| 1. |
- Kumar, Sandeep, et al.
(författare)
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Magnetic polarons and large negative magnetoresistance in GaAs nanowires implanted with Mn ions
- 2013
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Ingår i: Nano letters (Print). - Washington, United States : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1530-6984 .- 1530-6992. ; 13:11, s. 5079-5084
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on low-temperature magnetotransport and SQUID measurements on heavily doped Mn-implanted GaAs nanowires. SQUID data recorded at low magnetic fields exhibit clear signs of the onset of a spin-glass phase with a transition temperature of about 16 K. Magnetotransport experiments reveal a corresponding peak in resistance at 16 K and a remarkably large negative magnetoresistance, reaching 40 % at 1.6 K and 8 T. The negative magnetoresistance decreases at elevated temperatures and vanishes at about 100 K. We interpret our transport data in terms of spin-dependent hopping in a complex magnetic nanowire landscape of magnetic polarons forming a paramagnetic/spin-glass phase.
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| 2. |
- Mahani, Mohammad Reza, et al.
(författare)
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Electronic structure and magnetic properties of Mn and Fe impurities near the GaAs (110) surface
- 2014
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Ingår i: Physical Review B. Condensed Matter and Materials Physics. - 1098-0121 .- 1550-235X. ; 89:16, s. Article ID: 165408-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Combining density functional theory calculations and microscopic tight-binding models, we investigate theoretically theelectronic and magnetic properties of individual substitutional transition-metal impurities (Mn and Fe) positioned in the vicinity of the (110) surface of GaAs. For the case of the [Mn2+](0) plus acceptor-hole (h) complex, the results of a tight-binding model including explicitly the impurity d electrons are in good agreement with approaches that treat the spin ofthe impurity as an effective classical vector. For the case of Fe, where both the neutral isoelectronic [Fe3+](0) and the ionized [Fe2+](-)states are relevant to address scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) experiments, the inclusion of d orbitals is essential. We find that the in-gap electronic structure of Fe impurities is significantly modified by surface effects. For the neutral acceptor state [Fe2+, h](0), the magnetic-anisotropy dependence on the impurity sublayer resembles the case of [Mn2+, h](0). In contrast, for [Fe3+](0) electronic configuration the magnetic anisotropy behaves differently and it is considerably smaller. For this state we predict that it is possible to manipulate the Fe moment, e. g., by an external magnetic field, with detectable consequences in the local density of states probed by STM.
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Mahani, Mohammad Reza, et al.
(författare)
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Interplay between Mn-acceptor state and Dirac surface states in Mn-doped Bi2Se3 topological insulator
- 2014
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Ingår i: Physical Review B. Condensed Matter and Materials Physics. - 1098-0121 .- 1550-235X. ; 90, s. Article ID: 195441-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We investigate the properties of a single substitutional Mn impurity and its associated acceptor state on the (111) surface of Bi$_2$Se$_3$ topological insulator. Combining \textit{ab initio} calculations with microscopic tight-binding modeling, we identify the effects of inversion-symmetry and time-reversal-symmetry breaking on the electronic states in the vicinity of the Dirac point. In agreement with experiments, we find evidence that the Mn ion is in ${+2}$ valence state and introduces an acceptor in the bulk band gap. The Mn-acceptor has predominantly $p$--character, and is localized mainly around the Mn impurity and its nearest-neighbor Se atoms. Its electronic structure and spin-polarization are determined by the hybridization between the Mn $d$--levels and the $p$--levels of surrounding Se atoms, which is strongly affected by electronic correlations at the Mn site. The opening of the gap at the Dirac point depends crucially on the quasi-resonant coupling and the strong real-space overlap between the spin-chiral surface states and the mid-gap spin-polarized Mn-acceptor states.
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| 5. |
- Mahani, Mohammad Reza, et al.
