Quantum coherence in a one-electron semiconductor charge qubit

We study quantum coherence in a semiconductor charge qubit formed from a GaAs double quantum dot containing a single electron. Voltage pulses are applied to depletion gates to drive qubit rotations and noninvasive state readout is achieved using a quantum point contact charge detector. We measure a maximum coherence time of ～7 ns at the charge degeneracy point, where the qubit level splitting is first-order insensitive to gate voltage fluctuations. We compare measurements of the coherence time as a function of detuning with numerical simulations and predictions from a 1/f noise model.     

Electrically tunable spin polarization in a carbon nanotube spin diode

We have studied the current through a carbon-nanotube quantum dot with one ferromagnetic and one normal-metal lead. For the values of gate voltage at which the normal lead is resonant with the single available nondegenerate energy level on the dot, we observe a pronounced decrease in the current for one bias direction. We show that this rectification is spin dependent, and that it stems from the interplay between the spin accumulation and the Coulomb blockade on the quantum dot. The degree of resulting spin polarization is fully and precisely tunable using the gate and bias voltages.     

Variation of co-tunneling and Kondo effects by control of the strength of coupling between a vertical dot and a two-dimensional electron gas

We have fabricated a vertical quantum dot with lateral coupling, modulated by a split gate voltage, to a two-dimensional electron. We thereby control not only electron configurations but also the strength of coupling between the dot and the lateral lead, by applying gate voltages. We have measured the conductance enhancement when the applied bias exceeds the single-electron excitation energy, in the Coulomb blockade regime. This conductance enhancement disappears as the split gate voltage decreases (reducing the coupling). This indicates that this enhancement is caused by inelastic co-tunneling. Furthermore, we observed a conductance enhancement at zero source–drain bias with stronger coupling. An anomaly is observed that we attribute to Kondo resonance between the dot and the leads.     

Transport properties of surface acoustic wave based single electron transport device in the presence of an impurity potential

We report the transport properties of a surface acoustic wave based single electron transport device, which contains an unintentional quantum dot induced by background impurity potential fluctuations. It is found that the presence of the impurity potential can cause a deviation of the acoustoelectric current from its quantized value. Through the charging effect of the quantum dot induced by the impurity, we get an approximate relationship between the applied gate voltage and its corresponding electrostatic potential barrier height, together with the Coulomb charging energy needed to add a second electron into the dynamic quantum dot. Moreover, the amplitude of the surface acoustic wave is also estimated within a simple model.     

Voltage-controlled optics of a quantum dot

We show how the optical properties of a single semiconductor quantum dot can be controlled with a small dc voltage applied to a gate electrode. We find that the transmission spectrum of the neutral exciton exhibits two narrow lines with approximately 2 mueV linewidth. The splitting into two linearly polarized components arises through an exchange interaction within the exciton. The exchange interaction can be turned off by choosing a gate voltage where the dot is occupied with an additional electron. Saturation spectroscopy demonstrates that the neutral exciton behaves as a two-level system. Our experiments show that the remaining problem for manipulating excitonic quantum states in this system is spectral fluctuation on a mueV energy scale.     

Spin Accumulation in a Double Quantum Dot Aharonov-Bohm Interferometer

We investigate the spin accumulation in a double quantum dot Aharonov-Bohm （AB） interferometer in which both the Rashba spin-orbit （RSO） interaction and intradot Coulomb interaction are taken into account. Due to the existence of the RSO interaction, the electron, flowing through different arms of the AB ring, will acquire a spin-dependent phase factor in the tunnel-coupling strengths. This phase factor will induce various interesting interference phenomena. It is found that the electrons of the different spin directions can accumulate in the two dots by properly adjusting the bias and the intradot level with a fixed RSO interaction strength. Moreover, both the magnitude and direction of the spin accumulation in each dot can be conveniently controlled and tuned by the gate voltage acting on the dot or the bias on the lead.     

Transport properties of a lateral semiconductor quantum dot defined by a single connected metallic front-gate

We present studies on the electric transport in a lateral GaAs/AlGaAs quantum dot defined by a patterned single connected metallic front-gate. This gate design allows to easily couple a large number of quantum dots and therefore holds high potential in the design of new materials with tailor-made band structures based on quantum dot superlattices of controlled shape. Clear Coulomb diamond structures and well pronounced tunneling peaks observed in experiment indicate that single-electron control has been achieved. However, the dependence on electron density in the heterostructure embedding the dot, which is controlled by an additional back-gate, reveals that transport characteristics are strongly influenced supposedly by potential fluctuations in the dot and lead regions.     

