Scanning tunneling spectroscopy of charge effects on semiconductor surfaces and atomic clusters

We have used scanning tunneling microscopy and scanning tunneling spectroscopy at liquid helium temperature to study the electronic structure of in situ cleaved, (110) oriented surfaces of InAs single crystals. Both unperturbed, atomically flat areas and areas with an atomic-size defect cluster have been investigated. We show that the anomalous behavior of the local tunneling conductivity, which indicates a pronounced enhancement of the semiconductor band gap for the flat areas, is consistent with band bending induced by charges localized at the apex of the tip. Atomic-size defect clusters contain additional charges which modify the band bending; this explains the different behavior of the tunneling conductivity near the defect cluster. The experimentally observed oscillations of the tunneling conductivity near the band gap edges can be directly related to resonant tunneling through quantized surface states which appear because of the band bending. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 67, No. 2, 130–135 (25 January 1998) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Edited by Steve Torstveit.     

Phase transitions and dynamic effects in crystals characterized by single-cell potentials with a multi-well excited state

A study has been made of phase transitions and phase states in crystals whose unit cell potentials have a multi-well excited state. New phase states compared to the conventional order-disorder-type phase-transition models have been revealed. A phase diagram has been constructed. The applicability criteria of the mean field approximation employed are analyzed. A region of parameter variation where the system is close to the tricritical point has been found. It is shown that microdomains of the new phase can efficiently transfer to the original phase within this region, and vice versa, by resonant tunneling. This tunneling has a relaxational nature. Interaction of such a relaxor with an oscillator (the soft mode) creates in this system an efficient mechanism of formation of the central peak. Besides, this model includes a possibility of coexistence of the order-disorder-type and displacive behavior. This coexistence manifests itself, in particular, in an induced phase transition associated with interaction of the order-disorder-type soft mode with the displacive mode for oscillations in the same potential wells. This induced phase transition may serve as a microscopic model of the improper ferroelastic phase transition in the Hg₂Cl₂ model system. This transition may produce a long-range incommensurate phase involving formation of the corresponding domain system, which is likewise in agreement with the case of Hg₂Cl₂. The model developed here can be used also in describing phase transitions in oxygen-octahedron perovskites, where the relative low-symmetry minima of the single-cell potentials can be related to the charge-transfer vibronic excitons. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 39, 547–556 (March 1997)     

Emergence of spectral line jumps and spectral diffusion in the two-photon correlator of a single impurity center

A dynamic theory of two-photon correlators for a single impurity center developed recently by the author [I. S. Osad’ko, Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 113, 1606 (1998) [JETP 86, 875 (1998)] has been generalized to the case in which the center interacts with nonequilibrium two-level systems (TLSs) in polymers and glasses. Quantum tunneling transitions in TLS manifest themselves as random jumps of a spectral line of an impurity center. These jumps can be either spontaneous or light-induced. Interaction between the impurity center and many nonequilibrium TLSs, which exist in polymers, results in a time dependence of the optical dephasing rate 1/T ₂ of an impurity molecule, i.e., in spectral diffusion. This paper describes how the jumps of the spectral line manifest themselves in the two-photon correlator, which can be measured in experiments. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 116, 962–985 (September 1999)     

Interband resonant tunneling in superconductor heterostructures in a quantizing magnetic field

The resonant tunneling of electrons through quasistationary levels in the valence band of a quantum well in double-barrier structures based on III–V materials with type-II heterojunctions is considered in a quantizing magnetic field directed perpendicularly to the interfaces. The transmission coefficients of the tunnel structure for transitions from states corresponding to different Landau levels are calculated using the Kane model. It is shown that transitions with a unit change in the Landau level index n as a result of mixing of the wave functions of states with opposite spin orientations are possible on the interfaces due to spin-orbit coupling. The probability of such transitions can be comparable to the probability of transitions without a change in the Landau level index for InAs/AlGaSb/GaSb resonant-tunneling structures. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 40, 2121–2126 (November 1998)     

On resonance states in “split” germanium

Maxima have been observed experimentally in the dependences of the current on the uniaxial pressure in p-type germanium for crossed directions of the uniaxial strain and electric field. The effect, which is observed at T=77 K and is absent at T=4.2 K, can be explained by tunneling transitions of holes, with the participation of acoustic phonons, from a resonant impurity state to unoccupied states in the valence subbands of germanium. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 69, No. 9, 638–642 (10 May 1999)     

Resonant tunneling of electrons through single self-assembled InAs quantum dot studied by conductive atomic force microscopy

Resonant tunneling of electrons through a quantum level in single self-assembled InAs quantum dot (QD) embedded in thin AlAs barriers has been studied. The embedded InAs QDs are sandwiched by 1.7-nm-thick AlAs barriers, and surface InAs QDs, which are deposited on 8.3 nm-thick GaAs cap layer, are used as nano-scale electrodes. Since the surface InAs QD should be vertically aligned with a buried one, a current flowing via the buried QD can be measured with a conductive tip of an atomic force microscope (AFM) brought in contact with the surface QD-electrode. Negative differential resistance attributed to electron resonant tunneling through a quantized energy level in the buried QD is observed in the current–voltage characteristics at room temperature. The effect of Fermi level pinning around nano-scale QD-electrode on resonance voltage and the dependence of resonance voltage on the size of QD-electrodes are investigated, and it has been demonstrated that the distribution of the resonance voltages reflects the size variation of the embedded QDs.     

