Terahertz absorption by electrons and confined acoustic phonons in free-standing quantum wells

The acoustic phonon confinement in a free-standing quantum well (FSQW) results in an acoustic phonon energy quantization. Typical quantization energies are in the terahertz frequency range. Free electrons may absorb electromagnetic waves in this frequency range if they emit or absorb acoustic phonons. Therefore, the terahertz absorption reveals the characteristic features of the acoustic phonon spectrum in free-standing structures. We have calculated the absorption coefficient of an electromagnetic wave by free electrons in a FSQW in the terahertz frequency range. We took into account a time dependent electric field, an exact form of the acoustic phonon spectrum and eigenmodes, and electron interactions with confined acoustic phonons through the deformation potential. We demonstrate numerical results for GaAs FSQW of width 100 Å at low lattice temperatures in the frequency range 0.1-1 THz. The absorption coefficient exhibits several structures at frequencies corresponding to the lowest acoustic phonon modes. These features occur due to absorption of photons by electrons, which is accompanied by the emission of corresponding acoustic phonons.     

Generation of high-frequency phonons by defect-induced one-phonon absorption

By defect-induced one-phonon absorption of pulsed infrared radiation, we excited in diamond phonons at 28 THz. Their anharmonic decay leads to nonthermal frequency distributions of acoustic phonons which we investigated in a frequency range between 0.5 THz and 6 THz by use of vibronic sideband spectroscopy.     

Tunable detection of high-frequency phonons in LaF3

Tunable detection of high-frequency phonons in LaF₃ is reported. Phonons generated by a heat-pulse technique are detected by phonon-induced fluorescence from magnetically split energy levels of Er³⁺ impurity ions. Evidence for a strongly frequency-dependent lifetime of acoustic phonons at frequencies above 600 GHz is found. The lifetime is attributed to spontaneous anharmonic phonon decay.     

Damping of optical phonons in metals and strongly doped semiconductors

The electron-phonon-induced damping of optical phonons arising in metals and strongly doped semiconductors under laser irradiation is investigated. The damping of both short-wave KV_F > ω₀ and long-wave KV_F < ω₀ optical phonons is calculated; K is the wavevector, ω₀ is the frequency of the optical phonon; V_F is the Fermi velocity. The electron- phonon-induced damping is important if the frequency of the optical phonon is larger than two frequencies of acoustic phonons of all branches in the range of the whole Brillouin zone. The damping of a soft transverse optical phonon in narrow-gap ferroelectric-semiconductors is also defined by the electron-phonon interaction. In other cases the main relaxation process for optical phonons in metals is the decay into two acoustic phonons due to lattice anharmonicity.     

Low frequency lattice vibrations of LaF3 by neutron scattering

The phonon modes having frequencies less than 3 THz in the high symmetry directions of LaF₃ are reported. These are compared to the results of previous optical studies. A previously unobserved branch of low group velocity is found near 1.2 THz polarized both parallel and perpendicular to the basal plane. Its significance for the lifetimes of zone boundary acoustic phonons is discussed.     

The creation of supra-thermal densities of high-energy phonons in He II

We report the new phenomenon that high-energy phonons can be created from low-energy phonons. This arises because the dynamics of phonons in propagating pulses are quite different to those in isotropic phonon distributions. A pulse of low-energy phonons rapidly thermalises by three-phonon processes. On a much longer time scale four-phonon processes occur within this phonon cloud which create high-energy (10 K) phonons that cannot spontaneously decay. These phonons have a lower velocity and so are lost from the back of phonon cloud; their deficit is restored continuously by four-phonon processes. These now isolated high-energy phonons are very stable and propagate ballistically behind the low-energy phonons, so giving the two pulses which are detected in experiments. For long pulses the high-energy phonons may also decay within the cloud, however the available low-energy phonons for scattering are confined to a narrow-angle cone, so the decay probability is very low because the four phonon process requires large angle scattering. A supra-thermal density of these high-energy phonons is predicted.     

Resonance effects on coherent phonon generation in lead phthalocyanine crystalline films

We report the first observation of coherent phonons in crystalline lead phthalocyanine (PbPc) films grown on a (0001) sapphire substrate by using a pump–probe technique. Coherent phonon oscillations corresponding to intermolecular (lattice) vibrations in the PbPc film are observed in the frequency region from 1 to 5 THz. It is found that the intensities of coherent phonons are resonantly enhanced at the exciton energies of the Q band observed in the absorption spectrum. PACS 78.47.+p; 78.66.-w; 82.53.Xa; 78.40.Me     

Superconducting tunnel junctions as quantitative detector of intense thermal phonon radiation

