Size-dependent single electron tunneling effect in Au nanoparticles

We investigated single electron tunneling (SET) behavior of dodecanethiol-coated Au nanoparticles of two different sizes (average sizes are 5 nm and 2 nm) using nanogap electrodes, which have a well-defined gap size, at various temperatures. The Coulomb staircases and the Coulomb gap near-zero bias voltage caused by the suppression of the tunneling electrons due to the Coulomb blockade effect were observed in the current-voltage (I-V) curves of both sizes of nanoparticles at a low temperature (10 K). At room temperature, the Coulomb gap was observed only in the I-V curve of the smaller nanoparticles. This result indicates that the charging energy of the smaller nanoparticles is enough to overcome the thermal energy at room temperature. This suggests that it is possible to operate the SET devices at room temperature using the smaller nanoparticles as a Coulomb island.     

单电子晶体管电流解析模型及数值分析

本文首先建立单电子晶体管的电流解析模型, 然后将蒙特卡罗法与主方程法结合进行数值分析, 研究了栅极偏压、漏极偏压、温度与隧道结电阻等参数对器件特性的影响. 结果表明: 对于对称结, 库仑台阶随栅极偏压增大而漂移; 漏极电压增大, 库仑振荡振幅增强, 库仑阻塞则衰减; 温度升高将导致库仑台阶和库仑振荡现象消失. 对于非对称结, 源漏隧道结电阻比率增大, 库仑阻塞现象越明显. 关键词： 单电子晶体管 解析模型 蒙特卡罗法 主方程法     

The influence of tunneling matrix element modification due to on-site Coulomb interaction on local tunneling conductivity

Interplay between changes of energy levels and tunneling amplitudes caused by localized electrons’ on-site Coulomb interaction depending on non-equilibrium electron filling numbers is analyzed. Specific features of local tunneling conductivity spectra for different positions of localized states’ energy relative to the Fermi level have been investigated by means of self-consistent mean field approximation in the presence of non-equilibrium effects. The conditions when modifications of tunneling transfer amplitude due to changes of electron filling numbers in the presence of on-site Coulomb interaction should be taken into account in tunneling conductivity spectra have been revealed.     

Low energy dynamics of two-dimensional lateral tunnel junctions

We report on the low temperature tunneling characteristics of two-dimensional lateral tunnel junctions (2DLTJs) consisting of two coplanar two-dimensional electron systems separated by an in-plane tunnel barrier. The tunneling conductance of the 2DLTJ exhibits a characteristic dip at small voltages—consistent with the phenomenon of zero-bias anomaly in low-dimensional tunnel junctions—and a broad conductance peak at the Coulombic energy scale. The conductance peak remains robust under magnetic fields well into the quantum Hall regime. We identify the broad conductance maxima as the signature of the pseudogap in the tunneling density of states below the characteristic Coulomb interaction energy of the 2DLTJ.     

单电子三势垒隧穿结I-V特性研究

在正统理论的基础上，提出了单电子三势垒隧穿结模型的主方程，并用线性方程组解法求出了其稳态解.通过数值模拟，得到了该系统的I-V特性曲线.发现其有别于双势垒隧穿结的情况，在传统库仑台阶的平台处曲线存在波纹状结构，分析得出这是由于第二个库仑岛上的电子数变化对I-V曲线的影响.此外，研究了各物理参数对I-V曲线的影响，发现三结系统可以降低对温度的要求，并应用Fermi能级处的能级间隔估算出出现库仑台阶现象的最高温度Tmax，为相关单电子器件的参数选择提供了理论依据. 关键词： 正统理论 库仑台阶 主方程 隧穿概率     

Graphene based single molecule nanojunction

We introduce the ab-initio framework for zigzag-edged graphene fragment based single-electron transistor (SET) operating in the Coulomb blockade regime. Graphene is modeled using the density-functional theory and the environment is described by a continuum model. The interaction between graphene and the SET environment is treated self-consistently through the Poisson equation. We calculate the charging energy as a function of an external gate potential, and from this we obtain the charge stability diagram. Specifically, the importance of including re-normalization of the charge states due to the polarization of the environment has been demonstrated.     

