Quantum interference in nanotube electron waveguides

We have calculated the quantum conductance of single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) waveguide by using a tight binding-based Greens function approach. Our calculations show that the slow conductance oscillations as well as the fast conductance oscillations are manifestations of the intrinsic quantum interference properties of the conducting SWNTs, being independent of the defect and disorder of the SWNTs. And zigzag type tubes do not show the slow oscillations. The SWNT electron waveguide is also found to have distinctly different transport behavior depending on whether or not the length of the tube is commensurate with a (3N+1) rule, with N the number of basic carbon repeat units along the nanotube length.     

Nonequilibrium charge susceptibility and dynamical conductance: identification of scattering processes in quantum transport

We calculate the nonequilibrium charge transport properties of nanoscale junctions in the steady state and extend the concept of charge susceptibility to the nonequilibrium conditions. We show that the nonequilibrium charge susceptibility is related to the nonlinear dynamical conductance. In spectroscopic terms, both contain the same features versus applied bias when charge fluctuation occurs in the corresponding electronic resonances. However, we show that, while the conductance exhibits features at biases corresponding to inelastic scattering with no charge fluctuations, the nonequilibrium charge susceptibility does not. We suggest that measuring both the nonequilibrium conductance and charge susceptibility in the same experiment will permit us to differentiate between different scattering processes in quantum transport.     

Multisubband transport and magnetic deflection of Fermi electron trajectories in three terminal junctions and rings

We study the electron transport in three terminal junctions and quantum rings looking for the classical deflection of electron trajectories in the presence of intersubband scattering. We indicate that although the Aharonov-Bohm oscillations and the Lorentz force effects co-exist in the low subband transport, for higher Fermi energies a simultaneous observation of both effects is difficult and calls for carefully formed structures. In particular, in quantum rings with channels wider than the input lead the Lorentz force is well resolved but the Aharonov-Bohm periodicity is lost in chaotic scattering events. In quantum rings with equal lengths of the channels and T-shaped junctions the Aharonov-Bohm oscillations are distinctly periodic but the Lorentz force effects are not well pronounced. We find that systems with wedge-shaped junctions allow for observation of both the periodic Aharonov-Bohm oscillations and the magnetic deflection.     

Magnetotransport properties of graphene layers decorated with colloid quantum dots

The hybrid graphene-quantum dot devices can potentially be used to tailor the electronic, optical, and chemical properties of graphene. Here, the low temperature electronic transport properties of bilayer graphene decorated with PbS colloid quantum dots(CQDs) have been investigated in the weak or strong magnetic fields. The presence of the CQDs introduces additional scattering potentials that alter the magnetotransport properties of the graphene layers, leading to the observation of a new set of magnetoconductance oscillations near zero magnetic field as well as the high-field quantum Hall regime.The results bring about a new strategy for exploring the quantum interference effects in two-dimensional materials which are sensitive to the surrounding electrostatic environment, and open up a new gateway for exploring the graphene sensing with quantum interference effects.     

Effect of crystallographic orientations on transport properties of methylthiol-terminated permethyloligosilane molecular junction

The understanding of the influence of electrode characteristics on charge transport is essential in the field of molecular electronics. In this work, we investigate the electronic transport properties of molecular junctions comprising methylthiol-terminated permethyloligosilanes and face-centered crystal Au/Ag electrodes with crystallographic orientations of (111) and (100), based on the ab initio quantum transport simulations. The calculations reveal that the molecular junction conductance is dominated by the electronic coupling between two interfacial metal-S bonding states, which can be tuned by varying the molecular length, metal material of the electrodes, and crystallographic orientation. As the permethyloligosilane backbone elongates, although the σ conjugation increases, the decreasing of coupling induced by the increasing number of central Si atoms reduces the junction conductance. The molecular junction conductance of methylthiol-terminated permethyloligosilanes with Au electrodes is higher than that with Ag electrodes with a crystallographic orientation of (111). However, the conductance trend is reversed when the electrode crystallographic orientation varies from (111) to (100), which can be ascribed to the reversal of interfacial coupling between two metal-S interfacial states. These findings are conducive to elucidating the mechanism of molecular junctions and improving the transport properties of molecular devices by adjusting the electrode characteristics.     