(författare)
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Spin dynamics of Mn impurities and their bound acceptors in GaAs
- 2014
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Ingår i: Physical Review B. Condensed Matter and Materials Physics. - 1098-0121 .- 1550-235X. ; 90:24
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present results of tight-binding spin-dynamics simulations of individual and pairs of substitutionalMn impurities in GaAs. Our approach is based on the mixed quantum-classical schemefor spin dynamics, with coupled equations of motions for the quantum subsystem, representing thehost, and the localized spins of magnetic dopants, which are treated classically. In the case ofa single Mn impurity, we calculate explicitly the time evolution of the Mn spin and the spins ofnearest-neighbors As atoms, where the acceptor (hole) state introduced by the Mn dopant resides.We relate the characteristic frequencies in the dynamical spectra to the two dominant energy scalesof the system, namely the spin-orbit interaction strength and the value of the p-d exchange couplingbetween the impurity spin and the host carriers. For a pair of Mn impurities, we find signaturesof the indirect (carrier-mediated) exchange interaction in the time evolution of the impurity spins.Finally, we examine temporal correlations between the two Mn spins and their dependence on theexchange coupling and spin-orbit interaction strength, as well as on the initial spin-configuration andseparation between the impurities. Our results provide insight into the dynamic interaction betweenlocalized magnetic impurities in a nano-scaled magnetic-semiconductor sample, in the extremelydilute(solotronics) regime.
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| 6. |
- Mahani, Mohammad Reza, et al.
(författare)
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The role of d levels of substitutional magnetic impurities at the (110) GaAs surface
- 2013
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Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The study of the spin of individual transition-metal dopants in a semiconductor host is an emergent field known as magnetic solotronics, bearing exciting prospects for novel spintronics devices at the atomic scale. Advances in different STM based techniques allowed experimentalists to investigate substitutional dopants at a semiconductor surface with unprecedented accuracy and degree of details [1]. Theoretical studies based both on microscopic tight-binding (TB) models and DFT techniques have contributed in elucidating the experimental findings. In particular, for the case of Mn dopants on the (110) GaAs surface, TB models [2] have provided a quantitative description of the properties of the associated acceptor states. Most of these TB calculations ignore dealing explicitly with the Mn d-levels and treat the associated magnetic moment as a classical vector. However recent STM experiments [3] involving other TM impurities, such as Fe, reveal topographic features that might be related to electronic transitions within the d-level shell of the dopant. In this work we have included explicitly the d levels in the Hamiltonian. The parameters of the model have been extracted from DFT calculations. We have investigated the role that d levels play on the properties of the acceptor states of the doped GaAs(110) surface, and analyzed their implications for STM spectroscopy.
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| 7. |
- Mahani, Mohammad Reza, et al.
(författare)
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Theoretical studies of single magnetic impurities on the surface of semiconductors and topological insulators
- 2013
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Ingår i: MRS Online Proceedings Library/Volume 1564/2013. - : Materials Research Society.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present results of theoretical studies of transition metal dopants in GaAs, based on microscopic tight-binding model and ab-initio calculations. We focus in particular on how the vicinity of surface affects the properties of the hole-acceptor state, its magnetic anisotropy and its magnetic coupling to the magnetic dopant. In agreement with STM experiments, Mn substitutional dopants on the (110) GaAs surface give rise to a deep acceptor state, whose wavefunction is localized around the Mn center. We discuss a refinement of the theory that introduces explicitly the d-levels for the TM dopant. The explicit inclusion of d-levels is particularly important for addressing recent STM experiments on substitutional Fe in GaAs. In the second part of the paper we discuss an analogous investigation of single dopants in Bi2Se3 three-dimensional topological insulators, focusing in particular on how substitutional impurities positioned on the surface affect the electronic structure in the gap. We present explicit results for BiSe antisite defects and compare with STM experiments.
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| 8. |
- Mahani, Mohammad Reza, et al.
