Persistent currents in mesoscopic rings and conformal invariance

The effect of point defects on persistent currents in mesoscopic rings is studied in a simple tight-binding model. Using an analogy with the treatment of the critical quantum Ising chain with defects, conformal invariance techniques are employed to relate the persistent current amplitude to the Hamiltonian spectrum just above the Fermi energy. From this, the dependence of the current on the magnetic flux is found exactly for a ring with one or two point defects. The effect of an aperiodic modulation of the ring, generated through a binary substitution sequence, on the persistent current is also studied. The flux-dependence of the current is found to vary remarkably between the Fibonacci and the Thue-Morse sequences. Received: 4 March 1998 / Revised: 20 April 1998 / Accepted: 30 April 1998     

Persistent currents in a lattice correlated electron ring with a magnetic impurity

The behavior of charge and spin persistent currents in an integrable lattice ring of strongly correlated electrons with a magnetic impurity is exactly studied. Our results manifest that the oscillations of charge and spin persistent currents are similar to the ones, earlier obtained for integrable continuum models with a magnetic impurity. The difference is due to two (instead of one) Fermi velocities of low-lying excitations. The form of oscillations in the ground state is “saw-tooth”-like, generic for any multi-particle coherent one-dimensional models. The integrable magnetic impurity introduces net charge and spin chiralities in the generic integrable lattice system, which determine the initial phase shifts of charge and spin persistent currents. We show that the magnitude of the charge persistent current in the generic Kondo situation does not depend on the parameters of the magnetic impurity, unlike the (magneto)resistivity of transport currents. Received 30 January 2003 / Received in final form 12 March 2003 Published online 11 April 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: zvyagin@fy.chalmers.se     

Giant persistent currents in quasiperiodic mesoscopic rings

Giant persistent currents that occur in quasiperiodic Thue–Morse array of mesoscopic rings are proposed. As the order of the system increases, the maximum persistent current increases exponentially. The giant persistent current in a system with higher order is greater than that in traditional structures. It is found that the maximum persistent current occurs in the ring near the middle position of the array. The persistent current is also proportional to the sharpness of the transport resonance, which is dependent on the width of the allowed band in the bandstructure. A rule to determine the occurrence energy of the giant persistent currents for a system with arbitrary order is also proposed.     

AC Stark effect in toroidal carbon nanotubes threaded with an ac magnetic flux

The ac Stark effect is investigated in the toroidal carbon nanotube system threaded with an ac magnetic flux. The Floquet theory is employed to deal with the time-dependent quantum problems. The time-averaged energy of the system is derived and is found to exhibit a strong relationship with an external field, and the modified energy gap has been presented. The ac flux enhances energy gaps to cause metal-semiconductor transition. The steady current has been obtained by employing the free energy approach, and the persistent current is a special case as the magnitude of the ac flux approaches zero. The photon-assisted current is quite different from the persistent current due to the absorption and emission of photons. The local density of states is obtained by calculating the Green's function in the Floquet state, and photon-resonant structures are observed. All of the novel features are associated with the ac Stark effect, which is caused by the modification of energy levels. Received 20 November 2002 / Received in final form 7 February 2003 Published online 20 June 2003 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: zhaohonk@yahoo.com     

Delocalization in disordered chains with random symmetrical impurities

We study in this paper, with the context of a tight-binding on-side model, the electronic properties of one-dimensional random lattices with correlated impurities. We show that, when symmetrical impurities are inserted in a host chain of site energy and a constant hopping interaction V, diffusion will occur even when is random. We provide analytic expressions for the transmittance and confirm the theoretical results by a great deal of numerical calculations. When = V, we find that the mean-square displacement (MSD) follows the law m ² ∝t ^β with β = 2.0 for = constant and β = 1.0 for = = random, respectively. Received 15 January 2001 and Received in final form 30 April 2001     

Current instabilities in dynamic random access memory storage capacitor formed with electron beam deposited Y2O3 dielectric

Metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) storage capacitors based on electron beam deposited Y₂O₃ extrinsic dielectric on Si show changes in capacitance density depending on the amorphous and crystalline phases. Bias stress cycle-dependent changes in capacitance density occur due to the non-equilibrium nature of defect states at the Y₂O₃/Si interface after O₂ annealing as a result of the emergence of a 4–8 nm thick SiO₂ film at the interface. Leakage currents show instability under repeated dc bias stress, the nature and extent of which depend upon the structure of the Y₂O₃ gate dielectric and the polarity of dc bias. With amorphous Y₂O₃, leakage currents drift to lower values under gate injection due to electron trapping, and to higher values under Si-injection due to the generation of holes. Though leakage current drift is minimal for crystalline Y₂O₃, its magnitude increases as the energy of injected electrons from mid-gap states is low and the local field due to asperity is high. The emergence of interfacial SiO₂ reduces the magnitude of Si-injection leakage current substantially, but causes transient changes resulting in switching to higher values at a threshold dc bias. Thermal detrapping of holes and reverse bias stress studies confirm that the instability of current is caused by an increase in the cathodic field from hole trapping at interface states. Leakage current instability limits the application of extrinsic high dielectric constant dielectrics in a high density DRAM storage capacitor, unless a new interface layer scheme other than SiO₂ and a method to form a defect-free dielectric layer can be implemented. Received: 29 October 2001 / Accepted: 22 April 2002 / Published online: 4 December 2002 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +1-413/545-4611, E-mail: rastogi@ecs.umass.edu     