Capacitance fluctuations in quantum dots

We discuss fluctuations of the charging energy E_C and gate voltage spacings between Coulomb oscillation conductance peaks, as computed within spin density functional theory for a realistic GaAs–AlGaAs dot. We explicitly exhibit the fluctuations in the portion of the total free energy which incorporate the interaction between the dot and its surroundings. These variations in the dot capacitance show a dispersion which is typically greater than the dispersion of the total dot charging energy.     

Current fluctuations in an interacting quantum dot

We calculate the counting statistics of electron transfer through an open quantum dot with charging interaction. A dot that is connected to leads by two single-channel quantum point contacts in an in-plane magnetic field is described by a Luttinger liquid with impurity at the Toulouse point. We find that the fluctuations of the current through this conductor exhibit distinctive interaction effects. Fluctuations saturate at high voltages, while the mean current increases linearly with the bias voltage. All cumulants higher than the second one reach at large bias a temperature independent limit.     

量子点浮置栅量子线沟道三栅结构单电子场效应管存储特性的数值模拟

通过建立二维薛定谔方程和泊松方程数值模型,对基于硅量子点浮置栅和硅量子线沟道三栅结构单电子场效应管(FET)存储特性进行了研究.通过在不同尺寸、栅压和不同写入电荷条件下,对硅量子线沟道中电子浓度的二维有限元自洽数值求解,研究了在纳米尺度下硅量子线沟道中量子限制效应和电荷分布对于器件特性的影响.模拟结果发现,沟道的导通阈值电压随着尺寸的缩小而提高,并随浮置栅内存储的电子数目的增加而明显升高.然而,这样的增加趋势在受到纳米尺度沟道中高电荷密度的影响下将出现非线性饱和趋势.进一步研究发现,当沟道尺寸较小时,沟道 关键词： 三栅单电子FET存储器 量子效应 薛定谔方程 泊松方程     

Out of equilibrium Anderson model: Conductance and Kondo temperature

We calculate the conductance through a quantum dot weakly coupled to metallic contacts by means of the Keldysh out of equilibrium formalism. We model the quantum dot with the SU(2) Anderson model and consider the limit of infinite Coulomb repulsion. The interacting system is solved with the numerical diagrammatic Non-Crossing Approximation (NCA) and the conductance is obtained as a function of temperature and gate voltage from differential conductance (dI/dV) curves. We discuss the results in comparison with those from the linear response approach which can be performed directly in equilibrium conditions. Comparison shows that out of equilibrium results are in good agreement with the ones from linear response supporting reliability of the method employed. The last discussion becomes relevant when dealing with general transport models through interacting regions. We also analyze the evolution of conductance vs gate voltage with temperature. While at high temperatures the conductance is peaked, when the Fermi energy coincides with the localized level it presents a plateau at low temperatures as a consequence of the Kondo effect. We discuss different ways to determine Kondo's temperature.     

Using a quantum dot as a high-frequency shot noise detector

We present the experimental realization of a quantum dot (QD) operating as a high-frequency noise detector. Current fluctuations produced in a nearby quantum point contact (QPC) ionize the QD and induce transport through excited states. The resulting transient current through the QD represents our detector signal. We investigate its dependence on the QPC transmission and voltage bias. We observe and explain a quantum threshold feature and a saturation in the detector signal. This experimental and theoretical study is relevant in understanding the backaction of a QPC used as a charge detector.     

AC shot noise through a vibrating quantum dot

In this paper we investigate the joint effects of the electron-phonon interaction and an external alternating (ac) gate voltage on the spectral density of shot noise through a vibrating quantum dot system, by applying the Lang-Firsov canonical transformation and the Keldysh nonequilibrium Green's function (NGF) technique. We find that the effects of the electron-phonon and electron-photon interaction on the differential shot noise are different. The main resonant peak of the differential shot noise is decreased only when a time-dependent gate voltage is imposed on quantum dot. With the ac field amplitude increasing, the main resonant peak of the differential shot noise decreases. The Fano factor of the system, which exhibits the deviation of shot noise from the Schottky formula, is also studied. Super-Poissonian shot noise appears due to the photon absorption (emission) processes in the low bias voltage region.     

Photocurrent and spin manipulation in quantum dots

In this paper we use a density matrix formalism to model the spin photocurrent obtained from a single self-assembled quantum dot photodiode under the influence of an applied strong polarized electromagnetic pulse and a gate voltage. We show that the degree of polarization of the output photocurrent generated by a circularly polarized pulse in a strongly anisotropic quantum dot can be switched as we increase the pulse intensity. A similar effect is observed in a quantum dot with weak anisotropic electron–hole exchange interaction by using an elliptically polarized pulse. In the latter, a shorter pulse is needed, which creates an effective exchange channel through the biexciton. This phenomenon can be used as a dynamical switch to invert the spin-polarization of the extracted current.     