Thermal phonons are emitted from a pulse-heated constantan film into an a-cut sapphire (kept at 1.2 K) and are detected quantitatively by recording the current-voltage characteristic of the tunnel junction during the relatively strong phonon irradiation. These measurements are made with the maximum of the Planck distribution of the emitted phonons varied in the frequency range from 0.3 to 1.5 THz. These momentary diode characteristics coincide within experimental error withd c-characteristics at higher substrate temperatures. Assuming thermal equilibrium between electrons and phonons in the tin film and assuming the validity of the acoustic-mismatch model, a comparison can be made between observed phonon power and theoretically expected phonon power. Good agreement is achieved if the influence of the acoustic cut-off frequencies of the tin detector material is taken into account.Supported by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft     

Generation of coherent terahertz phonons by sharp focusing of a femtosecond laser beam in the bulk of crystalline insulators in a regime of plasma formation

The generation of coherent terahertz phonons in a regime of plasma formation by a femtosecond laser radiation with an intensity of 10¹³ W/cm² in the bulk of crystalline quartz has been detected by the method of probing by a probe pulse of the third harmonic. A smooth increase in the frequency of coherent terahertz phonons from 2.2 to 5.5 THz has been detected, along with its subsequent sharp decrease down to 2.2 THz due to an α-β phase transition in crystalline quartz. The generation of 1-THz coherent phonons has been detected in BaF₂ crystals. A smooth variation of the frequency of coherent phonons from 2 to 2.5 THz has been detected in leucosapphire. The generation of coherent phonons during local laser excitation in CaF₂ and LiF crystals develops at the frequencies of 2.3 and 0.1 THz, respectively.     

Phonon pulse detection in germanium and silicon with a fluorescence contact-type phonon spectrometer

Laser pulse produced nonequilibrium acoustic phonons in Ge and Si single crystals have been detected at several phonon frequencies in the THz range by the fluorescence from an insulting YF₃:Tn³⁺ film on the sample surface.     

Coherent phonons, nanoseismology and THz radiation in InGaN/GaN heterostructures

The ultrafast optical photoexcitation of hot electrons and holes in semiconductors by femtosecond laser pulses can trigger coherent phonon oscillations. We discuss the huge coherent acoustic phonons which have been generated in InGaN/GaN heterostructures and epilayers and how they might be used in imaging of surfaces and interfaces in nanostructures. We also discuss the THz radiation emitted from these phonons.     

Ternary mixed crystal effects on interface optical phonon and electron-phonon coupling in zinc-blende GaN/AlxGa1−xN spherical quantum dots

The theoretical investigations of the interface optical phonons, electron–phonon couplings and its ternary mixed effects in zinc-blende spherical quantum dots are obtained by using the dielectric continuum model and modified random-element isodisplacement model. The features of dispersion curves, electron–phonon coupling strengths, and its ternary mixed effects for interface optical phonons in a single zinc-blende GaN/Al_xGa_1−xN spherical quantum dot are calculated and discussed in detail. The numerical results show that there are three branches of interface optical phonons. One branch exists in low frequency region; another two branches exist in high frequency region. The interface optical phonons with small quantum number l have more important contributions to the electron–phonon interactions. It is also found that ternary mixed effects have important influences on the interface optical phonon properties in a single zinc-blende GaN/Al_xGa_1−xN quantum dot. With the increase of Al component, the interface optical phonon frequencies appear linear changes, and the electron–phonon coupling strengths appear non-linear changes in high frequency region. But in low frequency region, the frequencies appear non-linear changes, and the electron–phonon coupling strengths appear linear changes.     

Observation of the quasidiffusive propagation of phonons in Mg<Subscript>2</Subscript>SiO<Subscript>4</Subscript>:Ho<Superscript>3+</Superscript> using time-resolved photo-phonon spectroscopy

The energy flux of phonons produced due to the nonradiative laser-induced transitions of Ho³⁺ impurity ions in forsterite from the ⁵F₅ states has been measured using a superconductor bolometer at a temperature of 2 K. The dependence of the flux on the laser wavelength, the time elapsed after the action of a laser pulse, and the phonon propagation path length is analyzed. It is found that the excitation of Ho³⁺ to some states leads to the diffusive propagation of emitted phonons in the spontaneous frequency decay mode (quasidiffusive mode of propagation): the time of arrival of a phonon pulse is almost a linear function of the path length, but it is several times longer than the longest ballistic time of flight (for transverse phonons). The diffusion coefficient and the nonradiative relaxation time are determined from the best fit to the experiment.     

Interaction of longitudinal phonons with discrete breather in strained graphene

We numerically analyze the interaction of small-amplitude phonon waves with standing gap discrete breather (DB) in strained graphene. To make the system support gap DB, strain is applied to create a gap in the phonon spectrum. We only focus on the in-plane phonons and DB, so the issue is investigated under a quasi-one-dimensional setup. It is found that, for the longitudinal sound waves having frequencies below 6 THz, DB is transparent and thus no radiation of energy from DB takes place; whereas for those sound waves with higher frequencies within the acoustic (optical) phonon band, phonon is mainly transmitted (reflected) by DB, and concomitantly, DB radiates its energy when interacting with phonons. The latter case is supported by the fact that, the sum of the transmitted and reflected phonon energy densities is noticeably higher than that of the incident wave. Our results here may provide insight into energy transport in graphene when the spatially localized nonlinear vibration modes are presented.     