Spin-dependent tunneling and Coulomb blockade in ferromagnetic nanoparticles

In this paper we review studies on spin-dependent transport in systems containing ferromagnetic nanoparticles. In a tunnel junction with a nanometer-scale-island, the charging effect leads to an electric current blockade phenomenon in which a single electron charge plays a significant role in electron transport, resulting in single-electron tunneling (SET) properties such as Coulomb blockade and Coulomb staircase. In a tunnel junction with a ferromagnetic nano-island and electrode, it was expected that the interplay of spin-dependent tunneling (SDT) and SET, i.e., spin-dependent single-electron tunneling (SD-SET), would give rise to remarkable tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) phenomena. We investigated magnetotransport properties in both sequential tunneling and cotunneling regimes of SET and found the enhancement and oscillation of TMR. The self-assembled ferromagnetic nanoparticles we have employed in this study consisted of a Co–Al–O granular film with cobalt nanoparticles embedded in an Al–O insulating matrix. A _Co36Al22O42${\mathrm{Co}}_{36}{\mathrm{Al}}_{22}{\mathrm{O}}_{42}$ film prepared by a reactive sputtering method produced a TMR ratio reaching 10% and superparamagnetic behavior at room temperature. The TMR ratio exhibited an anomalous increase at low temperatures but no indication of change with bias voltage. In Section 4, we show that the anomalous increase of the MR provided evidence for higher-order tunneling (cotunneling) between large granules through intervening small granules. We emphasize that the existence of higher-order tunneling is a natural consequence of the granular structure, since broad distribution of granule size is an intrinsic property of granular systems. In Section 5, we concentrate on SD-SET properties in sequential tunneling regimes. We fabricated two types of device structures with Co–Al–O film using focused ion-beam milling or electron-beam lithography techniques. One had a granular nanobridge structure: point-shaped electrodes separated by a very narrow lateral gap filled with the Co–Al–O granular film. The other had a current-perpendicular-to-plane (CPP) geometry structure: a thin Co–Al–O granular film sandwiched by ferromagnetic electrodes with the current flowing in the direction perpendicular to the film plane through a few Co particles. We found the enhancement and oscillation of TMR due to spin-dependent SET in sequential tunneling regimes. In Section 6, we report experimental evidence of a spin accumulation effect in Co nanoparticles leading to the oscillation of TMR with alternate sign changes. Furthermore, we discovered that the spin relaxation time in the nanoparticles is unprecedentedly enhanced up to the order of more than hundreds of nanoseconds, compared to that evaluated from the spin-diffusion length of ferromagnetic layers in previous CPP-GMR studies, i.e., the order of tens of picoseconds.     

Current-distance-voltage characteristics of electron tunneling through an electrochemical STM junction

We have studied the electron tunneling process through an electrochemical scanning tunneling microscopic (STM) junction formed by a gold tip and a gold electrode immersed in an inert NaClO₄ solution. Current-distance-voltage characteristics of the tunneling process are examined by simultaneous measurement of tunneling current, voltage, and distance. The results indicate that the tunneling voltage across the junction changes with tunneling distance; however, tunneling conductance is an inverse exponential function of distance over the entire investigated range of tunneling current, voltage, and distance. The results provide clear evidence for the validity of a one-dimensional tunneling model for the aqueous tunneling process. Implications of the observation are mentioned with regard to the distance-dependent STM imaging and the origin of a low tunneling barrier height.     

Coulomb sink effect on coarsening of metal nanostructures on surfaces

We discuss Coulomb effects on the coarsening of metal nanostructures on surfaces. We have proposed a new concept of a “Coulomb sink” [Phys. Rev. Lett., 2004, 93: 106102] to elucidate the effect of Coulomb charging on the coarsening of metal mesas grown on semiconductor surfaces. A charged mesa, due to its reduced chemical potential, acts as a Coulomb sink and grows at the expense of neighboring neutral mesas. The Coulomb sink provides a potentially useful method for the controlled fabrication of metal nanostructures. In this article, we will describe in detail the proposed physical models, which can explain qualitatively the most salient features of coarsening of charged Pb mesas on the Si(111) surface, as observed by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). We will also describe a method of precisely fabricating large-scale nanocrystals with well-defined shape and size. By using the Coulomb sink effect, the artificial center-full-hollowed or half-hollowed nanowells can be created.      

介观LC电路中的量子隧道效应

考虑到电子在纳米电容器中的运动是一个单电子隧穿过程,因而将电容器作为一个隧道结,应用隧道模型的稳态法,研究了介观LC电路中的电流电压特性.结果表明:由于库仑力的作用,介观LC电路中存在着阈值电压.当外加电压小于阈值电压时,隧穿电流为零,显示出库仑阻塞现象;当外加电压远大于阈值电压时,隧穿电流与电压成正比. 关键词： 介观LC电路 库仑阻塞 单电子隧道过程     

Resonant tunneling single electron transistors

We use a modulation-doped double barrier heterostructure to fabricate a resonant tunneling single electron transistor. Irregular Coulomb blockade oscillations are observed when the gate voltage is swept to vary one-by-one the number of electrons in the dot close to 'pinch-off'. The oscillation period is not regular, and generally becomes longer as the electron number is decreased down to zero, reflecting the growing importance of electron-electron interactions and size quantization. Negative differential resistance associated with resonant tunneling through zero-dimensional states is pronounced for a dot holding just a few electrons. The temperature dependence of the Coulomb blockade oscillations and that for the negative differential resistance are not the same. This highlights the different effects of charging and resonant tunneling on the transport characteristics.     

Pair Tunneling through Single Molecules

By a polaronic energy shift, the effective charging energy of molecules can become negative, favoring ground states with even numbers of electrons. Here we show that charge transport through such molecules near ground-state degeneracies is dominated by tunneling of electron pairs which coexists with (featureless) single-electron cotunneling. Because of the restricted phase space for pair tunneling, the current-voltage characteristics exhibit striking differences from the conventional Coulomb blockade. In asymmetric junctions, pair tunneling can be used for gate-controlled current rectification and switching.     

