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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 883 records · Page 49
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DOE OSTI2021

Anomalous transport due to Weyl fermions in the chiral antiferromagnets Mn 3 X, X = Sn, Ge

The recent discoveries of strikingly large zero-field Hall and Nernst effects in antiferromagnets Mn 3 X(X = Sn, Ge) have brought the study of magnetic topological states to the forefront of condensed matter research and technological innovation. These effects are considered fingerprints of Weyl nodes residing near the Fermi energy, promoting Mn 3 X(X = Sn, Ge) as a fascinating platform to explore the elusive magnetic Weyl fermions. In this review, we provide recent updates on the insights drawn from experimental and theoretical studies of Mn 3 X(X = Sn, Ge) by combining previous reports with our new, comprehensive set of transport measurements of high-quality Mn 3 Sn and Mn 3 Ge single crystals. In particular, we report magnetotransport signatures specific to chiral anomalies in Mn 3 Ge and planar Hall effect in Mn 3 Sn, which have not yet been found in earlier studies. The results summarized here indicate the essential role of magnetic Weyl fermions in producing the large transverse responses in the absence of magnetization.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2021

Precision measurement of electron-electron scattering in GaAs/AlGaAs using transverse magnetic focusing

Electron-electron (e-e) interactions assume a cardinal role in solid-state physics. Quantifying the e-e scattering length is hence critical. In this paper we show that the mesoscopic phenomenon of transverse magnetic focusing (TMF) in two-dimensional electron systems forms a precise and sensitive technique to measure this length scale. Conversely we quantitatively demonstrate that e-e scattering is the predominant effect limiting TMF amplitudes in high-mobility materials. Using high-resolution kinetic simulations, we show that the TMF amplitude at a maximum decays exponentially as a function of the e-e scattering length, which leads to a ready approach to extract this length from the measured TMF amplitudes. The approach is applied to measure the temperature-dependent e-e scattering length in high-mobility GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures. The simulations further reveal current vortices that accompany the cyclotron orbits - a collective phenomenon counterintuitive to the ballistic transport underlying a TMF setting.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Unconventional supercurrent phase in Ising superconductor Josephson junction with atomically thin magnetic insulator

Abstract In two-dimensional (2D) NbSe 2 crystal, which lacks inversion symmetry, strong spin-orbit coupling aligns the spins of Cooper pairs to the orbital valleys, forming Ising Cooper pairs (ICPs). The unusual spin texture of ICPs can be further modulated by introducing magnetic exchange. Here, we report unconventional supercurrent phase in van der Waals heterostructure Josephson junctions (JJs) that couples NbSe 2 ICPs across an atomically thin magnetic insulator (MI) Cr 2 Ge 2 Te 6 . By constructing a superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID), we measure the phase of the transferred Cooper pairs in the MI JJ. We demonstrate a doubly degenerate nontrivial JJ phase ( ϕ ), formed by momentum-conserving tunneling of ICPs across magnetic domains in the barrier. The doubly degenerate ground states in MI JJs provide a two-level quantum system that can be utilized as a new dissipationless component for superconducting quantum devices. Our work boosts the study of various superconducting states with spin-orbit coupling, opening up an avenue to designing new superconducting phase-controlled quantum electronic devices.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2021

Transverse barrier formation by electrical triggering of a metal-to-insulator transition

Application of an electric stimulus to a material with a metal-insulator transition can trigger a large resistance change. Resistive switching from an insulating into a metallic phase, which typically occurs by the formation of a conducting filament parallel to the current flow, is a highly active research topic. Using the magneto-optical Kerr imaging, we found that the opposite type of resistive switching, from a metal into an insulator, occurs in a reciprocal characteristic spatial pattern: the formation of an insulating barrier perpendicular to the driving current. This barrier formation leads to an unusual N-type negative differential resistance in the current-voltage characteristics. We further demonstrate that electrically inducing a transverse barrier enables a unique approach to voltage-controlled magnetism. By triggering the metal-to-insulator resistive switching in a magnetic material, local on/off control of ferromagnetism is achieved using a global voltage bias applied to the whole device.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