Lifetime of optical phonons in fs-laser excited bismuth

This paper presents experimental and theoretical results on the temperature-dependent optical response of a single crystal of bismuth to excitation by femtosecond laser pulses. We demonstrate that the measured damping rate of the transient reflectivity oscillations relates to the lifetime of optical phonons. The lifetime is the inverse rate of the decay of optical phonons into two acoustic phonons. This lifetime also indicates the approach to the vibration instability (catastrophe) threshold that manifests the beginning of the disordering of a solid crystal and transition to a liquid state. We observe the red shift of phonon frequency, which increases with the rise of the initial lattice temperature. The red shift is different from the previously observed red shift proportional to the electron temperature, and thus to the excitation laser fluence. The coherent phonon excitation process imprinted into the initial change in the reflectivity and the following reflectivity oscillations allowed us to uncover the temporal phonon history preceding the structural transformation of solid Bi.     

Phonon scattering at siliconcrystal surfaces

Our observations of the reflection or backscattering of high-frequency phonons (v =280 GHz to 1 THz) at silicon-solid interfaces disagree significantly with predictions from the acoustic mismatch model. Interfaces composed of materials theoretically wellmatched, show high scattering experimentally. In contrast, interfaces theoretically poorly matched, show less phonon scattering than expected. Generally, this is best expressed by the fact that the interface scattering ranges from roughly 30–60% for different phonon modes with little dependence on the material covering the silicon crystal and different techniques of interface preparations. Thus, our experiments indicate that the well-known Kapitza anomaly of the phonon scattering at solid-liquid helium interfaces is not a special case; the same anomaly appears to be present at all tested interfaces. Our experiments are compared with detailed calculations which either assume pure specular or pure diffusive scattering. In these calculations the influence of the crystal anisotropy for the phonon propagation (phonon focussing) is included. This comparison shows, especially for the free silicon surface, that phonons are completely diffuse scattered. Hence, the acoustic mismatched model relying on specular reflection cannot be applied to the real silicon interface. The frequency dependence of phonon scattering at a free silicon interface indicates the existence of at least two different diffusive scattering mechanisms. Within our experimental limits in these two scattering processes the phonons are elastically scattered.     

On the effect of phonon decay on electronic transitions in ionic crystal semiconductors

Generally electronic processes in semiconductors are accompanied by phonon excitations. These excitations themselves influence electronic transitions. On the other hand excited phonons decay by interaction with other impurities in the crystal, which act as a heat-bath. The resulting competition between phonon exciting electronic processes and phonon decay is described by Pauli's master equation. By expansion of its solutions into phonon decay solutions the problem can be separated into different decay equations for phonons and electrons as proposed by Stumpf. Assuming linear phonon-heat-bath coupling the phonon decay equation can be solved exactly by a generating function technique. The appropriate phonon decay frequencies are calculated for a simple heat-bath model.     

Excitation wavelength dependence of electron-hole drop velocities in Germanium

We show experimentally that the velocities of electron-hole drops in Germanium are independent of the wavelength of optical excitation. This result implies that the phonons emitted during the thermalization of electron-hole pairs have no effect on droplet motion and also permits us to draw conclusions about the decay of high frequency phonons. This leaves the “phonon wind” as originally proposed by Keldysh as the most likely cause of droplet motion.     

PbB_4O_7晶体的太赫兹光谱和软光学声子

对实验测量的PbB4O7晶体样品的太赫兹(1012Hz)光谱、拉曼光谱以及红外—可见—紫外光谱进行了分析.在0.25—2.5THz波段介电函数随频率变化曲线ε(ν)出现共振型尖峰.四方面的分析表明PbB4O7晶体中存在软光学声子:1)介电函数随频率的变化曲线ε(ν)满足LST(Lyddane-Sachs-Teller)关系;2)在共振峰的频率附近(3.10THz)有很强的拉曼散射峰;3)吸收系数随频率的变化曲线α(ν)满足极化激元的特征;4)透过晶体的光子的色散关系ν(k)发生断开的畸变.PbB4O7晶体中存在软光学声子的意义在于,在满足产生极化激元的条件下,透过晶体的光子的频率会发生劈裂,分为升高和降低的两支,有可能利用这种原理来改变光子的频率.     

A microscopic theory for the central peak in SrTiO3

A microscopic theory for the central peak at the R point of SrTiO₃ and similar systems is proposed. A phonon resonance is formed by two phonons near the R point. The central resonance arises from the decay of the soft zone boundary phonon into the resonance and a zone boundary phonon. The theory applies also to other non piezoelectric and non pyroelectric soft mode systems.