Abstract: The phonon spectra of thin freestanding, hydrogen passivated, Ge nanowires are calculated by ab initio techniques. The effect of confinement on the phonon modes as caused by the small diameters of the wires is investigated. Confinement causes a hardening of the optical modes and a softening of the longitudinal acoustic modes. The stability of the nanowires, undoped or doped with B or P atoms, is investigated using the obtained phonon spectra. All considered wires were stable, except for highly doped, very thin nanowires.

Abstract: The Aharonov-Bohm (AB) effect in square phosphorene quantum rings, with armchair and zigzag edges, is investigated using the tight-binding method. The energy spectra and wave functions of such rings, obtained as a function of the magnetic flux Phi threading the ring, are strongly influenced by the ringwidthW, an in-plane electric field E-p, and a side-gating potential V-g. Compared to a square dot, the ring shows an enhanced confinement due to its inner edges and an interedge coupling along the zigzag direction, both of which strongly affect the energy spectrum and the wave functions. The energy spectrum that is gapped consists of a regular part, of conduction (valence) band states, that shows the usual AB oscillations in the higher-(lower-) energy region, and of edge states, in the gap, that exhibit no AB oscillations. As the width W decreases, the AB oscillations become more distinct and regular and their period is close to Phi(0)/2, where the flux quantum Phi(0) = h/e is the period of an ideal circular ring (W -> 0). Both the electric field E-p and the side-gating potential V-g reduce the amplitude of the AB oscillations. The amplitude can be effectively tuned by E-p or V-g and exhibits an anisotropic behavior for different field directions or side-gating configurations.

Abstract: The magnetic-field dependence of the energy spectrum, wave function, binding energy, and oscillator strength of exciton states confined in a circular graphene quantum dot (CGQD) is obtained within the configuration interaction method. We predict that (i) excitonic effects are very significant in the CGQD as a consequence of a combination of geometric confinement, magnetic confinement, and reduced screening; (ii) two types of excitons (intravalley and intervalley) are present in the CGQD because of the valley degree of freedom in graphene; (iii) the intravalley and intervalley exciton states display different magnetic-field dependencies due to the different electron-hole symmetries of the single-particle energy spectra; (iv) with increasing magnetic field, the exciton ground state in the CGQD undergoes an intravalley to intervalley transition accompanied by a change of angular momentum; (v) the exciton binding energy does not increase monotonically with the magnetic field due to the competition between geometric and magnetic confinements; and (vi) the optical transitions of the intervalley and intravalley excitons can be tuned by the magnetic field, and valley-dependent excitonic transitions can be realized in a CGQD.

Abstract: We present a detailed theoretical study of the electronic and transport properties of monolayer black phosphorus (BP). This study is motivated by recent experimental activities in investigating n-type few-layer BP systems. The electron density of states, the screening length, and the low-temperature electron mobility are calculated for monolayer BP (MLBP). In particular, the electron transport mobilities along the armchair and zigzag directions are examined on the basis of the momentum-balance equation derived from a semiclassical Boltzmann equation. The anisotropic electron mobilities in MLBP along different directions are demonstrated where the electron-impurity scattering is considered. Furthermore, we compare the results obtained from two electronic band structures of MLBP and find that the simplified model can describe quite rightly the electronic and transport properties of MLBP. This study is relevant to the application of few-layer BP based electronic systems as advanced electronic devices.

Abstract: We investigate scattering of the topological surface state of a three-dimensional time-reversal invariant topological insulator when graphene is deposited on the topological-insulator surface. Specifically, we consider the (111) surface of a Bi2Se3-like topological insulator. We present a low-energy model for the graphene-topological insulator heterostructure and we calculate the transmission probability at zigzag and armchair edges of the deposited graphene, and the conductance through graphene nanoribbon barriers, and show that its features can be understood from antiresonances in the transmission probability.

Abstract: We introduce a new approach for the correlation energy of one- and two-valley two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) systems. Our approach is based on an interpolation between two limits, a random phase approximation at high densities and a classical approach at low densities which gives excellent agreement with available Quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) calculations. The two-valley 2DEG model is introduced to describe the electron correlations in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs). We study the zero-temperature transition from a Fermi liquid to a quantum Wigner crystal phase in monolayer TMDs. Consistent with QMC, we find that electrons crystallize at r(s) = 31 in one-valley 2DEG. For two valleys, we predict Wigner crystallization at r(s) = 30, implying that valley degeneracy has little effect on the critical r(s), in contrast to an earlier claim.

Abstract: We study the influence of confinement on the atomic collapse due to a Coulomb impurity placed at the center of a graphene quantum dot of radius R. We apply the zigzag or infinite-mass boundary condition and consider both a point-size and a finite-size impurity. As a function of the impurity strength Za, the energy spectra are discrete. In the case of the zigzag boundary condition, the degenerate (with respect to the angular momentum m) zero-energy levels are pulled down in energy as Z alpha increases, and they remain below epsilon = – Z alpha. Our results show that the energy levels exhibit a 1/R dependence in the subcritical regime [Z alpha < |km + 1/2|, k = 1 (-1) for the K (K') valley]. In the supercritical regime (Z alpha > |km + 1/2|) we find a qualitatively very different behavior where the levels decrease as a function of R in a nonmonotonic manner. While the valley symmetry is preserved in the presence of the impurity, we find that the impurity breaks electron-hole symmetry. We further study the energy spectrum of zigzag quantum dots in gapped graphene. Our results show that as the gap increases, the lowest electron states are pushed into the gap by the impurity.

