The carrier “antibinding” in quantum dots: a charge separation effect

We show that the carrier “antibinding” observed recently in semiconductor quantum dots, i.e., the fact that the ground state energy of two electron-hole pairs goes above twice the ground-state energy of one pair, can entirely be assigned to a charge separation effect, whatever its origin. In the absence of external electric field, this charge separation comes from different “spreading-out” of the electron and hole wavefunctions linked to the finite height of the barriers. When the dot size shrinks, the two-pair energy always stays below when the barriers are infinite. On the opposite, because barriers are less efficient for small dots, the energy of two-pairs in a dot with finite barriers, ends by behaving like the one in bulk, i.e., by going above twice the one-pair energy when the pairs get too close. For a full understanding of this “antibinding” effect, we have also reconsidered the case of one pair plus one carrier. We find that, while the carriers just have to spread out of the dot differently for the “antibinding” of two-pairs to appear, this “antibinding” for one pair plus one carrier only appears if this carrier is the one which spreads out the less. In addition a remarkable sum rule exists between the “binding energies” of two pairs and of one pair plus one carrier.     

Combined effects of electric and magnetic fields on confined donor states in a diluted magnetic semiconductor parabolic quantum dot

A variational formalism for the calculation of the binding energies of hydrogenic donors in a parabolic diluted magnetic semiconductor quantum dot is discussed. Results are obtained for Cd Mn Te/Cd Mn Te structures as a function of the dot radius in the presence of external magnetic and electric fields applied along the growth axis. The donor binding energies are computed for different field strengths and for different dot radii. While the variation of impurity binding energy with dot radii and electric field are as expected, the polarizability values enhance in a magnetic field. However, for certain values of dot radii and in intense magnetic fields the polarizability variation is anomalous. This variation of polarizability is different from non- magnetic quantum well structures. Spin polaronic shifts are estimated using a mean field theory. The results show that the spin polaronic shift increases with magnetic field and decreases as the electric field and dot radius increase.     

Zeeman effect and magnetic anomalies in narrow-gap semiconductor quantum dots

We present a systematic theoretical study, based on the Kane–Weiler 8×8 k·p model, of the linear Zeeman splitting introduced by the interaction between the angular momentum and the magnetic field which can give a measure of the non-linear Zeeman effect associated with interband coupling and diamagnetic contributions. The conduction and valence bands g-factors are calculated for InSb spherical and semi-spherical quantum dots. The calculations of the g-factors showed an almost linear dependence, for the ground state, on the magnetic field. We have also found that the strong magnetic field dependence as well as the dependence on the dot size of the effective spin splitting can be unambiguously attributed to the strength of the inter-level mixing.     

Longitudinal dielectric behavior of a harmonically bound two-dimensional electron gas in a uniform magnetic field

We have employed random-phase approximation to determine the inverse dielectric function for a harmonically confined two-dimensional electron gas in a magnetic field. We examine the plasmon dispersion relation and show the results for the variation of plasmon frequency with the magnetic field strength and confinement energy.     

Singlet–triplet oscillations and far-infrared spectrum of four-minima quantum-dot molecule

We study ground states and far-infrared spectra (FIR) of two electrons in four-minima quantum-dot molecule in magnetic field by exact diagonalization. Ground states consist of altering singlet and triplet states, whose frequency, as a function of magnetic field, increases with increasing dot–dot separation. When the Zeeman energy is included, only the two first singlet states remain as ground states. In the FIR spectra, we observe discontinuities due to crossing ground states. Non-circular symmetry induces anticrossings, and also an additional mode above ω₊ in the spin-triplet spectrum. In particular, we conclude that electron–electron interactions cause only minor changes to the FIR spectra and deviations from the Kohn modes result from the low-symmetry confinement potential.     

Dynamics of 2-D one electron quantum dots in time-dependent magnetic field: Influence of size

We explore the dynamics of harmonically confined single electron quantum dots as a function of dot size under time-dependent magnetic field. The system of interest is a 2-D system in the presence of a perpendicular magnetic field. We show that for given strengths of the confinement potential and effective mass; periodic, as well as exponential variation in the strength of the magnetic field could invite interesting features in the dynamics of the system. Also, the pattern of time evolution of eigenstates of the unperturbed system reveals significant size-dependence. The fluctuation in the magnetic field strength from its initial value is found to modulate the dynamical aspects in a prominent way.     