The effect of fluctuations of a classical exterior medium on tunneling nonradiative processes in molecules

We examine nonradiative transitions in molecules with allowance for the effect of a classical polar exterior medium on tunneling charge transport. The approach allows for the vibrational frequencies of a molecule in the electron transition. In the case of slow fluctuations, the theory predicts a low-temperature (non-Arrhenius) increase in the tunneling nonradiative transition rate, and the results agree qualitatively with the experimental data. When the fluctuations of the exterior medium are rapid, at certain values of the molecular parameters the tunneling decay rate is found to decrease with increasing temperature because the conditions needed for resonant tunneling are violated. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 114, 1944–1953 (December 1998)     

Inelastic resonant tunneling

A general expression for the resonant contribution to a tunneling current has been obtained and analyzed in the tunneling Hamiltonian approximation. Two types of resonant tunneling structures are considered: structures with a random impurity distribution and double-barrier structures, where the resonant level results from size quantization. The effect of temperature on the current-voltage curves of tunneling structures is discussed. The study of the effect of potential barrier profile on the d ² I/dV ² line shape is of interest for experiments in inelastic tunneling spectroscopy. Various experimental situations where the inelastic component of the tunneling current can become comparable to the elastic one are discussed. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 40, 1151–1155 (June 1998)     

Quantum features of Brownian motors and stochastic resonance

We investigate quantum Brownian motion sustained transport in both, adiabatically rocked ratchet systems and quantum stochastic resonance (QSR). Above a characteristic crossover temperature T(0) tunneling events are rare; yet they can considerably enhance the quantum-noise-driven particle current and the amplification of signal output in comparison to their classical counterparts. Below T(0) tunneling prevails, thus yielding characteristic novel quantum transport phenomena. For example, upon approaching T=0 the quantum current in Brownian motors exhibits a tunneling-induced reversal, and tends to a finite limit, while the classical result approaches zero without such a change of sign. As a consequence, similar current inversions generated by quantum effects follow upon variation of the particle mass or of its friction coefficient. Likewise, in this latter regime of very low temperatures the tunneling dynamics becomes increasingly coherent, thus suppressing the semiclassically predicted QSR. Moreover, nonadiabatic driving may cause driving-induced coherences and quantized resonant transitions with no classical analog. (c) 1998 American Institute of Physics.     

Metastable optical absorption of relaxed electronic excitations in BeO-Zn crystals

Spectra of metastable optical absorption and its relaxation kinetics have been studied in zinc-doped BeO crystals by time-resolved pulsed absorption spectroscopy. A comparison of the observed induced optical absorption of self-trapped excitons and small-radius excitons bound to the zinc impurity suggests that their hole components have similar structures and reveals distinctive features of “forbidden” optical transitions in the electronic components. Metastable optical absorption in Zn⁺ centers has been discovered. It is shown that the small-radius excitons bound to the zinc impurity form in the hole stages of thermally stimulated tunneling recombination processes involving Zn⁺ electronic centers. It has been found that the high recombination probability of the electronic and hole centers created in BeO-Zn crystals by an electron beam may be due to the high degree of their spatial correlation. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 41, 601–605 (April 1999)     

Evidence for spontaneous interlayer phase coherence in a bilayer quantum Hall exciton condensate

Recent experimental work on the quantized Hall state at total filling factor ν_T=1 in bilayer 2D electron systems has revealed a number of striking phenomena, including a giant and sharply resonant enhancement of the interlayer tunneling conductance at zero bias. The tunneling enhancement is a compelling indicator of spontaneous interlayer phase coherence among the electrons in the system. Such phase coherence is perhaps the single most important attribute of the excitonic Bose condensate which describes this remarkable quantum Hall state.     

Quantum antidot as an electrometer:Observation of fractional charge

In experiments on resonant tunneling through a quantum antidot in the quantum Hall (QH) regime, we observe periodic conductance peaks both versus magnetic field and a global gate voltage, i.e., electric field. Each conductance peak can be attributed to tunneling through a quantized antidot-bound state. The fact that the variation of the uniform electric field produces conductance peaks implies that the deficiency of the electrical charge on the antidot is quantized in units of charge of quasiparticles of surrounding QH condensate. The period in magnetic field gives the effective area of the antidot state through which tunneling occurs, the period in electric field (obtained from the global gate voltage) then constitutes a direct measurement of the charge of the tunneling particles. We obtain electron charge C in the integer QH regime, and quasiparticle charge C for the QH state.     