Abstract: Magnetic nanoparticles are critical building blocks for future technologies ranging from nanomedicine to spintronics. Many related applications require nanoparticles with tailored magnetic properties. However, despite significant efforts undertaken towards this goal, a broad and poorly understood dispersion of magnetic properties is reported, even within monodisperse samples of the canonical ferromagnetic 3d transition metals. We address this issue by investigating the magnetism of a large number of size- and shape-selected, individual nanoparticles of Fe, Co, and Ni using a unique set of complementary characterization techniques. At room temperature, only superparamagnetic behavior is observed in our experiments for all Ni nanoparticles within the investigated sizes, which range from 8 to 20 nm. However, Fe and Co nanoparticles can exist in two distinct magnetic states at any size in this range: (i) a superparamagnetic state, as expected from the bulk and surface anisotropies known for the respective materials and as observed for Ni, and (ii) a state with unexpected stable magnetization at room temperature. This striking state is assigned to significant modifications of the magnetic properties arising from metastable lattice defects in the core of the nanoparticles, as concluded by calculations and atomic structural characterization. Also related with the structural defects, we find that the magnetic state of Fe and Co nanoparticles can be tuned by thermal treatment enabling one to tailor their magnetic properties for applications. This paper demonstrates the importance of complementary single particle investigations for a better understanding of nanoparticle magnetism and for full exploration of their potential for applications.

Abstract: Electrically gating of trilayer graphene (TLG) opens a band gap offering the possibility to electrically engineer TLG quantum dots. We study the energy levels of such quantum dots and investigate their dependence on a perpendicular magnetic field B and different types of stacking of the graphene layers. The dots are modeled as circular and confined by a truncated parabolic potential which can be realized by nanostructured gates or position-dependent doping. The energy spectra exhibit the intervalley symmetry E-K(e) (m) = -E (h)(K') (m) for the electron (e) and hole (h) states, where m is the angular momentum quantum number and K and K' label the two valleys. The electron and hole spectra for B = 0 are twofold degenerate due to the intervalley symmetry E-K (m) = E-K' [-(m + 1)]. For both ABC [alpha = 1.5 (1.2) for large (small) R] and ABA (alpha = 1) stackings, the lowest-energy levels show approximately a R-alpha dependence on the dot radius R in contrast with the 1/R-3 one for ABC-stacked dots with infinite-mass boundary. As functions of the field B, the oscillator strengths for dipole-allowed transitions differ drastically for the two types of stackings.

Abstract: Two-dimensional crystals with strong interactions between layers has attracted increasing attention in recent years in a variety of fields. In particular, the growth of a single layer of oxide materials (e.g., MgO, CaO, NiO, and MnO) over metallic substrates were found to display different physical properties than their bulk. In this study, we report on the physical properties of a single layer of metallic oxide materials and compare their properties with their bulk and other two-dimensional (2D) crystals. We found that the planar structure of metallic monoxides are unstable whereas the buckled structures are thermodynamically stable. Also, the 2D-MnO and NiO exhibit different magnetic (ferromagnetic) and optical properties than their bulk, whereas band-gap energy and linear stiffness are found to be decreasing from NiO to MgO. Our findings provide insight into oxide thin-film technology applications.

Abstract: Due to the importance of hydrogenation of graphene for several applications, we present an alternative approach to hydrogenate graphene based on density functional theory calculations. We find that a negative perpendicular electric field F can act as a catalyst to reduce the energy barrier for molecular H₂ dissociative adsorption on graphene. Increasing -F above 0.02 a.u. (1 a.u.=5.14×10¹¹ V/m), this hydrogenation process occurs smoothly without any potential barrier.

Abstract: In literature, the experimental validation of a glass edge strength model is lacking. Therefore, in this study, an edge strength model was established and validated. The short-term parameters of the edge strength model, i.e. the flaw geometry and depth, were determined by means of testing at a high stress rate. This was done for polished and cut edges. Next, the strength model, including subcritical crack growth, was established. Finally, the edge strength model was validated by the test results at a low stress rate. The assessed model was found to be slightly conservative, compared to the test results.

Abstract: We demonstrate the controlled spatial nucleation of superconductivity in a thin film deposited on periodic arrays of ferromagnetic dots with gradually increasing diameter. The perpendicular magnetization of the dots induces vortex-antivortex molecules in the sample, with the number of (anti)vortices increasing with magnet size. The resulting gradient of antivortex density between the dots predetermines local nucleation of superconductivity in the sample as a function of the applied external field and temperature. In addition, the compensation between the applied magnetic field and the antivortices results in an unprecedented enhancement of the critical temperature.

Abstract: The capacitance-voltage (C-V) characteristic is calculated for p-type In_0.53Ga_0.47As metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) structures based on a self-consistent PoissonSchrödinger solution. For strong inversion, charge quantization leads to occupation of the satellite valleys which appears as a sharp increase in the capacitance toward the oxide capacitance. The results indicate that the charge quantization, even in the absence of interface defects (D_it), is a contributing factor to the experimental observation of an almost symmetric C-V response for In_0.53Ga_0.47As MOS structures. In addition, nonparabolic corrections are shown to enhance the depopulation of the Γ valley, shifting the capacitance increase to lower inversion charge densities.