linear and cyclic clusters versus the cluster size n (n=210) is found to be in good agreement with several previous calculations, in particular with ab initio calculations as well as with experimental data for n=25.

Abstract: We apply density-functional theory to study the adsorption of water clusters on the surface of a graphene sheet and find i) graphene is highly hydrophobic and ii) adsorbed water has very little effect on the electronic structure of graphene. A single water cluster on graphene has a very small average dipole moment which is in contrast with an ice layer that exhibits a strong dipole moment.

Abstract: Edge functionalization of graphene nanoribbons with nitrogen atoms for various adatom configurations at armchair and zigzag edges are investigated. We provide comprehensive information on the electronic and magnetic properties and investigate the stability of the various systems. Two types of rippling of the nanoribbons, namely edge and bulk rippling depending on the sign of edge stress induced at the edge, are found. They are found to play the decisive role for the stability of the structures. We also propose a type of edge decoration in which every third nitrogen adatom at the zigzag edges is replaced by an oxygen atom. In this way, the electron count is compatible with a full aromatic structure, leading to additional stability and a disappearance of magnetism that is usually associated with zigzag nanoribbons.

Abstract: We demonstrate that combining standing wave (SW) excitation with resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) can lead to depth resolution and interface sensitivity for studying orbital and magnetic excitations in correlated oxide heterostructures. SW-RIXS has been applied to multilayer heterostructures consisting of a superconductor La1.85Sr0.15CuO4 (LSCO) and a half-metallic ferromagnet La0.67Sr0.33MnO3 (LSMO). Easily observable SW effects on the RIXS excitations were found in these LSCO/LSMO multilayers. In addition, we observe different depth distribution of the RIXS excitations. The magnetic excitations are found to arise from the LSCO/LSMO interfaces, and there is also a suggestion that one of the dd excitations comes from the interfaces. SW-RIXS measurements of correlated-oxide and other multilayer heterostructures should provide unique layer-resolved insights concerning their orbital and magnetic excitations, as well as a challenge for RIXS theory to specifically deal with interface effects.

Abstract: The optoelectronic properties of confined water form one of the most active research areas in the past few years. Here we present the multiscale methodology to discern the out-of-plane electronic and dipolar dielectric constants (epsilon(el)(perpendicular to) and epsilon(diP)(perpendicular to)) of strongly confined water. We reveal that epsilon(perpendicular to el) and epsilon(diP)(perpendicular to) become comparable for water confined in angstrom-scale channels (with a height of less than 15 angstrom) within graphene (GE) and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) bilayers. Channel height (h) associated with a minimum in both epsilon(e)(l)(perpendicular to) and epsilon(dip)(perpendicular to) is linked to the formation of the ordered structure of ice for h approximate to (7 -7.5) angstrom. The recently measured total dielectric constant epsilon(T)(perpendicular to) of nanoconfined water [L. Fumagalli et al., Science 360, 1339 (2018)] is corroborated by our results. Furthermore, we evaluate the contribution from the encapsulating membranes to the dielectric properties, as a function of the interlayer spacing, i.e., the height of the confining channel for water. Finally, we conduct analysis of the optical properties of both confined water and GE membranes, and show that the electron energy loss function of confined water strongly differs from that of bulk water.

Abstract: External fields are a powerful tool to probe optical excitations in a material. The linear energy shift of an excitation in a magnetic field is quantified by its effective g factor. Here we show how exciton g factors and their sign can be determined by converged first-principles calculations. We apply the method to monolayer excitons in semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides and to interlayer excitons in MoSe2/WSe2 heterobilayers and obtain good agreement with recent experimental data. The precision of our method allows us to assign measured g factors of optical peaks to specific transitions in the band structure and also to specific regions of the samples. This revealed the nature of various, previously measured interlayer exciton peaks. We further show that, due to specific optical selection rules, g factors in van der Waals heterostructures are strongly spin and stacking-dependent. The calculation of orbital angular momenta requires the summation over hundreds of bands, indicating that for the considered two-dimensional materials the basis set size is a critical numerical issue. The presented approach can potentially be applied to a wide variety of semiconductors.

