External control of a metal-insulator transition in GaMnAs wires

Quantum transport in disordered ferromagnetic (III,Mn)V semiconductors is studied theoretically. Mesoscopic wires exhibit an Anderson disorder-induced metal-insulator transition that can be controlled by a weak external magnetic field. This metal-insulator transition should also occur in other materials with large anisotropic magnetoresistance effects. The transition can be useful for studies of zero-temperature quantum critical phase transitions and fundamental material properties.     

Fingerprints of intrinsic phase separation: magnetically doped two-dimensional electron gas

In addition to Anderson and Mott localization, intrinsic phase separation has long been advocated as the third fundamental mechanism controlling the doping-driven metal-insulator transitions. In electronic system, where charge neutrality precludes global phase separation, it may lead to various inhomogeneous states and dramatically affect transport. Here we theoretically predict the precise experimental signatures of such phase separation-driven metal-insulator transitions. We show that anomalous transport is expected in an intermediate regime around the transition, displaying very strong temperature and magnetic field dependence but very weak density dependence. Our predictions find striking agreement with recent experiments on Mn-doped CdTe quantum wells, a system where we identify the microscopic origin for intrinsic phase separation.     

Coupled magnetic-ferroelectric metal-insulator transition in epitaxially strained SrCoO3 from first principles

First-principles calculations are presented for the epitaxial-strain dependence of the ground-state phase stability of perovskite SrCoO(3). Through the combination of the large spin-phonon coupling with polarization-strain coupling and the coupling of the band gap to the polar distortion, both tensile and compressive epitaxial strain are seen to drive the bulk ferromagnetic-metallic (FM-M) phase to antiferromagnetic-insulating-ferroelectric (AFM-I-FE) phases, the latter having unusually low elastic energy. For compressive strain, there is a single coupled magnetic-ferroelectric metal-insulator transition. At this phase boundary, cross responses to applied electric and magnetic fields and stresses are expected. In particular, a magnetic field or compressive uniaxial stress applied to the AFM-FE(z) phase could induce an insulator-metal transition, and an electric field applied to the FM-M phase could induce a metal-insulator transition.     

Mott-Hubbard transition in a magnetic field

We study the density of states (DOS) as a function of the interaction U in the half-filled simplified Hubbard model in a magnetic field. This model is considered on the Bethe lattice in the limit of high dimensions. We show that the DOS can be calculated exactly, and that many of its properties have an astonishingly simple form. In particular, the DOS can be investigated explicitly in the limits of weak and strong coupling and near the metal-insulator transition. E.g., we find an explicit result for the critical value U_c, at which the metal-insulator transition occurs, as a function of the magnetization. The relation between the magnetization and the magnetic field is calculated numerically. An important result is that the metal-insulator transition, occurring in the model with B = 0, is continuously connected to the metal-insulator transition in the subspace of single spin flips.     

Quantum-classical crossover and apparent metal-insulator transition in a weakly interacting 2D Fermi liquid

We report the observation of an apparent parallel magnetic-field-induced metal-insulator transition in a high-mobility two-dimensional electron gas for which spin and localization physics most likely play no major role. The high-mobility metallic phase at low field is consistent with the established Fermi liquid transport theory including phonon scattering, whereas the phase at higher field shows a large insulatinglike negative temperature dependence at resistances much smaller than the quantum of resistance h/e(2). We argue that this observation is a direct manifestation of a quantum-classical crossover arising predominantly from the magneto-orbital coupling between the finite width of the two-dimensional electron gas and the in-plane magnetic field.     

Mott-Anderson transition controlled by a magnetic field in pyrochlore molybdate

The pyrochlore molybdate Gd2MO2O7 locates near the phase boundary between the ferromagnetic-metallic and the spin-glass insulating state. This metal-insulator transition is governed on a large energy scale by the electron-correlation effect, while the geometrical frustration causes the random potential. The magnetic field can tune the randomness of the potential and control, under a suitable pressure, the continuous Mott-Anderson transition precisely. The critical exponent (mu = 1.04 +/- 0.1) of the Mott-Anderson transition has been determined for this ferromagnetic orbital-degenerate electron system.     