Cesium satellite band at 875.2 nm stemming from the Cs 2 0 g + (6 p 2 P 1/2 +6 s 2 S 1/2 ) state

We measured a very distinct satellite band at 875.2 nm between two resonance lines of cesium. Spectral simulation using Spies and Meyer [#!ref1!#] ab initio potential curves and an appropriate transition dipole moment function was compared with experimental profile. Implications of the investigated satellite band at 875.2 nm in the field of ultracold cesium atom collisions are discussed with a special emphasize to new possibilities of the photoassociation of two ground state atoms leading to the formation of ultracold intermediate long-range molecules. Received 07 March 2001 and Received in final form 14 May 2001     

Cyclic hydrocarbons: nanoscopic (π)-SQUIDs?

A nonperturbative method for calculating persistent currents in molecules and nanoscopic quantum rings is presented. Starting from the extended Hubbard model on a ring threaded by an Aharonov-Bohm flux, a feedback term through which the current can generate magnetic flux is added. Another extension of the Hamiltonian describes the energy stored in the internally generated field. This model is evaluated using exact diagonalization and an iterative scheme to find the minima of the free energy with respect to the current. The magnetic properties due to electron delocalization of conjugated hydrocarbons like benzene [magnetic anisotropy, magnetic susceptibility exaltation, nucleus-independent chemical shift (NICS)] — that have become important criteria for aromaticity — can be examined using this model. A possible novel mechanism for a permanent orbital magnetic moment in quantum rings analogous to the one in π-SQUIDs is found in the framework of the proposed model. The quantum rings must satisfy two conditions to exhibit this kind of permanent orbital magnetic moment: a negative Drude weight and an inductivity above the critical level.     

Hysteresis in current transport in a GaAs diode containing self-assembled InAs quantum dots

We have observed hysteresis loops in current transport in a GaAs metal–semiconductor–metal diode containing InAs quantum dots. The dots in our structure are directly embedded under the GaAs–metal interface. The charging and discharging of electrons in the dots modulate the current and produce hysteresis. These processes are controlled by the applied voltages. The dots are charged by forward current flowing through the structure. The discharging of the electrons is dominated by the tunneling process under high reverse bias. The modulated currents are well fitted with an electron-trapping model considering both the ground states and the excited states of the quantum dots. Received: 5 October 2000 / Accepted: 12 December 2000 / Published online: 23 May 2001     

Mesoscopic charge density wave in a magnetic flux

The stability of a Charge Density Wave (CDW) in a one-dimensional ring pierced by a Aharonov-Bohm flux is studied in a mean-field picture. It is found that the stability depends on the parity of the number N of electrons. When the size of the ring becomes as small as the coherence length , the CDW gap increases for even N and decreases for odd N. Then when N is even, the CDW gap decreases with flux but it increases when N is odd. The variation of the BCS ratio with size and flux is also calculated. We derive the harmonics expansion of the persistent current in a presence of a finite gap. Received: 16 September 1997 / Received in final form: 12 November 1997 / Accepted: 13 November 1997     

Amplification of near-infrared light in a photorefractive ring resonator

We have demonstrated efficient amplification of near-infrared, 0.83-μm and 1.06-μm light, in a photorefractive ring resonator using Rh:BaTiO₃. The optical power oscillating inside the ring exceeded the pump power by a factor of up to 2.34. The sensitivity of a ring resonator to nanometer changes in its length was characterised using a piezo-mirror. Received: 30 November 2000 / Revised version: 24 January 2001 / Published online: 20 April 2001     

Nanocrystalline silicon thin-film transistors with 50-nm-thick deposited channel layer, 10 cm2V-1s-1 electron mobility and 108 on/off current ratio

Thin-film transistors were made using 50-nm-thick directly deposited nanocrystalline silicon channel layers. The transistors have a coplanar top gate structure. The nanocrystalline silicon was deposited from discharges in silane, hydrogen and silicon tetrafluoride. The transistors combine a high electron field effect mobility of ∼10 cm² V^-1s^-1 with a low ‘off’ current of ∼10^-14 A per μm of channel length and an ‘on’/‘off’ current ratio of ∼10⁸. This result shows that transistors made from directly deposited silicon can combine high mobility with low ‘off’ currents. Received: 28 May 2001 / Accepted: 30 May 2001 / Published online: 30 August 2001     

Persistent current in a magnetized Rashba ring

We theoretically study the persistent currents flowing in a Rashba quantum ring subjected to the Rashba spin-orbit interaction. By introducing uniform or nonuniform magnetization into the ring, we find that a nonzero persistent charge current circulates in the ring, which stems from the original equilibrium spin current due to the Rashba spin-orbit interaction. Because of broken time reversal symmetry, the two oppositely flowing spin-up and spin-down charge currents of the equilibrium spin current are no longer equal, and so a net persistent charge current can flow in the system. It is also found that the persistent current can be modulated by the Fermi energy, the Rashba spin-orbit interaction strength and the magnetization in the ring. Moreover, the magnetization perpendicular to the ring plane can optimize the current. The persistent current flowing in the ring is a manifestation of the nonzero equilibrium spin current existing in the ring.     