Quantum theory of metallic nanocohesion

The conducting and mechanical properties of ultrasmall metallic structures are calculated using the electronic scattering matrix, evaluated in the free electron approximation. Force oscillations of the order are predicted when a metallic quantum wire is stretched to the breaking point, which are synchronized with quantized jumps in the conductance. Coherent backscattering from impurities is shown to lead to fine structure (a “quantum fingerprint”) in the force oscillations. 1997 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.     

Coherent quantum transport in normal-metal/<Emphasis Type="Italic">d</Emphasis>-wave superconductor/normal-metal double tunnel junctions

Taking into account the effects of quantum interference and interface scattering, combining the electron current with hole current contribution to tunnel current, we study the coherent quantum transport in normal-metal/d-wave superconductor/ normal-metal (NM/d-wave SC/NM) double tunnel junctions by using extended Blonder-Tinkham-Klapwijk (BTK) approach. It is shown that all quasiparticle transport coefficients and conductance spectrum exhibit oscillating behavior with the energy, in which periodic vanishing of Andreev reflection (AR) above superconducting gap is found. In tunnel limit for the interface scattering strength taken very large, there are a series of bound states of quasiparticles formed in SC.     

Spin-flip effects in a parallel-coupled double quantum dot molecule

We investigate theoretically the electronic transport through a parallel-coupled double quantum dot (DQD) molecule attached to metallic electrodes, in which the spin-flip scattering on each quantum dot is considered. Special attention is paid to the effects of the intradot spin-flip processes on the linear conductance by using the equation of motion approach for Green’s functions. When a weak spin-flip scattering on each quantum dot is present, the single Fano peak splits into two Fano peaks, and the Breit–Wigner resonance may be suppressed slightly. When the spin-flip scattering strength on each quantum dot becomes strong, the linear conductance spectrum consists of two Breit–Wigner peaks and two Fano peaks due to the quantum interference effects. The positions and shapes of these resonant peaks can be controlled by using the magnetic flux through the quantum device.     

Coherent transport through intramolecular junction of single-wall carbon nanotubes

We have constructed four types single-wall carbon nanotube intramolecular junctions (IMJs) of (5,5)/(8,0), (5,5)/(10,0), (5,5)/(9,0)A, and (5,5)/(9,0)B along a common axis, and calculated their electronic and transport properties using a tight binding-based Green's function approach that is particular suitable for realistic calculation of electronic transport property in extended system. Our results show that quasi-localized states can appear in the metal/semiconductor heterojunctions ((5,5)/(8,0) and (5,5)/(10,0)junctions), which is desirable for the design of a quantum device; and the conductance of M-M IMJs is very sensitive to the connectivity of the matching tubes, certain configurations of connection completely stop the flow of electron, while others permit the transmission of the current through the interface. These results may have implications for the device assembly and manipulation process of all carbon nanotubes-based microelectronic elements. Received 14 January 2003 / Received in final form 25 February 2003 Published online 4 June 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: lfyzz@yahoo.com.cn     

Coherent quantum transport in normal-metal/d-wave superconductor/normal-metal double tunnel junctions

Taking into account the effects of quantum interference and interface scattering, combining the electron current with hole current contribution to tunnel current,we study the coherent quantum transport in normal-metal/d-wave superconductor/normal-metal (NM/d-wave SC/NM) double tunnel junctions by using extended Blonder-Tinkham-Klapwijk (BTK) approach. It is shown that all quasiparticle transport coefficients and conductance spectrum exhibit oscillating behavior with the energy, in which periodic vanishing of Andreev reflection (AR) above superconducting gap is found.In tunnel limit for the interface scattering strength taken very large, there are a series of bound states of quasiparticles formed in SC.     