Intersubband collective excitations in a quasi-two-dimensional electron system in external magnetic field

The spectrum of collective excitations in a quasi-two-dimensional electron system was studied by the method of Raman scattering spectroscopy. In an applied magnetic field, such systems exhibit collective excitations related to the electron transitions between dimensionally quantized subbands with a change in the Landau level index (intersubband Bernstein modes). It is shown that these modes interact with the fundamental intersubband excitations of the charge and spin densities, the interaction energy being determined by the excitation quasimomentum. Interaction of the intersubband Bernstein modes and the fundamental intersubband excitations with quasi-two-dimensional LO phonons was studied. Behavior of the new branches of collective excitations in a quasi-two-dimensional electron system possessing more than one occupied Landau level was studied and the nature of these branches was determined.     

Observation of Spin and Valley Splitting of Landau Levels under Magnetic Tunneling in Graphene/Boron Nitride/Graphene Structures

Resonance magnetic tunneling in heterostructures formed by graphene single sheets separated by a hexagonal boron nitride barrier and bounded by two gates has been investigated in a strong magnetic field, which has allowed observing transitions between spin- and valley-split Landau levels with various indices belonging to different graphene sheets. An unexpected increase with the temperature in the interlayer tunneling conductance owing to transitions between the Landau levels in strong magnetic fields cannot be explained by existing theories.     

Orientational states of C60 molecule in crystals

Local symmetry of orientational states of the C₆₀ molecule in crystals has been investigated. It was shown that the various orientational phase transitions in different crystals are related to different orientational orbits. The model of orientational phase transitions based on a sequence of orientational states with different symmetry properties has been suggested. We have found that both the local symmetry of C₆₀ molecule and the symmetry of its internal vibrations become higher after a reduction of crystal spatial symmetry at the phase transition. This effect is fairly common and can be observed in the orientational order-disorder phase transitions with wave vectors at the Brillouin zone boundary. Feasible manifestations of the predicted effect in various experiments are discussed. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 113, 1081–1093 (March 1998)     

On the motional states of dipolar impurities in ionic matrices

Abstract

The effect of lattice vibrations on the librational frequencies and tunneling frequencies is considered for the case of alkali halides doped with diatomic impurities. It has been shown that this effect is important for the tunneling frequency while the librational frequency changes only slightly. The implications of this have been discussed in light of certain anomalous results observed in KCl-OH^? and KCl-CN-.     

“Symmetrical” phase and collective excitations in the proton system of ice

A model of the ice proton system taking into account quantum-mechanical tunneling of protons along hydrogen bonds has been formulated and investigated. When the tunneling amplitude is small the quantum ground state of the proton system is degenerate, like the classical ground state. At higher tunneling amplitudes, however, a transition to a nondegenerate state with a symmetrical distribution of protons on hydrogen bonds (a symmetrical phase of ice) is possible. Collective excitations of protons in the nonsymmetrical phase have been considered, and an equation that determines their spectrum has been derived. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 115, 2207–2213 (June 1999)     

Resonantly enhanced tunneling in a double layer quantum hall ferromagnet

The tunneling conductance between two parallel 2D electron systems has been measured in a regime of strong interlayer Coulomb correlations. At total Landau level filling nuT=1 the tunnel spectrum changes qualitatively when the boundary separating the compressible phase from the ferromagnetic quantized Hall state is crossed. A huge resonant enhancement replaces the strongly suppressed equilibrium tunneling characteristic of weakly coupled layers. The possible relationship of this enhancement to the Goldstone mode of the broken symmetry ground state is discussed.     

N-Composition and Pressure Dependence of the Inter Band Transitions of Ga(N,As)/GaAs Quantum Wells

A series of GaN x As 1 m x /GaAs quantum well structures with well widths of about 20 nm and x varying between 1% and 3.5% has been grown by metal-organic vapour phase epitaxy. We have studied the evolution of the quantum well states under hydrostatic pressure up to 20 kbar at 300 K by photomodulated reflectance (PR) spectroscopy. The energy positions of the quantum well transitions have been obtained by fitting the PR spectra. The pressure dependence of the allowed heavy-hole transitions e n hh n decreases with increasing n . This directly reflects the strong non-parabolic dispersion of the conduction band originating from the interaction of the N-impurity level with the bands of the GaAs host. The fitted energy positions and their pressure dependence can be well described by a 10 band k.p model. The observed splitting between the lowest light-hole and heavy-hole transitions are in agreement with a type I band alignment.     

Optical studies of the ferroelastic phase transitions in KFe(MoO4)2

ABSTRACT

The ferroelastic phase transitions in KFe(MoO₄)₂ have been studied by means of polarized light microscopy. The crystal undergoes a sequence of ferroelastic phase transitions. It has been found that the second transition consists of two transitions separated by the temperature interval of about 0.4 K. Both these transitions are of the first order and are evidenced through a phase front passing, without the domain structure rebuilding. The disposition of optical indicatrix axes n_g, n_m has been established, and the birefringence has been measured in the plane (0001) in the temperature range covering all ferroelastic phases. From temperature studies of the morphic birefringence, a critical exponent of the order parameter has been estimated.