Ab initio calculations of band structure and thermophysical properties for SnS2 and SnSe2

The electronic band structure and elastic constants of SnS₂ and SnSe₂ have been calculated by using density-functional theory (DFT). The calculated band structures show that SnS₂ and SnSe₂ are both indirect band gap semiconductors. The upper valence bands originate mainly from S_p and Sn_d electrons, while the lowest conduction bands are mainly from (S, Se) _p and Sn_s states. The calculated elastic constants indicate that the bonding strength along the [100] and [010] direction is stronger than that along the [001] direction and the shear elastic properties of the (010) plane are anisotropic for SnS₂ and SnSe₂. Both compounds exhibit brittle behavior due to their low B/G ratio. Relationships among volumes, the heat capacity, thermal expansion coefficients, entropy, vibrational energy, internal energy, Gibbs energy and temperature at various pressures are also calculated by using the Debye mode in this work.     

Modulation of strain,electric field and organic cation rotation on the band gap and electronic structures of organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite CH3NH3PbI3

Band gap modulation engineering is an important step in the application of optoelectronic materials. In this paper, the first-principles calculations were carried out to study the influence of strain, external electric field, spatial orientation of organic cation on the band gaps and electronic structures of organic-inorganic hybrid halide perovskites CH₃NH₃PbI₃. The results show that both the uniform strain and the tetragonal deformation can modulate the band gap obviously. The electric field of 0.2 V/Å is the critical point of the band gap modulation. The band gap increases when an electric field is applied from 0 to 0.2 V/Å. The electric field above 0.2 V/Å will cause the band gap to decrease. The spatial orientation of the organic cation also has modulation influence on the band gap of CH₃NH₃PbI₃, but has no effect on the direct semiconductor characteristics. The above results will be helpful to study the band gap modulation of other organic-inorganic hybrid halide perovskites.     

g-C3N4/SnS2异质结构:一类有潜力的光解水催化剂

采用第一性原理方法研究了层间耦合作用对g-C₃N₄/SnS₂异质结构的电子结构和吸光性质的影响.发现g-C₃N₄/SnS₂是一类典型的范德瓦异质结构,能有效吸收可见光,其价带顶和导带底与水的氧化还原势匹配,且由于电荷转移而导致的界面处极化场有利于光生载流子的分离.这些理论研究结果表明g-C₃N₄/SnS₂异质结构是一类非常有潜力的光解水催化材料.     

Pseudopotential band structure of solid solutions SnSxSe2−x

A very satisfying agreement with the experimental optical data is obtained from a priori pseudopotential calculations for SnS_xSe_2?x solid solutions. The band structure of SnSe₂ is also computed and previous results for SnS₂ are improved.     

Comparison of optical properties and band structures of SnSe2 and SnS2

The comparative study of optical properties of SnSe₂ and SnS₂ is made by analysis of the reflectivity spectra obtained for the two compounds between 3.8 and 28 eV. The reflectivity structures are related to direct transitions between regions of high density of states. This result shows a great similarity in the electronic structure of the two compounds.     

Modulation of band gap by normal strain and an applied electric field in SiC-based heterostructures

The structure and electronic properties of the WS₂/SiC van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures under the influence of normal strain and an external electric field have been investigated by the ab initio method. Our results reveal that the compressive strain has much influence on the band gap of the vdW heterostructures and the band gap monotonically increases from 1.330 to 1.629 eV. The results also imply that electrons are likely to transfer from WS₂ to SiC monolayer due to the deeper potential of SiC monolayer. Interestingly, by applying a vertical external electric field, the results present a parabola-like relationship between the band gap and the strength. As the E-field changes from to ?0.50 +0.20 V/Å, the band gap first increases from zero to a maximum of about 1.90 eV and then decreases to zero. The significant variations of band gap are owing to different states of W, S, Si, and C atoms in conduction band and valence band. The predicted electric field tunable band gap of the WS₂/SiC vdW heterostructures is very promising for its potential use in nanodevices.     