Single skyrmion true random number generator using local dynamics and interaction between skyrmions

Magnetic skyrmions are of great interest to both fundamental research and applications in post-von-Neumann computing devices. The successful implementation of skyrmionic devices requires functionalities of skyrmions with effective controls. Here we show that the local dynamics of skyrmions, in contrast to the global dynamics of a skyrmion as a whole, can be introduced to provide effective functionalities for versatile computing. A single skyrmion interacting with local pinning centres under thermal effects can fluctuate in time and switch between a small-skyrmion and a large-skyrmion state, thereby serving as a robust true random number generator for probabilistic computing. Moreover, neighbouring skyrmions exhibit an anti-correlated coupling in their fluctuation dynamics. Both the switching probability and the dynamic coupling strength can be tuned by modifying the applied magnetic field and spin current. Our results could lead to progress in developing magnetic skyrmionic devices with high tunability and efficient controls.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2022

Transient quantum beatings of trions in hybrid organic tri-iodine perovskite single crystal

Utilizing the spin degree of freedom of photoexcitations in hybrid organic inorganic perovskites for quantum information science applications has been recently proposed and explored. However, it is still unclear whether the stable photoexcitations in these compounds correspond to excitons, free/trapped electron-hole pairs, or charged exciton complexes such as trions. Here we investigate quantum beating oscillations in the picosecond time-resolved circularly polarized photoinduced reflection of single crystal methyl-ammonium tri-iodine perovskite (MAPbI 3 ) measured at cryogenic temperatures. We observe two quantum beating oscillations (fast and slow) whose frequencies increase linearly with B with slopes that depend on the crystal orientation with respect to the applied magnetic field. We assign the quantum beatings to positive and negative trions whose Landé g-factors are determined by those of the electron and hole, respectively, or by the carriers left behind after trion recombination. These are $g^{e}_{[001]}$ = 2.52 and $g^{e}_{[1\bar10]}$ = 2.63 for electrons, whereas |$g^{h}_{[001]}$| = 0.28 and |$g^{h}_{[1\bar10]}$| = 0.57 for holes. The obtained g-values are in excellent agreement with an 8-band K.P calculation for orthorhombic MAPbI3. Using the technique of resonant spin amplification of the quantum beatings we measure a relatively long spin coherence time of ~ 11 (6) nanoseconds for electrons (holes) at 4 K.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2022

Ultrafast kinetics of the antiferromagnetic-ferromagnetic phase transition in FeRh

Understanding how fast short-range interactions build up long-range order is one of the most intriguing topics in condensed matter physics. FeRh is a test specimen for studying this problem in magnetism, where the microscopic spin-spin exchange interaction is ultimately responsible for either ferro- or antiferromagnetic macroscopic order. Femtosecond laser excitation can induce ferromagnetism in antiferromagnetic FeRh, but the mechanism and dynamics of this transition are topics of intense debates. Employing double-pump THz emission spectroscopy has enabled us to dramatically increase the temporal detection window of THz emission probes of transient states without sacrificing any loss of resolution or sensitivity. It allows us to study the kinetics of emergent ferromagnetism from the femtosecond up to the nanosecond timescales in FeRh/Pt bilayers. Our results strongly suggest a latency period between the initial pump-excitation and the emission of THz radiation by ferromagnetic nuclei.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2022

Traps and transport resistance are the next frontiers for stable non-fullerene acceptor solar cells