(författare)
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Time-Dependent Spin Dynamics of Few Transition Metal Impurities in a Semiconductor Host
- 2014
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Ingår i: 2014 MRS Spring Meeting and Exhibit, April 21-25, San Francisco.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recently, remarkable progress has been achieved in describing electronic and magnetic properties of individual dopants in semiconductors, both experimentally [1] and theoretically [2, 3], offering exciting prospects for applications in future electronic devices. In view of potential novel applications, which involve communication between individual magnetic dopants, mediated by the electronic carriers of the host, the focus of this research field has been shifting towards fundamental understanding and control of spin dynamics of these atomic-scale magnetic centers. Importantly, the development of time-resolved spectroscopic techniques has opened up the possibility to probe the dynamics of single spin impurities experimentally [4]. These advances pose new challenges for theory, calling for a fully microscopic time-dependent description of spin dynamics of individual impurities in the solid states environment.We present results of theoretical investigations of real-time spin dynamics of individual and pairs of transition metal (Mn) impurities in GaAs. Our approach combines the microscopic tight-binding description of substitutional dopants in semicondutors [3] with the time-dependent scheme for simulations of spin dynamics [5], based on the numerical integration of equations of motion for the coupled system of the itinerant electronic degrees of freedom of the host and the localized impurity spins. We study the spin dynamics of impurities in finite clusters containing up to hundred atoms, over time scales of a few hundred femtoseconds. In particular, we calculate explicitly the time-evolution of the impurity spins and electrons of the host upon weak external perturbations. From the Fourier spectra of the time-dependent spin trajectories, we identify the energy scales associated with intrinsic interactions of the system, namely the spin-orbit interaction and the exchange interaction between the impurity spins and the spins of the nearest-neighbor atoms of the host. Furthermore, we investigate the effective dynamical coupling between the spins of two spatially separated Mn impurities, mediated by the host carriers. We find signatures of ferromagnetic coupling between the impurities in the time-evolution of their spins. Finally, we propose a scheme for investigating the spin relaxation of Mn dopants in GaAs, by extending the time-dependent approach for spin dynamics in an isolated conservative system to the case of an open system, with dephasing mechanisms included as an effective interaction between the system and an external bath [5].
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| 9. |
- Mahani, Mohammad Reza, et al.
(författare)
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Trend of the magnetic anisotropy for individual Mn dopants near the (110) GaAs surface
- 2014
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Ingår i: Journal of Physics. - : Institute of Physics (IOP). - 0953-8984 .- 1361-648X. ; 26:39, s. Article ID: 394006-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Using a microscopic finite-cluster tight-binding model, we investigate the trend of the magnetic anisotropy energy as a function of the cluster size for an individual Mn impurity positioned in the vicinity of the (1 1 0) GaAs surface. We present results of calculations for large cluster sizes containing approximately 104 atoms, which have not been investigated so far. Our calculations demonstrate that the anisotropy energy of a Mn dopant in bulk GaAs, found to be non-zero in previous tight-binding calculations, is purely a finite size effect that vanishes with inverse cluster size. In contrast to this, we find that the splitting of the three in-gap Mn acceptor energy levels converges to a finite value in the limit of the infinite cluster size. For a Mn in bulk GaAs this feature is related to the nature of the mean-field treatment of the coupling between the impurity and its nearest neighbor atoms. We also calculate the trend of the anisotropy energy in the sublayers as the Mn dopant is moved away from the surface towards the center of the cluster. Here the use of large cluster sizes allows us to position the impurity in deeper sublayers below the surface, compared to previous calculations. In particular, we show that the anisotropy energy increases up to the fifth sublayer and then decreases as the impurity is moved further away from the surface, approaching its bulk value. The present study provides important insights for experimental control and manipulation of the electronic and magnetic properties of individual Mn dopants at the semiconductor surface by means of advanced scanning tunneling microscopy techniques.
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| 10. |
- Paschoal Jr., Waldomiro, 1977-, et al.
(författare)
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Magnetoresistance in Mn ion-implanted GaAs:Zn nanowires
- 2014
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Ingår i: Applied Physics Letters. - New York : American Institute of Physics (AIP). - 0003-6951 .- 1077-3118. ; 104:15
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We have investigated the magnetoresistance (MR) in a series of Zn doped (p-type) GaAs nanowires implanted with different Mn concentrations. The nanowires with the lowest Mn concentration (~0.0001%) exhibit a low resistance of a few kΩ at 300K and a 4% positive MR at 1.6K, which can be well described by invoking a spin-split subband model. In contrast, nanowires with the highest Mn concentration (4%) display a large resistance of several MΩ at 300K and a large negative MR of 85% at 1.6K. The large negative MR is interpreted in terms of spin-dependent hopping in a complex magnetic nanowire landscape of magnetic polarons, separated by intermediate regions of Mn impurity spins. Sweeping the magnetic field back and forth for the 4% sample reveals a hysteresis that indicates the presence of a weak ferromagnetic phase. We propose co-doping with Zn to be a promising way to reach the goal of realizing ferromagnetic Ga1-xMnxAs nanowires for future nanospintronics. © 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.