Low-temperature metal-insuslator transition and magnetic properties in the VxMn1−x S disordered system

A study of the structure and electrical and magnetic properties of the V_xMn_1−x S disordered system is reported. The existence of a low-temperature metal-insulator transition for Fermi-glass 0.4<x<0.5 compositions in paramagnetic phase, which is accompanied by a change in the structure and magnetic properties, has been established. An analysis of the magnetic properties permits a conjecture that current carriers become delocalized in these solid solutions at the metal-insulator transition temperature to form small ferromagnetically ordered regions (ferrons). Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 39, 1428–1431 (August 1997)     

Non-linear conductivity and quantum interference in disordered metals

We report on the non-linear electric field effect in the conductivity of disordered conductors. We find that the electron-electron interaction in the particle-hole triplet channel strongly affects the non-linear conductivity. The non-linear effect introduces a field dependent temperature scale T_E and provides a microscopic mechanism for electric field scaling at the metal-insulator transition. We also study the magnetic field dependence of the non-linear conductivity and suggest possible ways to experimentally verify our predictions. These effects offer a new probe to test the role of quantum interference at the metal-insulator transition in disordered conductors. Received 9 February 2000     

Resistance noise scaling in a dilute two-dimensional hole system in GaAs

We have measured the resistance noise of a two-dimensional (2D) hole system in a high mobility GaAs quantum well, around the 2D metal-insulator transition (MIT) at zero magnetic field. The normalized noise power S(R)/R(2) increases strongly when the hole density p(s) is decreased, increases slightly with temperature (T) at the largest densities, and decreases strongly with T at low p(s). The noise scales with the resistance, S(R)/R(2) approximately R2.4, as for a second order phase transition such as a percolation transition. The p(s) dependence of the conductivity is consistent with a critical behavior for such a transition, near a density p(*) which is lower than the observed MIT critical density p(c).     

Mott-Hubbard transition in the mass-imbalanced Hubbard model

The mass-imbalanced Hubbard model represents a continuous evolution from the Hubbard to the Falicov-Kimball model. We employ dynamical mean field theory and study the paramagnetic metal-insulator transition, which has a very different nature for the two limiting models. Our results indicate that the metal-insulator transition rather resembles that of the Hubbard model as soon as a tiny hopping between the more localized fermions is switched on. At low temperatures we observe a first-order metal-insulator transition and a three peak structure. The width of the central peak is the same for the more and less mobile fermions when approaching the phase transition, which agrees with our expectation of a common Kondo temperature and phase transition for the two species.     

Current-voltage characteristics of polycrystalline (La<Subscript>0.5</Subscript>Eu<Subscript>0.5</Subscript>)<Subscript>0.7</Subscript>Pb<Subscript>0.3</Subscript>MnO<Subscript>3</Subscript> at low temperatures

The current-voltage characteristics of the polycrystalline substituted lanthanum manganite (La_0.5Eu_0.5)_0.7Pb_0.3MnO₃ have been measured at temperatures close to the metal-insulator transition temperature and at low temperatures. In both cases, the current-voltage characteristics exhibit nonlinear properties that are strongly dependent on the strength of an applied magnetic field. The mechanisms responsible for the nonlinear properties at these temperatures are found to be different: near the metal-insulator transition, the current-voltage characteristics are determined by the phase layering inside granules, while at low temperatures, they are determined by tunneling of carriers through insulating interlayers of the granules.     

Tuning the metal-insulator transition in manganite films through surface exchange coupling with magnetic nanodots

In strongly correlated electronic systems, the global transport behavior depends sensitively on spin ordering. We show that spin ordering in manganites can be controlled by depositing isolated ferromagnetic nanodots at the surface. The exchange field at the interface is tunable with nanodot density and makes it possible to overcome dimensionality and strain effects in frustrated systems to greatly increasing the metal-insulator transition and magnetoresistance. These findings indicate that electronic phase separation can be controlled by the presence of magnetic nanodots.     