Stability is one of the most important challenges facing material research for organic solar cells (OSC) on their path to further commercialization. In the high-performance material system PM6:Y6 studied here, we investigate degradation mechanisms of inverted photovoltaic devices. We have identified two distinct degradation pathways: one requires the presence of both illumination and oxygen and features a short-circuit current reduction, the other one is induced thermally and marked by severe losses of open-circuit voltage and fill factor. We focus our investigation on the thermally accelerated degradation. Our findings show that bulk material properties and interfaces remain remarkably stable, however, aging-induced defect state formation in the active layer remains the primary cause of thermal degradation. The increased trap density leads to higher non-radiative recombination, which limits the open-circuit voltage and lowers the charge carrier mobility in the photoactive layer. Furthermore, we find the trap-induced transport resistance to be the major reason for the drop in fill factor. Our results suggest that device lifetimes could be significantly increased by marginally suppressing trap formation, leading to a bright future for OSC.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

Proximity-magnetized quantum spin Hall insulator: monolayer 1 T’ WTe2/Cr2Ge2Te6

Abstract Van der Waals heterostructures offer great versatility to tailor unique interactions at the atomically flat interfaces between dissimilar layered materials and induce novel physical phenomena. By bringing monolayer 1 T’ WTe 2 , a two-dimensional quantum spin Hall insulator, and few-layer Cr 2 Ge 2 Te 6 , an insulating ferromagnet, into close proximity in an heterostructure, we introduce a ferromagnetic order in the former via the interfacial exchange interaction. The ferromagnetism in WTe 2 manifests in the anomalous Nernst effect, anomalous Hall effect as well as anisotropic magnetoresistance effect. Using local electrodes, we identify separate transport contributions from the metallic edge and insulating bulk. When driven by an AC current, the second harmonic voltage responses closely resemble the anomalous Nernst responses to AC temperature gradient generated by nonlocal heater, which appear as nonreciprocal signals with respect to the induced magnetization orientation. Our results from different electrodes reveal spin-polarized edge states in the magnetized quantum spin Hall insulator.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

High thermal conductivity in wafer-scale cubic silicon carbide crystals

High thermal conductivity electronic materials are critical components for high-performance electronic and photonic devices as both active functional materials and thermal management materials. We report an isotropic high thermal conductivity exceeding 500 W m –1 K –1 at room temperature in high-quality wafer-scale cubic silicon carbide (3C-SiC) crystals, which is the second highest among large crystals (only surpassed by diamond). Furthermore, the corresponding 3C-SiC thin films are found to have record-high in-plane and cross-plane thermal conductivity, even higher than diamond thin films with equivalent thicknesses. Our results resolve a long-standing puzzle that the literature values of thermal conductivity for 3C-SiC are lower than the structurally more complex 6H-SiC. We show that the observed high thermal conductivity in this work arises from the high purity and high crystal quality of 3C-SiC crystals which avoids the exceptionally strong defect-phonon scatterings. Moreover, 3C-SiC is a SiC polytype which can be epitaxially grown on Si. We show that the measured 3C-SiC-Si thermal boundary conductance is among the highest for semiconductor interfaces. These findings provide insights for fundamental phonon transport mechanisms, and suggest that 3C-SiC is an excellent wide-bandgap semiconductor for applications of next-generation power electronics as both active components and substrates.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2023

Long-lived electronic spin qubits in single-walled carbon nanotubes

Abstract Electron spins in solid-state systems offer the promise of spin-based information processing devices. Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), an all-carbon one-dimensional material whose spin-free environment and weak spin-orbit coupling promise long spin coherence times, offer a diverse degree of freedom for extended range of functionality not available to bulk systems. A key requirement limiting spin qubit implementation in SWCNTs is disciplined confinement of isolated spins. Here, we report the creation of highly confined electron spins in SWCNTs via a bottom-up approach. The record long coherence time of 8.2 µs and spin-lattice relaxation time of 13 ms of these electronic spin qubits allow demonstration of quantum control operation manifested as Rabi oscillation. Investigation of the decoherence mechanism reveals an intrinsic coherence time of tens of milliseconds. These findings evident that combining molecular approaches with inorganic crystalline systems provides a powerful route for reproducible and scalable quantum materials suitable for qubit applications.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2023