Abstract: Hall probe magnetometry has been used to investigate the magnetization of individual cylindrically shaped Pb nanowires grown by electrocrystallization on a highly oriented pyrolytic graphite electrode. These measurements have been interpreted by comparison with three-dimensional Ginzburg-Landau (GL) calculations for nanowires with our sample parameters. We find that the measured superheating field and the critical field for surface superconductivity are strongly influenced by the temperature-dependent coherence length, ξ(T) and penetration depth λ(T) and their relationship to the nanowire diameter. As the temperature is increased toward Tc this drives a change in the superconductor-normal transition from first order irreversible to first order reversible and finally second order reversible. We find that the geometrical flux confinement in our type-I nanowires leads to the formation of a one-dimensional row of single-quantum vortices. While GL calculations show a quite uniform distribution of vortices in thin nanowires, clear vortex bunching is found as the diameter increases, suggesting a transition to a more classical type-I behavior. Subtle changes in minor magnetization loops also indicate that slightly different flux configurations can form with the same vorticity, which depend on the sample history.

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: 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: We report measurements which indicate the appearance of spontaneous vortices in lead superconducting films with embedded magnetic nanoparticles and a temperature-induced phase transition between different vortex phases. Unlike common vortices in superconductors, the vortex phase appears in the absence of applied magnetic field. The vortices nucleate exclusively due to the stray field of the magnetic nanoparticles, which serve the dual role of providing the internal field and simultaneously acting as pinning centers. Transport measurements reveal dynamical phase transitions that depend on temperature (T) and applied field (H) and support the obtained H-T phase diagram.

Abstract: Starting from an empirical force constant model of valence interactions and calculating by Ewalds method the ion-ion force constants, we derive the dynamical matrix for a monolayer crystal of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN). The phonon dispersion relations are calculated. The interplay between valence and Coulomb forces is discussed. It is shown by analytical methods that the longitudinal and the transverse optical (LO and TO) phonon branches for in-plane motion are degenerate at the Γ point of the Brillouin zone. Away from Γ, the LO branch exhibits pronounced overbending. It is found that the nonanalytic Coulomb contribution to the dynamical matrix causes a linear increase of the LO branch with increasing wave vector starting at Γ. This effect is general for two-dimensional (2D) ionic crystals. Performing a long-wavelength expansion of the dynamical matrix, we use Borns perturbation method to calculate the elastic constants (tension coefficients). Since the crystal is noncentrosymmetric, internal displacements due to relative shifts between the two sublattices (B and N) contribute to the elastic constants. These internal displacements are responsible for piezoelectric and dielectric phenomena. The piezoelectric stress constant and the dielectric susceptibility of 2D h-BN are calculated.

Abstract: Systems which rapidly evolve through symmetry-breaking transitions on timescales comparable to the fluctuation timescale of the single-particle excitations may behave very differently than under controlled near-ergodic conditions. A real-time investigation with high temporal resolution may reveal insights into the ordering through the transition that are not available in static experiments. We present an investigation of the system trajectory through a normal-to-superconductor transition in a prototype high-temperature superconducting cuprate in which such a situation occurs. Using a multiple pulse femtosecond spectroscopy technique we measure the system trajectory and time evolution of the single-particle excitations through the transition in La1.9Sr0.1CuO4 and compare the data to a simulation based on the time-dependent Ginzburg-Landau theory, using the laser excitation fluence as an adjustable parameter controlling the quench conditions in both experiment and theory. The comparison reveals the presence of significant superconducting fluctuations which precede the transition on short timescales. By including superconducting fluctuations as a seed for the growth of the superconducting order we can obtain a satisfactory agreement of the theory with the experiment. Remarkably, the pseudogap excitations apparently play no role in this process.

Abstract: The hunt for high-temperature superfluidity has received new impetus from the discovery of atomically thin stable materials. Electron-hole superfluidity in coupled MoSe2-WSe2 monolayers is investigated using a mean-field multiband model that includes band splitting caused by strong spin-orbit coupling. This splitting leads to a large energy misalignment of the electron and hole bands which is strongly modified by interchanging the doping of the monolayers. The choice of doping determines if the superfluidity is tunable from one to two components.