Band gap tuning of Ge/SiC bilayers under an electric field: a density functional study

The structure and electronic properties of Ge/SiC van der Waals (vdW) bilayer under the influence of an electric field have been investigated by the first-principles method. Without an electric field, the system shows a small band gap of 126 meV at the equilibrium state. Interestingly, by applying a vertical external electric field, the results present a parabola-like relationship between the band gap and the strength. As the negative E-field changes from 0.0 to ?0.40 V/Å, the band gap first increases to a maximum of about 378 meV and then decreases to zero. A similar trend is exhibited for the positive E-field, ranging from 0.0 to +0.40 V/Å. The band gap reaches a maximum of about 315 meV at +0.10 V/Å. The significant variations of band gap are owing to different states of Ge, Si, and C atoms in conduction band and valence band. The predicted electric field tunable band gap of the Ge/SiC vdW heterostructures is very promising for its potential use in nanodevices.     

Electronic properties of tin dichalcogenides (SnS2 and SnSe2)

Using Phillips and Van Vechten's theory the homopolar gap (E_h), ionic gap (E_c) and Penn gap (E_p) have been derived for the layered compound semiconductors SnS₂ and SnSe₂. The values of E_p so derived have been found to be in agreement with the values obtained from the Grimes-Cowley modification of the Penn model, and also with the reflectance spectra of the respective materials. Using the above data the Phillips ionicity has been calculated and the octahedral coordination of SnS₂ and SnSe₂ has been discussed on the basis of the calculated value of ionicity. The bond electronic polarizability has been evaluated using Chemla's approach and the values so obtained have been found in agreement with the values obtained from the Clausius-Mossottirelation. The Varshni formula has been shown to explain fairly well the temperature dependence of energy gap and the constants involved have been derived. The calculated isobaric temperature gradient of E_g[($\text{?E}{}_{\mathrm{g}}\text{?T)}{}_{\mathrm{p}}$] has been found to be in accordance with the reported values, and the electron lattice interaction has been evaluated.     

A first principle calculation of electronic and dielectric properties of electrically gated low-buckled mono and bilayer silicene

The structural, electronic and dielectric properties of mono and bilayer buckled silicene sheets are investigated using density functional theory. A comparison of stabilities, electronic structure and effect of external electric field are investigated for AA and AB-stacked bilayer silicene. It has been found that there are no excitations of electrons i.e. plasmons at low energies for out-of-plane polarization. While for AB-stacked bilayer silicene 1.48 eV plasmons for in-plane polarization is found, a lower value compared to 2.16 eV plasmons for monolayer silicene. Inter-band transitions and plasmons in both bilayer and monolayer silicene are found relatively at lower energies than graphene. The calculations suggest that the band gap can be opened up and varied over a wide range by applying external electric field for bilayer silicene. In infra-red region imaginary part of dielectric function for AB-stacked buckled bilayer silicene shows a broad structure peak in the range of 75–270 meV compared to a short structure peak at 70 meV for monolayer silicene and no structure peaks for AA-stacked bilayer silicene. On application of external electric field the peaks are found to be blue-shifted in infra-red region. With the help of imaginary part of dielectric function and electron energy loss function effort has been made to understand possible interband transitions in both buckled bilayer silicene and monolayer silicene.     

Dependence of electronic and optical properties of multilayer SiC and GeC on stacking sequence and external electric field

The electronic and optical properties of different stacked multilayer SiC and GeC are investigated with and without external electric field (EEF). The band gaps of multilayer SiC and GeC are found smaller than that of monolayer SiC and GeC due to the interlayer coupling effect. When EEF is applied, the direct band gaps (ΔK–M) of multilayer SiC and direct band gaps (ΔK–K) of multilayer GeC all turn to indirect band gaps (ΔK–G) as the band at the G point drops dramatically toward zero. The imaginary part ε₂(ω)s of multilayer SiC and GeC show that new absorption peaks between 2–5 eV appear when the polarized direction is perpendicular to the layer plane, and new absorption peaks in infrared region appear as the EEF is higher than a certain point when the polarized direction is parallel to the layer plane. Our calculations reveal that different stacking sequences and EEF can provide a wide tunable band structures and optical properties for multilayer SiC and GeC.     