绝缘体上硅金属氧化物半导体场效应晶体管中辐射导致的寄生效应研究

基于⁶⁰Co γ射线源研究了总剂量辐射对绝缘体上硅（silicon on insulator,SOI）金属氧化物半导体场效应晶体管器件的影响.通过对比不同尺寸器件的辐射响应,分析了导致辐照后器件性能退化的不同机制.实验表明：器件的性能退化来源于辐射增强的寄生效应;浅沟槽隔离（shallow trench isolation,STI）寄生晶体管的开启导致了关态漏电流随总剂量呈指数增加,直到达到饱和;STI氧化层的陷阱电荷共享导致了窄沟道器件的阈值电压漂移,而短沟道器件的阈值电压漂移则来自于背栅阈值耦合;在同一工艺下,尺寸较小的器件对总剂量效应更敏感.探讨了背栅和体区加负偏压对总剂量效应的影响,SOI器件背栅或体区的负偏压可以在一定程度上抑制辐射增强的寄生效应,从而改善辐照后器件的电学特性.     

Tunable quantum dot resonator embedded in a quantum wire

Combined quantum wire and quantum dot system is theoretically predicted to show unique conductance properties associated with Coulomb interactions. We use a split gate technique to fabricate a quantum wire containing a quantum dot with two tunable potential barriers in a two-dimensional electron gas. We observe the effects of the quantum dot cavity on the electron transport through the quantum wire, such as Coulomb oscillations near the pinch-off voltage and periodic conductance oscillations on the first conductance plateau.     

An analytical model for nanowire junctionless SOI Fin FETs with considering three-dimensional coupling effect

In this paper, the three-dimensional(3D) coupling effect is discussed for nanowire junctionless silicon-on-insulator(SOI) Fin FETs. With fin width decreasing from 100 nm to 7 nm, the electric field induced by the lateral gates increases and therefore the influence of back gate on the threshold voltage weakens. For a narrow and tall fin, the lateral gates mainly control the channel and therefore the effect of back gate decreases. A simple two-dimensional(2D) potential model is proposed for the subthreshold region of junctionless SOI Fin FET. TCAD simulations validate our model. It can be used to extract the threshold voltage and doping concentration. In addition, the tuning of back gate on the threshold voltage can be predicted.     

Thermopower and thermal conductance for a Kondo correlated quantum dot

We study the thermopower and thermal conductivity of a gate-defined quantum dot, with a very strong Coulomb repulsion inside the dot, employing the X-boson approach for the impurity Anderson model. Our results show a change in the sign of the thermopower as function of the energy level of the quantum dot (gate voltage), which is associated with an oscillatory behavior and a suppression of the thermopower magnitude at low temperatures. We identify two relevant energy scales: a low temperature scale dominated by the Kondo effect and a T∼Δ$T\sim \Delta$ temperature scale characterized by charge fluctuations. We also discuss the Wiedemann–Franz relation and the thermoelectric figure of merit. Our results are in qualitative agreement with recent experimental reports and other theoretical treatments.     

Many-body dynamics of exciton creation in a quantum dot by optical absorption: a quantum quench towards Kondo correlations

We study a quantum quench for a semiconductor quantum dot coupled to a fermionic reservoir, induced by the sudden creation of an exciton via optical absorption. The subsequent emergence of correlations between spin degrees of freedom of dot and reservoir, culminating in the Kondo effect, can be read off from the absorption line shape and understood in terms of the three fixed points of the single-impurity Anderson model. At low temperatures the line shape is dominated by a power-law singularity, with an exponent that depends on gate voltage and, in a universal, asymmetric fashion, on magnetic field, indicative of a tunable Anderson orthogonality catastrophe.     

All-electrically reading out and initializing topological qubits with quantum dots

We analyze the reading and initialization of a topological qubit encoded by Majorana fermions in one-dimensional semiconducting nanowires, weakly coupled to a single level quantum dot （QD）. It is shown that when the Majorana fermions are fused by tuning gate voltage, the topological qubit can be read out directly through the occupation of the QD in an energy window. The initialization of the qubit can also be realized via adjusting the gate voltage on the QD, with the total fermion parity conserved. As a result, both reading and initialization processes can be achieved in an all-electrical way.