Third-harmonic generation in cylindrical quantum dots in a static magnetic field

The third-harmonic generation (THG) coefficient for cylindrical quantum dots in a static magnetic field is investigated theoretically. By using the compact density-matrix approach and the iterative method, we obtain an analytical expression for the THG coefficient, and numerical calculations for typical GaAs/AlAs cylindrical quantum dots are presented. The results show that the THG coefficient can reach a magnitude of 10⁻¹⁰ m²/V ². In addition to the radius R of the cylindrical quantum dots, both the parabolic confining potential and the static magnetic field have an influence on the THG coefficient.     

Charged magneto-exciton states in semiconductor quantum dots

By embedding a layer of self-assembled quantum dots into a field-effect structure, we are able to control the exciton charge in a single dot. We present the results of photoluminescence experiments as a function of both charge and magnetic field. The results demonstrate a hierarchy of energy scales determined by quantization, the direct Coulomb interaction, the electron–electron exchange interaction, and the electron–hole exchange interaction. For excitons up to the triply charged exciton, the behavior can be understood from a model assuming discrete levels within the quantum dot. For the triply charged exciton, this is no longer the case. In a magnetic field, we discover a coherent interaction with the continuum states, the Landau levels associated with the wetting layer.     

Optical properties of semiconductor quantum dots in magnetic fields

Optical properties of semiconductor quantum dots in magnetic fields are reviewed. A theory is described based on a multi-band effective-mass approximation with a nonparabolic conduction electron dispersion, the direct Coulomb interaction, and the electron-hole exchange interaction taken into account. The transition from the quantum-confined Zeeman effect for a weak magnetic field to the quantum-confined Paschen-Back effect to a strong magnetic field is discussed in comparison with atomic spectra in magnetic fields. Experimental results of the optical properties of isolated CuCl, CdSSe, and Si quantum dots in magnetic fields are also discussed in conjunction with the theoretical results.     

Electron dynamics in modulation p-doped InGaAs/GaAs quantum dots

We investigate the electron dynamics of p-type modulation doped and undoped InGaAs/GaAs quantum dots using up-conversion photoluminescence at low temperature and room temperature. The rise time of the p-doped sample is significantly shorter than that of the undoped at low temperature. With increasing to room temperature the undoped sample exhibits a decreased rise time whilst that of the doped sample does not change. A relaxation mechanism of electron-hole scattering is proposed in which the doped quantum dots exhibit an enhanced and temperature independent relaxation due to excess built-in holes in the valence band of the quantum dots. In contrast, the rise time of the undoped quantum dots decreases significantly at room temperature due to the large availability of holes in the ground state of the valence band. Furthermore, modulation p-doping results in a shorter lifetime due to the presence of excess defects.     

Two Electrons in a Quantum Dot: A Unified Approach

Low-lying energy levels of two interacting electrons confined in a two-dimensional parabolic quantum dot in the presence of an external magnetic field have been revised within the frame of a novel model. The present formalism, which gives closed algebraic solutions for the specific values of magnetic field and spatial confinement length, enables us to see explicitly individual effects of the electron correlation.     

Large Seebeck coefficient resulting from chiral interactions in triangular triple quantum dots

We theoretically study thermoelectric transport properties through a triangular triple-quantum-dot (TTQD) structure in the linear response regime using the hierarchical equations of motion approach. It is demonstrated that large Seebeck coefficient can be obtained when properly matching the interdot tunneling strength and magnetic flux at the electron-hole symmetry point, as a result of spin chiral interactions in the TTQD system. We present a systematic investigation of the thermopower (the Seebeck coefficient) dependence on the tunneling strength, magnetic flux, and on-site energy. The Seebeck coefficient shows a clear breakdown of electron-hole symmetry in the vicinity of the Kondo regime, accompanied by the deviation from the semiclassical Mott relation in the Kondo and mixed-valence regimes, which result from the many-body effects of the Kondo correlated induced resonance together with spin chiral interactions.     

Novel effects produced on a two dimensional electron gas by introducing InAs dots in the plane of the quantum well

We show that the presence of InAs dots embedded in a host GaAs quantum well containing a two-dimensional electron gas dramatically modifies the cyclotron resonance (CR). Far-infrared CR measurements show two modes with different dispersions with applied magnetic field B. The lower-frequency mode, with a sub-linear dependence on B, is identified as a CR at low B, developing into a skipping orbit around the dot perimeters at higher B. This has not been previously observed for a system with randomly distributed scatterers. The higher-frequency mode is identified as a magnetoplasmon localised by the confining effect of the arrays of repulsive potentials due to the dots in the well.     