Current bistability in resonant tunneling through a semiconductor quantum dot

We discuss resonant tunneling through quantum dot energy levels considering the charging energy of the dot. The hamiltonian of the system is reduced to a form of the Anderson hamiltonian of resonant tunneling. The mean-field approximation is applied and current–voltage characteristics are evaluated. The self-consistent solution is investigated for the low tunneling rate case in the low-temperature condition. The current bistability and the related current hysteresis are pointed out. The Coulomb staircase is shown in the current–voltage characteristics. These features are all due to Coulomb repulsion within the dot.     

Observation of 77 K coulomb staircases in GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures implanted by a focused ion beam

We report evidence of single electron tunneling at 77 K in GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures implanted with a single line scan of a focused ion beam (FIB). We observe clear staircases in the current-voltage characteristics when the current is measured across the implanted area. These staircases exist in all the fabricated devices but show variations in step width and step height. The observed staircases most likely originate from single electron tunneling through a specific Coulomb island in the random distribution of potential fluctuations which results from implantation damage. Analysis of the observed step widths results in an estimate of the spatial extent of the island which is consistent with the correlation length of the potential fluctuations estimated from the defect density.     

Interaction effects and pseudogap in two-dimensional lateral tunnel junctions

Tunneling characteristics of a two-dimensional lateral tunnel junction are reported. A pseudogap on the order of Coulomb energy is detected in the tunneling density of states (TDOS) when two identical two-dimensional electron systems are laterally separated by a thin energy barrier. The Coulombic pseudogap remains robust well into the quantum Hall regime until it is overshadowed by the cyclotron gap in the TDOS. The pseudogap is modified by the in-plane magnetic field, demonstrating a nontrivial effect of the in-plane magnetic field on the electron-electron interaction.     

Electric field perturbation due to impurities in GaAs through single electron transistor

The present work shows the presence of inevitable impurities in the semi-insulating GaAs domains when one is developing a single electron transistor (SET) and alters the quantization mechanism of single electron tunneling through the island. It is also indicated that these impurities decrease the amount of energy required to change the number of electrons on the island, which leads to a drastic reduction of SET quality. A theoretical model has been presented for elucidating the I–V characteristics of GaAs nano-crystals. It is found that this proposed model fits well the experimental data.     

Evidence for Coulomb staircase in tunneling through an antidot island in the quantum Hall regime

We studied the – characteristics of tunneling devices, defined by two trench fingers and an antidot island patterned on Corbino rings in the quantum Hall plateau regime. Well-developed current steps were observed at filling factors near , which we interpret as a Coulomb staircase phenomenon due to charging of compressible strips around the antidot. The evolution of the current steps with filling factor is explained in the quasi-elastic inter landau level scattering model.     

硅量子点中电子的荷电动力学特征

利用频率依赖电容谱的测量,对于SiO₂/硅量子点/SiO₂/硅衬底隧 穿电容中硅量子点的荷电特征进行了研究.由于量子点的极小尺寸和良好的均匀性,室温下 在强反型区成功地观察到了与单电子隧穿相关的两个电容和电导共振峰,它们分别对应于硅 衬底导带上的电子与量子点中第一与第二个基态之间直接隧穿过程.实验数据分析给出了量 子点中的库仑荷电能,并进行了讨论. 关键词： 量子点 电容谱 库仑荷电能 直接隧穿     

Electrical conductance properties for magnetic tunnel junctions with MgO barriers

We measured inelastic electron tunneling (IET) spectra and conductance for MgO tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) films to obtain information on the ferromagnetic/barrier layer interface. The IET spectra showed the difference between amorphous and crystalline structures in the barrier. In the magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) with a crystalline barrier the IET spectra indicated an Mg-O phonon peak at a low bias voltage by measurement with a parallel magnetization configuration. On the other hand, no peak was observed in the MTJ with an amorphous barrier.     

The Study of “Coulomb Asymmetry” in an Elliptically Polarized Laser Field

Due to the effect of Coulomb potential, the angular distribution of electron ionized in an elliptically polarized field presents an asymmetric structure, which is called "Coulomb asymmetry". In this paper, we study how to modulate the asymmetric degree of the electron angular distribution by using a semi-classical simplified tunneling model. It is found that the asymmetric structure is easily affected by three parameters:the ionization potential, the laser ellipticity, and the laser wavelength. However, the laser intensity has little effect on the asymmetric structure. To explain these phenomena we have derived an analytical formula, which clearly demonstrates the relationship between the asymmetric degree and these parameters. Moreover, we find that in elliptically polarized laser field only those electrons that are released in a certain narrow window of initial field phase are greatly effected by the Coulomb potential and play the key role in the formation of asymmetric structure. This study provides some reference values in the development of attoclock technique, which can be used to probe the tunneling process.