Ultra-thin lithium aluminate spinel ferrite films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and low damping

Ultra-thin films of low damping ferromagnetic insulators with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy have been identified as critical to advancing spin-based electronics by significantly reducing the threshold for current-induced magnetization switching while enabling new types of hybrid structures or devices. Here, we have developed a new class of ultra-thin spinel structure Li 0.5 Al 1.0 Fe 1.5 O 4 (LAFO) films on MgGa 2 O 4 (MGO) substrates with: 1) perpendicular magnetic anisotropy; 2) low magnetic damping and 3) the absence of degraded or magnetic dead layers. These films have been integrated with epitaxial Pt spin source layers to demonstrate record low magnetization switching currents and high spin-orbit torque efficiencies. These LAFO films on MGO thus combine all of the desirable properties of ferromagnetic insulators with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, opening new possibilities for spin based electronics.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Spin-resolved topology and partial axion angles in three-dimensional insulators

Abstract Symmetry-protected topological crystalline insulators (TCIs) have primarily been characterized by their gapless boundary states. However, in time-reversal- ( $${{{{{{{\mathcal{T}}}}}}}}$$ T -) invariant (helical) 3D TCIs—termed higher-order TCIs (HOTIs)—the boundary signatures can manifest as a sample-dependent network of 1D hinge states. We here introduce nested spin-resolved Wilson loops and layer constructions as tools to characterize the intrinsic bulk topological properties of spinful 3D insulators. We discover that helical HOTIs realize one of three spin-resolved phases with distinct responses that are quantitatively robust to large deformations of the bulk spin-orbital texture: 3D quantum spin Hall insulators (QSHIs), “spin-Weyl” semimetals, and $${{{{{{{\mathcal{T}}}}}}}}$$ T -doubled axion insulator (T-DAXI) states with nontrivial partial axion angles indicative of a 3D spin-magnetoelectric bulk response and half-quantized 2D TI surface states originating from a partial parity anomaly. Using ab-initio calculations, we demonstrate that β -MoTe 2 realizes a spin-Weyl state and that α -BiBr hosts both 3D QSHI and T-DAXI regimes.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2024

Reconfigurable spin current transmission and magnon–magnon coupling in hybrid ferrimagnetic insulators

Coherent spin waves possess immense potential in wave-based information computation, storage, and transmission with high fidelity and ultra-low energy consumption. However, despite their seminal importance for magnonic devices, there is a paucity of both structural prototypes and theoretical frameworks that regulate the spin current transmission and magnon hybridization mediated by coherent spin waves. Here, we demonstrate reconfigurable coherent spin current transmission, as well as magnon–magnon coupling, in a hybrid ferrimagnetic heterostructure comprising epitaxial Gd 3 Fe 5 O 12 and Y 3 Fe 5 O 12 insulators. By adjusting the compensated moment in Gd 3 Fe 5 O 12 , magnon–magnon coupling was achieved and engineered with pronounced anticrossings between two Kittel modes, accompanied by divergent dissipative coupling approaching the magnetic compensation temperature of Gd 3 Fe 5 O 12 (T M,GdIG ), which were modeled by coherent spin pumping. Remarkably, we further identified, both experimentally and theoretically, a drastic variation in the coherent spin wave-mediated spin current across T M,GdIG , which manifested as a strong dependence on the relative alignment of magnetic moments. Our findings provide significant fundamental insight into the reconfiguration of coherent spin waves and offer a new route towards constructing artificial magnonic architectures.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2024