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| 11. |
- Pertsova, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Electrical control of spin dynamics in finite one-dimensional systems
- 2011
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Ingår i: Physical Review B. Condensed Matter and Materials Physics. - : American Physical Society. - 1098-0121 .- 1550-235X. ; 84, s. 155436-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We investigate the possibility of the electrical control of spin transfer in monoatomic chains incorporating spin impurities. Our theoretical framework is the mixed quantum-classical (Ehrenfest) description of the spin dynamics, in the spirit of thes-d model, where the itinerant electrons are described by a tight-binding model while localized spins are treated classically. Our main focus is on the dynamical exchange interaction between two well-separated spins. This can be quantified by the transfer of excitations in the form of transverse spin oscillations. We systematically study the effect of an electrostatic gate bias Vg on the interconnecting channel and we map out the long-range dynamical spin transfer as a function of Vg. We identify regions of Vg giving rise to significant amplification of the spin transmission at low frequencies and relate this to the electronic structure of the channel.
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| 12. |
- Pertsova, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Probing the wavefunction of the surface states in Bi2Se3 topological insulator : a realistic tight-binding approach
- 2014
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Ingår i: New Journal of Physics. - : IOP Publishing. - 1367-2630. ; 16, s. Article ID: 063022-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on microscopic tight-binding modeling of surfacestates in Bi$_2$Se$_3$ three-dimensional topological insulator, based on a\textit{sp}$^3$ Slater-Koster Hamiltonian, with parameters calculated fromdensity functional theory. The effect of spin-orbit interaction on theelectronic structure of the bulk and of a slab with finite thickness isinvestigated. In particular, a phenomenological criterion of band inversion isformulated for both bulk and slab, based on the calculated atomic- andorbital-projections of the wavefunctions, associated with valence and conductionband extrema at the center of the Brillouin zone. We carry out athorough analysis of the calculated bandstructures of slabs with varyingthickness, where surface states are identified using a quantitative criterionaccording to their spatial distribution. The thickness-dependent energy gap,attributed to inter-surface interaction, and the emergence of gapless surfacestates for slabs above a critical thickness are investigated. We map out thetransition to the infinite-thickness limit by calculating explicitly themodifications in the spatial distribution and spin-character of the surfacestates wavefunction with increasing the slab thickness. Our numerical analysisshows that the system must be approximately forty quintuple-layers thick toexhibit completely decoupled surface states, localized on the oppositesurfaces. These results have implications on the effect of external perturbationson the surface states near the Dirac point.
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| 13. |
- Pertsova, Anna, 1985-, et al.
(författare)
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Theoretical studies of surface states in Bi2Se3 : effects of finite thickness, finite-cluster boundaries, and surface doping
- 2013
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recently, a family of bismuth-based materials, in particular bismuth chalcogenides (Bi2Se3, Bi2Te3), have been identified as three-dimensional (3D) topological insulators (TIs), i.e. materials characterized by a non-trivial bulk insulating gap and topologically protected surface states with linear dispersion and helical spin texture, traversing the gap [1]. A question of great fundamental and practical importance is how electronic and spin properties of topological surface states are modified in the presence of external perturbations, in particular time-reversal-breaking ones, such as magnetic dopants [2]. Experimentally, this question can be addressed by using advanced experimental probes, such as spin-sensitive angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) and scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM). On the theoretical side, there is a need for atomistic modelling of TIs that enables quantitative analysis and comparison with experiments, while keeping the computational overhead to a minimum. Microscopic tight-binding models, combined with input from ab initio calculations, provide a convenient platform to study surface states in TIs [3].We present results of realistic tight-binding modelling of 3D TIs, with particular focus on Bi2Se3. Our implementation is based on the sp3 tight-binding model for Bi2Se3 by Kobayashi [4], with parameters calculated from density functional theory. We start with a thorough analysis of the calculated band structure of a slab of Bi2Se3 of varying thickness, with surface states identified using quantitative criteria according to their actual spatial distribution. We investigate the thickness-dependent energy gap for thin slabs, attributed to inter-surface interaction, and the emergence of gapless surface states for slabs above a critical thickness. A quantitative description of the transition to infinite-thickness limit is provided by calculating explicitly the associated modifications in the spatial distribution and spin character of the wave function. We find that the system must be at least forty quintuple-layers