Linear and nonlinear optical properties in a disk-shaped quantum dot with a parabolic potential plus a hyperbolic potential in a static magnetic field

Linear and nonlinear optical properties in a disk-shaped quantum dot (DSQD) with a parabolic potential plus a hyperbolic potential in a static magnetic field are theoretically investigated within the framework of the compact-density-matrix approach and iterative method. The energy levels and the wave functions of an electron are obtained by three kinds of approximation methods. It is found that optical absorption coefficients and refractive index changes are not only by the characteristic parameters of the hyperbolic potential and the confinement frequency, but also by the magnetic field.     

Polarization selective magneto-optical study on the coupled quantum dots using resonant excitation

We have studied a double-layer self-assembled quantum dot (QD) structures consisting of non-magnetic CdSe and magnetic CdMnSe. Transmission electron microscopy image shows that QDs are formed within the CdSe and CdMnSe layers, and they are vertically correlated in the system. The strong interband ground state transition was observed in magneto-photoluminescence (PL) experiments. In contrast to a typical behavior for many low-dimensional systems involving diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMSs), where PL signal dramatically increases when an external magnetic field is applied, we have observed a significant decrease of the PL intensity as a function of magnetic field in the double-layer structures where the alternating QD layers contain the DMS and non-DMS QDs. We attribute such effect to carrier transfer from non-magnetic CdSe dots to magnetic CdMnSe dots due to the large Zeeman shift of the band edges of DMS QDs in magnetic field. Since the band alignment of QD structure strongly depends on the spin states of system, we performed polarization-selective PL measurement to identify spin-dependent carrier tunneling in this coupled system.     

Magneto-optics of three-dimensional quantum dots: a real time, time-dependent local spin–density approach

We perform adiabatic time-dependent local spin–density approximation (TDLSDA) calculations in real time of the excitation spectrum of three-dimensional quantum dots (QD's) in magnetic fields of arbitrary direction. In the case of parabolic confinement and electric dipole modes, the calculations reproduce exactly the generalized Kohn theorem, which is a stringent test of the numerical accuracy achieved by our practical implementation of TDLSDA. We apply the method to the study of spin dipole modes in a QD. Real time TDLSDA can be more efficient than Green's function methods to compute the dynamical properties of confined electrons, especially when the finite thickness of the system has to be taken into account. As an illustration, we obtain the dipole spin modes and the acoustic modes of vertical diatomic artificial quantum molecules at zero magnetic field.     

Evidence for charging effects in an open dot at zero magnetic field

We have measured the low-temperature transport properties of an open quantum dot formed in a clean one-dimensional channel. At zero magnetic field, continuous and periodic oscillations superimposed upon ballistic conductance steps are observed when the conductance through the dot G exceeds 2e²/h. We ascribe the observed conductance oscillations to evidence for charging effects in an open dot. This is supported by the evolution of the oscillating features for G>2e²/h as a function of both temperature and barrier transparency.     

Optical properties of individual manganese-doped quantum dots

The magnetic state of a single magnetic ion (Mn²⁺) embedded in an individual quantum dot is optically probed using micro-spectroscopy. The fine structure of a confined exciton in the exchange field of a single Mn²⁺ ion (S=) is analyzed in detail. The exciton–Mn²⁺ exchange interaction shifts the energy of the exciton depending on the Mn²⁺ spin component and six emission lines are observed at zero magnetic field. The emission spectra of individual quantum dots containing a single magnetic Mn atom differ strongly from dot to dot. The differences are explained by the influence of the system geometry, specifically the in-plane asymmetry of the quantum dot and the position of the Mn atom. Depending on both these parameters, one has different characteristic emission features which either reveal or hide the spin state of the magnetic atom. The observed behavior in both zero field and under magnetic field can be explained quantitatively by the interplay between the exciton–Mn²⁺ exchange interaction (dependent on the Mn position) and the anisotropic part of the electron–hole exchange interaction (related to the asymmetry of the quantum dot).     

Dynamics of 2-D one electron quantum dots in periodically fluctuating confinement potential: Influence of size and anharmonicity

We explore the dynamics of harmonically confined single electron quantum dots as a function of dot size under periodically fluctuating confinement potential. The system of interest is a 2-D system in the presence of a perpendicular magnetic field. We show that for given strengths of the magnetic field and effective mass, a periodic variation in the strength of the confinement potential could invite interesting features in the dynamics of the system. Also, the pattern of time evolution of eigenstates of the unperturbed system reveals significant size-dependence. The fluctuation in the confinement potential from its initial value is found to modulate the dynamical aspects in a prominent way. The presence of cubic anharmonicity in the confining field brings in new features in the dot dynamics.