含双T形量子结构的量子波导中声学声子输运和热导

采用散射矩阵方法, 研究了含双T形量子结构的量子波导中声学声子输运和热导性质. 结果表明: 在极低温度, 双T形量子结构能增强低温热导; 相反地, 在相对较高的温度范围, 双T形量子结构能降低低温热导. 而在整个低温范围内, 增加散射区域最窄处的宽度能增强低温热导. 计算结果表明可以通过调节含双T形量子结构的量子波导结构来调控声子的输运概率和热导. 关键词： 声学声子输运 热导 量子结构     

Electronic conductance via atomic wires: a phase field matching theory approach

A model is presented for the quantum transport of electrons, across finite atomic wire nanojunctions between electric leads, at zero bias limit. In order to derive the appropriate transmission and reflection spectra, familiar in the Landauer-Büttiker formalism, we develop the algebraic phase field matching theory (PFMT). In particular, we apply our model calculations to determine the electronic conductance for freely suspended monatomic linear sodium wires (MLNaW) between leads of the same element, and for the diatomic copper-cobalt wires (DLCuCoW) between copper leads on a Cu(111) substrate. Calculations for the MLNaW system confirm the correctness and functionality of our PFMT approach. We present novel transmission spectra for this system, and show that its transport properties exhibit the conductance oscillations for the odd- and even-number wires in agreement with previously reported first-principle results. The numerical calculations for the DLCuCoW wire nanojunctions are motivated by the stability of these systems at low temperatures. Our results for the transmission spectra yield for this system, at its Fermi energy, a monotonic exponential decay of the conductance with increasing wire length of the Cu-Co pairs. This is a cumulative effect which is discussed in detail in the present work, and may prove useful for applications in nanocircuits. Furthermore, our PFMT formalism can be considered as a compact and efficient tool for the study of the electronic quantum transport for a wide range of nanomaterial wire systems. It provides a trade-off in computational efficiency and predictive capability as compared to slower first-principle based methods, and has the potential to treat the conductance properties of more complex molecular nanojunctions.     

Ballistic transport and quantum interference in InSb nanowire devices

An experimental realization of a ballistic superconductor proximitized semiconductor nanowire device is a necessary step towards engineering topological quantum electronics. Here, we report on ballistic transport in In Sb nanowires grown by molecular-beam epitaxy contacted by superconductor electrodes. At an elevated temperature, clear conductance plateaus are observed at zero magnetic field and in agreement with calculations based on the Landauer formula. At lower temperature, we have observed characteristic Fabry–Pérot patterns which confirm the ballistic nature of charge transport.Furthermore, the magnetoconductance measurements in the ballistic regime reveal a periodic variation related to the Fabry–Pérot oscillations. The result can be reasonably explained by taking into account the impact of magnetic field on the phase of ballistic electron's wave function, which is further verified by our simulation. Our results pave the way for better understanding of the quantum interference effects on the transport properties of In Sb nanowires in the ballistic regime as well as developing of novel device for topological quantum computations.     

Influence of different band masses on ballistic charge transport in ferromagnet–superconductor–ferromagnet trilayers

We study transport properties of clean FISIF double-barrier junctions consisting of metallic or semiconducting ferromagnets (F), a superconductor (S), and insulating interfaces (I). We solve the scattering problem based on the Bogoliubov–de Gennes equation and calculate differential conductance for arbitrary interface transparency, different effective band masses and Fermi wave vectors in the conductors. We analyze size and coherence effects that characterize ballistic transport: subgap transmission and geometrical oscillations of the conductance. We find that different band masses, as well as different Fermi wave vectors, affect the transport properties in a way similar to interfaces of a finite transparency. In all these cases, charge transport is reduced to resonant tunneling through the quasi-bound states in the superconducting film.     