thick to displace surface states that are essentially localized on either surface. In addition, we discuss the effect of an external magnetic field on the electronic structure of Bi2Se3. The peculiar structure of the Landau levels, found experimentally in this system [5], is a characteristic signature of the presence of Dirac surface states and can be used to extract the dispersion of the surface band. Furthermore, building upon previous work on GaAs [6], we develop a finite-cluster tight-binding approach, where an infinite slab is represented by a large but finite cluster with the same thickness. We find that the electronic structure for a finite cluster, with periodic boundary conditions along the length and width of the cluster, is in excellent agreement with that of an infinite slab. On the other hand, the finite-cluster approach allows us to directly probe mesoscopic effects, associated with real boundaries of a finite system, especially when the topological surface states are present. The approach enables also the investigation of individual impurities and defects. As a first application we present a case study of substitutional Bi defect at Se site near the surface of a slab of Bi2Se3 of varying thickness, focusing in particular on the interplay between defect-induced states and gapless surface states. The analysis of spatial features of the calculated local density of states around the defect reveals similarities with STM studies [7]. Finally, we discuss strategies for incorporating single transition-metal dopants (Mn, Fe) in the current model and draw connections to recent STM experiments [8]. [1] M. Z. Hasan and C. L. Kane, Rev. Mod. Phys. 82, 3045 (2010); X.-L. Qi and S.-C. Zhang, Rev. Mod. Phys. 83, 1057 (2011).[2] H. Beidenkopf et al., Nature Physics 7, 939 (2011); L. A. Wray et al., Nature Physics 7, 21 (2011).[3] W. Zhang, R. Yu, H.-J. Zhang, X. Dai, and Z. Fang, New. J. Phys. 12, 065013 (2010); M. S. Bahramy et al., Nature Communications 3, 1159 (2012).[4] K. Kobayashi, Phys. Rev. B 84, 205424 (2011).[5] T. Hanaguri et al., Phys. Rev. B 82, 081305(R) (2010).[6] T. O. Strandberg et al., Phys. Rev. B 80, 024425 (2009).[7] S. Urazhdin et al., Phys. Rev. B 66, 161306(R) (2002); S. Urazhdin et al., Phys. Rev. B 69, 085313 (2004).[8] Y. S. Hor et al., Phys. Rev. B 81, 195203 (2010); T. Schlenk et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 126804 (2013).
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| 14. |
- Pertsova, Anna, 1985-, et al.
(författare)
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Theoretical studies of surface states in three-dimensional topological-insulator thin films in a strong magnetic field
- 2014
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Ingår i: Bulletin of the American Physical Society. - Denver, Colorado : American Physical Society.
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- The peculiar structure of the Landau levels (LLs) in topological insulators (TIs), in particular the existence of a field-independent (zeroth) LL, is a characteristic signature of the Dirac surface states. However, recently it has been shown that the hybridization between top and bottom surfaces in a 3D TI thin film may lead to a splitting of the zeroth LL and even to its absence in the ultra-thin film limit. We report on microscopic tight-binding modelling of Bi2Se3 thin films [1] in the presence of a strong magnetic field. We find that the zeroth LL is absent for thicknesses below 4QLs, in agreement with experiments. Calculations of the LL spectrum of a 5QL-thick slab reveal a strong asymmetry with respect to the Dirac point and a clear signature of the first LL, in good agreement with Dirac-Hamiltonian model calculations. The latter feature persists in a wide range of magnetic fields and involves an extended window of energies, including bulk states away from the Dirac point. We use our results to predict an interplay between the external magnetic field and gate-voltage dependence of the anomalous Hall effect that is characteristic of topological magnetic states.\\[4pt] [1] A.Pertsova and C.M.Canali, arXiv:1311.0691.
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| 15. |
- Pertsova, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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Time-dependent electron transport through a strongly correlated quantum dot : multiple-probe open-boundary conditions approach
- 2013
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Ingår i: Journal of Physics. - : IOP Publishing. - 0953-8984 .- 1361-648X. ; 25:10, s. 105501-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present a time-dependent study of electron transport through a strongly correlated quantum dot, which combines adiabatic lattice density functional theory in the Bethe ansatz local-density approximation (BALDA) to the Hubbard model, with the multiple-probe battery method for open-boundary simulations in the time domain. In agreement with the recently proposed dynamical picture of Coulomb blockade, a characteristic driven regime, defined by regular current oscillations, is demonstrated for a certain range of bias voltages. We further investigate the effects of systematically improving the approximation for the electron–electron interaction at the dot site (going from non-interacting, through Hartree-only to adiabatic BALDA) on the transmission spectrum and the I–V characteristics. In particular, a negative differential conductance is obtained at large bias voltages and large Coulomb interaction strengths. This is attributed to the combined effect of the electron–electron interaction at the dot and the finite bandwidth of the electrodes.
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