Magnetic droplet soliton pairs

We demonstrate magnetic droplet soliton pairs in all-perpendicular spin-torque nano-oscillators (STNOs), where one droplet resides in the STNO free layer (FL) and the other in the reference layer (RL). Typically, theoretical, numerical, and experimental droplet studies have focused on the FL, with any additional dynamics in the RL entirely ignored. Here we show that there is not only significant magnetodynamics in the RL, but the RL itself can host a droplet driven by, and coexisting with, the FL droplet. Both single droplets and pairs are observed experimentally as stepwise changes and sharp peaks in the dc and differential resistance, respectively. While the single FL droplet is highly stable, the coexistence state exhibits high-power broadband microwave noise. Furthermore, micromagnetic simulations reveal that the pair dynamics display periodic, quasi-periodic, and chaotic signatures controlled by applied field and current. The strongly interacting and closely spaced droplet pair offers a unique platform for fundamental studies of highly non-linear soliton pair dynamics.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Nonlinear optical diode effect in a magnetic Weyl semimetal

Diode effects are of great interest for both fundamental physics and modern technologies. Electrical diode effects (nonreciprocal transport) have been observed in Weyl systems. Optical diode effects arising from the Weyl fermions have been theoretically considered but not probed experimentally. Here, we report the observation of a nonlinear optical diode effect (NODE) in the magnetic Weyl semimetal CeAlSi, where the magnetization introduces a pronounced directionality in the nonlinear optical second-harmonic generation (SHG). We demonstrate a six-fold change of the measured SHG intensity between opposite propagation directions over a bandwidth exceeding 250 meV. Supported by density-functional theory, we establish the linearly dispersive bands emerging from Weyl nodes as the origin of this broadband effect. We further demonstrate current-induced magnetization switching and thus electrical control of the NODE. Our results advance ongoing research to identify novel nonlinear optical/transport phenomena in magnetic topological materials and further opens new pathways for the unidirectional manipulation of light.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2024

Ultrastrong magnon-magnon coupling and chiral spin-texture control in a dipolar 3D multilayered artificial spin-vortex ice

Strongly-interacting nanomagnetic arrays are ideal systems for exploring reconfigurable magnonics. They provide huge microstate spaces and integrated solutions for storage and neuromorphic computing alongside GHz functionality. These systems may be broadly assessed by their range of reliably accessible states and the strength of magnon coupling phenomena and nonlinearities. Increasingly, nanomagnetic systems are expanding into three-dimensional architectures. This has enhanced the range of available magnetic microstates and functional behaviours, but engineering control over 3D states and dynamics remains challenging. Here, we introduce a 3D magnonic metamaterial composed from multilayered artificial spin ice nanoarrays. Comprising two magnetic layers separated by a non-magnetic spacer, each nanoisland may assume four macrospin or vortex states per magnetic layer. This creates a system with a rich 16 N microstate space and intense static and dynamic dipolar magnetic coupling. The system exhibits a broad range of emergent phenomena driven by the strong inter-layer dipolar interaction, including ultrastrong magnon-magnon coupling with normalised coupling rates of $\frac{Δf}{v}$ = 0.57, GHz mode shifts in zero applied field and chirality-control of magnetic vortex microstates with corresponding magnonic spectra.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2024

Observation of stacking engineered magnetic phase transitions within moiré supercells of twisted van der Waals magnets

Abstract Recent demonstrations of moiré magnetism, featuring exotic phases with noncollinear spin order in the twisted van der Waals (vdW) magnet chromium triiodide CrI 3 , have highlighted the potential of twist engineering of magnetic (vdW) materials. However, the local magnetic interactions, spin dynamics, and magnetic phase transitions within and across individual moiré supercells remain elusive. Taking advantage of a scanning single-spin magnetometry platform, here we report observation of two distinct magnetic phase transitions with separate critical temperatures within a moiré supercell of small-angle twisted double trilayer CrI 3 . By measuring temperature-dependent spin fluctuations at the coexisting ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic regions in twisted CrI 3 , we explicitly show that the Curie temperature of the ferromagnetic state is higher than the Néel temperature of the antiferromagnetic one by ~10 K. Our mean-field calculations attribute such a spatial and thermodynamic phase separation to the stacking order modulated interlayer exchange coupling at the twisted interface of moiré superlattices.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