Efficient band structure engineering and visible-light response in ZrS2/GaS heterobilayer by electrical field or external strains

Via first-principle methods, the electronic structures and optical properties of 2D ZrS₂/GaS van der Waals heterostructure (vdWH) are studied. It is found that the band alignment changes from type-II to type-I under negative electrical field, and compressive strains. The transition points are -0.2 V/Å and -1%, respectively. The band gap changes efficiently under positive electrical field and compressive strains. The tensile strains increase the optical adsorption coefficients in ultraviolet regions, while the compressive strains increase the optical adsorption coefficients in visible region significantly.     

Determination of optical anisotropy of layered crystals in VUV range

In the 25–32 eV range, parallel and perpendicular dielectric constants of SnS₂ and SnSe₂ are deduced from variable-incidence reflectivity measurements on cleaved faces. A new mathematical method, consistent with the Kramers-Kronig relations, is used to treat the experimental data. The anisotropy of the ?₂ curves is weak for these two compounds but information about the predominant symmetry character of the observed structures can be given.     

Electronic structures and elastic properties of monolayer and bilayer transition metal dichalcogenides MX_2(M= Mo,W;X= O,S,Se,Te):A comparative first-principles study

First-principle calculations with different exchange-correlation functionals, including LDA, PBE, and vd W-DF functional in the form of opt B88-vd W, have been performed to investigate the electronic and elastic properties of twodimensional transition metal dichalcogenides(TMDCs) with the formula of MX2(M = Mo, W; X = O, S, Se, Te) in both monolayer and bilayer structures. The calculated band structures show a direct band gap for monolayer TMDCs at the K point except for MoO2 and WO2. When the monolayers are stacked into a bilayer, the reduced indirect band gaps are found except for bilayer WTe2, in which the direct gap is still present at the K point. The calculated in-plane Young moduli are comparable to that of graphene, which promises possible application of TMDCs in future flexible and stretchable electronic devices. We also evaluated the performance of different functionals including LDA, PBE, and opt B88-vd W in describing elastic moduli of TMDCs and found that LDA seems to be the most qualified method. Moreover, our calculations suggest that the Young moduli for bilayers are insensitive to stacking orders and the mechanical coupling between monolayers seems to be negligible.     

Half-metallicity modulation of zigzag BC2N nanoribbons by transverse electric fields: A first principles study

We performed density functional theory calculations to investigate the electronic and magnetic properties of H-terminated zigzag BC₂N nanoribbons (ZBC₂NNRs) with the atoms arranged as B-C-N-C along zigzag lines. The ribbons can be classified into three groups according to the profiles of band structures and edge atoms: BN-BN, CC-CC and BN-CC. Among them, CC-CC and BN-CC ZBC₂NNRs behave magnetic ground states. The results show that the CC-CC ZBC₂NNR is an antiferromagnetic (AFM) semiconductor. Under the transverse electric field, the half-metallicity of 16-CC-CC ZBC₂NNR can be achieved with electric field in the range of $0.2～0.45$ VÅ^?1. Interestingly, the intrinsic half-metallicity exists in BN-CC ZBC₂NNRs when the ribbon width is smaller than ～29.2 Å. For larger ribbon width (～33.5 Å), the system could be converted from ferromagnetic metal to half-metals at a very low critical field of $E=0.02$ VÅ^?1. Meanwhile, it is also shown that the I–V characteristic of BN-BN ZBC₂NNRs shows a negative differential resistance (NDR) effect. These ample electronic and magnetic properties might open great opportunities for BC₂N materials in spintronics and nanoscale device in the future.     

Strain effect on the electronic properties of 1T-HfS2 monolayer

We perform first-principles based on the density function theory to investigate electronic and magnetic properties of 1T-HfS₂ monolayer with biaxial tensile strain and compressive strain. The results show that HfS₂ monolayer under strains doesn’t display magnetic properties. When the strain is 0%, the HfS₂ monolayer presents an indirect band gap semiconductor with the band gap is about 1.252 eV. The band gap of HfS₂ monolayer decreases quickly with increasing compressive strain and comes to zero when the compressive strain is above −7%, the HfS₂ monolayer system turns from semiconductor to metal. While the band gap increases slowly with increasing tensile strain and comes to 1.814 eV when the tensile strain is 10%. By comparison, we find that the compressive strain is more effective in band engineering of pristine 1T-HfS₂ monolayer than the tensile strain. And we notice that the extent of band gap variation is different under tensile strain. The change of band gap with strain from 1% to 5% is faster than that of the strain 6–10%. To speak of, the conduction band minimum (CBM) is all located at M point with different strains. While the valence band maximum (VBM) turns from Γ point to K point when the strain is equal to and more than 6%.     