Fractional Aharonov-Bohm oscillation of a two-layer ring with two electrons

When a circular ring suffers a special topological transformation, it becomes a two-layer ring. Due to the special topology of the two-layer ring, orbital angular momenta are allowed to be a half-integer. This would affect the traditional Aharonov-Bohm oscillation (ABO). In this paper, the fractional ABO (FABO) of the ground state energy, persistent current and dipole transition of a two-layer ring with two electrons has been studied. Collective and internal coordinates (θ_C, ϕ) have been introduced. Based on them, a very simple formula for the current has been obtained, the symmetry constraint imposed on the dipole transition has been clarified and a strict relation between the photon energies of the dipole radiation and the persistent current of the ground state has been found. Comparing with the one-layer ring, the period of the fractional ABO of the two-layer ring becomes much shorter.     

On the role of electron correlation and disorder on persistent currents in isolated one-dimensional rings

To understand the role of electron correlation and disorder on persistent currents in isolated 1D rings threaded by magnetic flux ?, we study the behavior of persistent currents in aperiodic and ordered binary alloy rings. These systems may be regarded as disordered systems with well-defined long-range order so that we do not have to perform any configuration averaging of the physical quantities. We see that in the absence of interaction, disorder suppresses persistent currents by orders of magnitude and also removes its discontinuity as a function of ?. As we introduce electron correlation, we get enhancement of the currents in certain disordered rings. Quite interestingly we observe that in some cases, electron correlation produces kink-like structures in the persistent current as a function of ?. This may be considered as anomalous Aharonov-Bohm oscillations of the persistent current and recent experimental observations support such oscillations. We find that the persistent current converges with the size of the rings.     

Evaluation of forces in magnetic materials by means of energy and co-energy methods

The evaluation of the total force of magnetic origin acting upon a body in a stationary magnetic field is often carried out using the so-called magnetic energy (or co-energy) method, which is based on the derivation of the magnetic energy (or co-energy) with respect to a virtual rigid displacement of the considered body. The application of this method is usually justified by resorting to the energy conservation principle, written in terms both of electrical and of mechanical quantities. In this paper we shall re-examine the whole matter in the context of classical thermodynamics, in order to obtain a more comprehensive and general proof of the validity of the energy (or co-energy) approach and to point out its limitations. Two typical configurations will be discussed; in the first one, the field sources are represented by conducting bodies carrying free currents, whereas in the second one a permanent magnet creates the driving field. All magnetic materials are assumed to be non-hysteretic and permanent magnets are represented by means of the well-known linear model in the second quadrant of the (B,H) plane. Received 25 July 2001 and Received in final form 5 November 2001     

Validity of the one-body current for the calculation of form factors in the point form of relativistic quantum mechanics

Form factors are calculated in the point form of relativistic quantum mechanics for the lowest energy states of a system made of two scalar particles interacting via the exchange of a massless boson. They are compared to the exact results obtained by using solutions of the Bethe-Salpeter equation which are well known in this case (Wick-Cutkosky model). The relevance of the comparison is examined by considering other relativistic quantum-mechanics approaches where results are known or have been obtained recently. Deficiencies of the point-form approach together with the single-particle current are emphasized. They point to quite sizeable contributions of two-body currents. These ones are required to fulfil current conservation in any case and to reproduce the high momentum transfer behaviour expected from the Born amplitude. Received: 11 July 2001 / Accepted: 12 February 2002     

Robust propagation direction of stresses in a minimal granular packing

By employing the adaptive network simulation method, we demonstrate that the ensemble-averaged stress caused by a local force for packings of frictionless rigid beads is concentrated along rays whose slope is consistent with unity: forces propagate along lines at 45 degrees to the horizontal or vertical. This slope is shown to be independent of polydispersity or the degree to which the system is sheared. Further confirmation of this result comes from fitting the components of the stress tensor to the null stress “constitutive equation”. The magnitude of the response is also shown to fall off with the -1/2 power of distance. We argue that our findings are a natural consequence of a system that preserves its volume under small perturbations. Received 30 April 2001 and Received in final form 16 August 2001     

On the invertible objects in tensor categories

The invertible objects in a tensor category form a subcategory the Grothendieck ring of which is the group ring of an abelian group. This abelian fusion ring acts on the objects of the initial category and one can in principle determine all 6j-symbols that contain the lable of an invertible object. Received 1st October 2001 / Received in final form 12 April 2002 Published online 2 October 2002 RID="a" ID="a"e-mail: ganchev@inrne.bas.bg