Indication of the ferromagnetic instability in a dilute two-dimensional electron system

The magnetic field B(c), in which the electrons become fully spin polarized, is found to be proportional to the deviation of the electron density from the zero-field metal-insulator transition in a two-dimensional electron system in silicon. The tendency of B(c) to vanish at a finite electron density suggests a ferromagnetic instability in this strongly correlated electron system.     

Absence of metal-insulator transition and coherent interlayer transport in oriented graphite in parallel magnetic fields

Measurements of the magnetoresistivity of graphite with a high degree of control of the angle between the sample and magnetic field indicate that the metal-insulator transition, shown to be induced by a magnetic field applied perpendicular to the layers, does not appear in parallel field orientation. Furthermore, we show that interlayer transport is coherent in less ordered samples and high magnetic fields, whereas appears to be incoherent in less disordered samples. Our results demonstrate the two-dimensionality of the electron system in ideal graphite samples.     

Physical properties of a metallic organic charge transfer complex with an unsymmetric cation : t-TTF-TCNQ

The new charge transfer complex t-TTF-TCNQ, whose unsymmetric cation is intermediate between TTF and HMTTF, presents a regular stacking of both donor and acceptor chains. We show that this compound has a metallic behavior at high temperatures and undergoes one metal-insulator transition near 81 K. Its electrical and magnetic properties are examined in connection to this phase transition and the effective dimensionality.     

Two-dimensional semimetal-insulator transition in HgTe-based quantum wells induced by a longitudinal magnetic field

A metal-insulator transition in a two-dimensional semimetal based on HgTe quantum wells is discovered. The transition is induced by a magnetic field applied parallel to the plane of the quantum well. The threshold behavior of the activation energy as a function of the magnetic-field strength and an abrupt reduction of the Hall resistance at the onset of the transition suggest that the observed effect originates from the formation of an excitonic insulator.     

Universal distribution of Kondo temperatures in dirty metals

Kondo screening of diluted magnetic impurities in a disordered host is studied analytically and numerically in one, two, and three dimensions. It is shown that in the T(K) --> 0 limit the distribution of Kondo temperatures has a universal form P(T(K)) approximately T(K) (-a) that holds in the insulating phase and persists in the metallic phase close to the metal-insulator transition. Moreover, the exponent depends only on the dimensionality. The most important consequence of this result is that the T dependence of thermodynamic properties is smooth across the metal-insulator transition in three dimensional systems.     

Hyperfine spectroscopic study of the metal-insulator transition in V2O3

The metal-insulator (M-I) transition in vanadium sesquioxide V₂O₃ has been investigated by time differential perturbed angular correlation measurements of the electric fieldgradient (EFG) and the magnetic hyperfine field at dilute¹¹¹Cd impurities. The EFG undergoes a first-order change at the M-I transition at T_t=160 K, but does not reflect the high temperature resistivity anomaly. The increase of the EFG with temperature in the metallic phase can be attributed to thermal variations of the oxygen sublattice. The temperature dependence of the magnetic hyperfine field in the insulating phase follows a Brioullin function with a saturation value of H_hf(O)=15 KOe and an extrapolated Neel temperature, which, depending on the impurity concentration, varies between 188 and 230 K.     

Spin polarization dependence of the coulomb drag at large r(s)

We find that the temperature dependence of the drag resistivity between two dilute two-dimensional hole systems exhibits an unusual dependence upon spin polarization. Our main observation is that near the apparent metal-insulator transition, the temperature dependence of the drag, given by Talpha, weakens significantly with the application of a parallel magnetic field (B(||)), with alpha saturating at half its zero field value for B(||)>B(*), where B(*) is the polarization field.