Investigations on co-evaporated Cu2SnSe3 and Cu2SnSe3-ZnSe thin films

Cu₂SnSe₃ is an important precursor material for the growth of Cu₂ZnSnSe₄, an emerging solar cell absorber layer via solid state reaction of Cu₂SnSe₃ and ZnSe. In this study, we have grown Cu₂SnSe₃ (CTSe) and Cu₂SnSe₃-ZnSe (20%) films onto soda-lime glass substrates held at 573 K by co-evaporation technique. The effect of annealing of these films at 723 K for an hour in selenium atmosphere is also investigated. XRD studies of as-deposited Cu₂SnSe₃ and Cu₂SnSe₃-ZnSe films indicated SnSe as secondary phase which disappeared on annealing. The direct optical band gap of annealed Cu₂SnSe₃ and Cu₂SnSe₃-ZnSe films were found to be 0.90 eV and 0.94 eV respectively. Raman spectroscopy studies were used to understand the effect of ZnSe on the properties of Cu₂SnSe₃.     

Strain-tunable electronic,elastic, and optical properties of CaI2 monolayer: first-principles study

ABSTRACT

The effects of biaxial strain on the electronic structure and the elastic and optical properties of monolayer CaI₂ were studied using first-principles calculations. The two-dimensional (2D) equation of state for monolayer CaI₂ as fit in a relative area of 80–120% is more accurate. The band gap can be tuned under strain and reached a maximum at a tensile strain of 4%. Under compressive strains, the absorption spectrum showed a significant red shift at higher strains. The static reflectance and static refractive index decreased in the strain range of ?10% to 10%.     

Mobility of electrons in SnS2−xSex

The electrical resistivities and Hall constants of the semiconducting compounds SnS_2?xSe_x have been measured at temperatures ranging from 100 to 450 K and three donor ionization energies (0.013, 0.086 and 0.25 eV) have been identified. The Hall mobilities exhibit for T> 200K a temperature dependence of the form μ～ (T/T₀)^?n separating the SnS_2?xSe_x compounds into two groups one behaving like SnS₂ and the other like SnSe₂.     

二维BC2 N薄片的结构稳定性和电子性质

采用基于密度泛函理论的第一性原理方法,对二维BC₂N薄片的结构稳定性和电子性质进行了系统的研究.计算了BC₂N化合物16种可能的二维单层结构.对它们的能带结构分析发现,对称性最高的构型与石墨烯一样是一种半金属,而其他二维结构则为有不同带隙的半导体,其中最稳定的构型是带隙值为1.63 eV的直接带隙半导体.对最稳定构型的差分电荷密度分析和Bader分析发现:在最稳定的构型中,C–C键、C–N键、C–B键和B–N键主要以共价键的形式呈现,也具有比较明显的离子性.在应力作用下最稳定构型的单层BC₂N的带隙宽度会发生变化,压缩时带隙变宽,而拉伸时带隙变窄,但仍然为直接带隙半导体. 关键词： 2N')" href="#">BC₂N 单层原子薄片 电子结构 从头计算     

Domain growth and aging scaling in coarsening disordered systems

We explore the electronic and transport properties out of a biased multilayer hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) by first-principles calculations. The band gaps of multilayer h-BN decrease almost linearly with increasing perpendicular electric field, irrespective of the layer number N and stacking manner. The critical electric filed (E ₀) required to close the band gap decreases with the increasing N and can be approximated by E ₀ = 3.2 / (N ? 1) (eV). We provide a quantum transport simulation of a dual-gated 4-layer h-BN with graphene electrodes. The transmission gap in this device can be effectively reduced by double gates, and a high on-off ratio of 3000 is obtained with relatively low voltage. This renders biased MLh-BN a promising channel in field effect transistor fabrication.