Quantum interference and ballistic transmission in nanotube electron waveguides

The electron transport properties of well-contacted individual single-walled carbon nanotubes are investigated in the ballistic regime. Phase coherent transport and electron interference manifest as conductance fluctuations as a function of Fermi energy. Resonance with standing waves in finite-length tubes and localized states due to imperfections are observed for various Fermi energies. Two units of quantum conductance 2G(0) = 4e(2)/h are measured for the first time, corresponding to the maximum conductance limit for ballistic transport in two channels of a nanotube.     

The Aharonov–Bohm effect in graphene rings

This is a review of electronic quantum interference in mesoscopic ring structures based on graphene, with a focus on the interplay between the Aharonov–Bohm effect and the peculiar electronic and transport properties of this material. We first present an overview on recent developments of this topic, both from the experimental as well as the theoretical side. We then review our recent work on signatures of two prominent graphene-specific features in the Aharonov–Bohm conductance oscillations, namely Klein tunneling and specular Andreev reflection. We close with an assessment of experimental and theoretical development in the field and highlight open questions as well as potential directions of the developments in future work.     

Structural deformation and intertube conductance of crossed carbon nanotube junctions

We present a first-principles study of the structure and quantum electronic conductance of junctions consisting of two crossed (5,5) single-walled carbon nanotubes. The structures are determined by constrained minimization of total energy at a given force between the two tubes, simulating the effects of substrate-tube attraction or an applied force. We find that the intertube contact distance is very sensitive to the applied force in the range of 0--10 nN. The intertube conductance is sizable for realistic deformation expected from substrate interaction. The results explain the recent transport data on crossed nanotubes and show that these systems may be potentially useful as electromechanical devices.     

Manifestations of phase-coherent transport in graphene

The electronic transport properties of graphene exhibit pronounced differences from those of conventional two dimensional electron systems investigated in the past. As a consequence, well established phenomena such as the integer quantum Hall effect and weak localization manifest themselves differently in graphene. Here we present an overview of recent experiments that we have performed to probe phase coherent transport. In particular, we have investigated in great detail Josephson supercurrent and superconducting proximity effect in junctions consisting of a graphene layer in between superconducting electrodes. We have also used the same devices to measure aperiodic conductance fluctuations and weak localization. The experimental results clearly indicate that low-temperature transport in graphene is phase coherent on a ∼ 1μm length scale, irrespective of the position of the Fermi level. We discuss the different behavior of Josephson supercurrent and weak localization in terms of the unusual properties of the electronic states in graphene upon time reversal symmetry.     

Combined effect of Aharonov-Bohm effect and uniaxial strain on quantum conductance oscillations of carbon nanotube resonators

Using the π orbital tight-binding model and the multi-channel Laudauer-Büttiker formula, the combined effect of Aharonov-Bohm effect (induced by an axial magnetic field) and uniaxial strain on quantum conductance oscillations of the electronic Fabry-Perot resonators composed of armchair and metallic zigzag single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) has been studied. It is found that, for the case of the armchair SWNT, conductance oscillations near the band gap are dominated by Aharonov-Bohm effect, while the conductance oscillations in other regions are dominated by the uniaxial strains. The combined effect of Aharonov-Bohm effect and uniaxial strains on quantum conductance oscillations is not obvious. But, for the case of the metallic zigzag SWNTs, obvious single-channel transport and one or two conductance oscillations existing in two different gate voltage ranges were found by the combined effect of uniaxial strain and axial magnetic field.     

电极构型及其耦合模式对有机分子电输运性质的影响

选取两种不同的电极构型及其耦合模式,利用从头算理论和弹性散射格林函数的方法,对有机分子对苯二甲氰的电输运性质进行理论研究和对比分析.计算结果表明,不同构型及其耦合在分子的耦合属性、电子输运谱、开启电压位置、电导平台的分布以及电流的响应等方面存在明显不同,改变电极间距也会对各种构型分子体系的耦合系数、电导平台高度和电流的大小产生影响.