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Results for “Quantum Phase Transition”

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At least 1,747 records · Page 97
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2013

Electron transfer and capture dynamics in ZnSe quantum wells grown on GaAs

We investigate the transfer and capture dynamics of electrons in phase coherent photorefractive ZnSe quantum wells grown on GaAs using degenerate three-beam four-wave-mixing. The measurements reveal electron capture times by the quantum well in the order of several tens of picoseconds and a transit time of approximately 5 picoseconds from the GaAs substrate through the ZnMgSe barrier.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2020

The concept of spin ice graphs and a field theory for their charges

Originally detected in rare earth pyrochlores, spin ice physics is now being artificially extended to a variety of geometries that control collective behavior and exotic properties, making graph theory their proper framework. We relate spin ice notions, such as ice rule, ice manifold, Coulomb phases, charges, and monopoles, to graph-theoretical notions, such as balance, in/out-degrees, and Euler paths. We then propose a field-theoretical treatment in which topological charges and monopoles are the degrees of freedom, while the binary spins are subsumed in an entropic interaction among charges. We show that for a spin ice on a graph in a Gaussian approximation, the kernel of the entropic interaction is the inverse of the graph Laplacian, and we compute screening functions from the graph spectra as Green operators for the screened Poisson problem on a graph. We then apply the treatment to star graphs, tournaments, cycles, and regular spin ice in different dimensions. Our aim is twofold: to set spin ice physics in a proper graph setting, where only topological rather than geometrical notions hold, and to invite graph theorists to contribute their powerful tools to the field of spin ice.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2019

Optical properties of high-pressure fluid hydrogen across molecular dissociation

Optical properties of compressed fluid hydrogen in the region where dissociation and metallization is observed are computed by ab initio methods and compared with recent experimental results. We confirm that at T > 3,000 K, both processes are continuous, while at T < 1,500 K, the first-order phase transition is accompanied by a discontinuity of the dc conductivity and the thermal conductivity, while both the reflectivity and absorption coefficient vary rapidly but continuously. Our results support the recent analysis of National Ignition Facility (NIF) experiments [Celliers PM, et al. (2018) Science 361:677–682], which assigned the inception of metallization to pressures where the reflectivity is ∼0.3. Our results also support the conclusion that the temperature plateau seen in laser-heated diamond-anvil cell (DAC) experiments at temperatures higher than 1,500 K corresponds to the onset of optical absorption, not to the phase transition.

74 ATOMIC AND MOLECULAR PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2022

Magnetic dilution effect and topological phase transitions in (Mn 1- x Pb x )Bi 2 Te 4

We report, as the first intrinsic antiferromagnetic topological insulator, MnBi 2 Te 4 has provided a material platform to realize various emergent phenomena arising from the interplay of magnetism and band topology. Here, by investigating (Mn 1-x Pb x )Bi 2 Te 4 (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.82) single crystals via the x-ray, electrical transport, magnetometry and neutron measurements, chemical analysis, external pressure, and first-principles calculations, we reveal the magnetic dilution effect on the magnetism and band topology in MnBi 2 Te 4 . With increasing x, both lattice parameters a and c expand linearly by around 2%. All samples undergo the paramagnetic to A-type antiferromagnetic transition with the Néel temperature decreasing lineally from 24 K at x = 0 to 2 K at x = 0.82. Our neutron data refinement of the x = 0.37 sample indicates that the ordered moment is 4.3(1)μ B /Mn at 4.85 K and the amount of the Mn Bi antisites is negligible within the error bars. Isothermal magnetization data reveal a slight decrease of the interlayer plane-plane antiferromagnetic exchange interaction and a monotonic decrease of the magnetic anisotropy due to diluting magnetic ions and enlarging the unit cell. For x = 0.37, the application of external pressures enhances the interlayer antiferromagnetic coupling, boosting the Néel temperature at a rate of 1.4 K/GPa and the saturation field at a rate of 1.8 T/GPa. Furthermore, our first-principles calculations reveal that the band inversion in the two end materials, MnBi 2 Te 4 and PbBi 2 Te 4 , occurs at the Γ and Z point, respectively, while two gapless points appear at x = 0.44 and x = 0.66, suggesting possible topological phase transitions with doping.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2013

Gamma-alpha Isostructural Transition in Cerium

We present zero-temperature first-principles calculations of elemental cerium and we compute its pressure-volume phase diagram within a theoretical framework able to describe simultaneously both the α and the γ phases. A surprising result revealed by our study is the presence of a clear signature of the transition at zero temperature and that this signature can be observed if and only if the spin-orbit coupling is taken into account. Our calculations indicate that the transition line in the pressure-temperature phase diagram of this material has a low-T critical point at negative pressures, placed very close to zero temperature. This suggests that cerium is very close to being “quantum critical,” in agreement with recent experiments.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2013

Disorder and pseudogap in strongly correlated systems: Phase diagram in the DMFT + {Sigma} approach

The influence of disorder and pseudogap fluctuations on the Mott insulator-metal transition in strongly correlated systems has been studied in the framework of the generalized dynamic mean field theory (DMFT + {Sigma} approach). Using the results of investigations of the density of states (DOS) and optical conductivity, a phase diagram (disorder-Hubbard interaction-temperature) is constructed for the paramagnetic Anderson-Hubbard model, which allows both the effects of strong electron correlations and the influence of strong disorder to be considered. Strong correlations are described using the DMFT, while a strong disorder is described using a generalized self-consistent theory of localization. The DOS and optical conductivity of the paramagnetic Hubbard model have been studied in a pseudogap state caused by antiferromagnetic spin (or charge) short-range order fluctuations with a finite correlation length, which have been modeled by a static Gaussian random field. The effect of a pseudogap on the Mott insulator-metal transition has been studied. It is established that, in both cases, the static Gaussian random field (related to the disorder or pseudogap fluctuations) leads to suppression of the Mott transition, broadening of the coexistence region of the insulator and metal phases, and an increase in the critical temperature at which the coexistence region disappears.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2019

Thermodynamic Relations among Isotropic Material Properties in Conditions of Plane Shear Stress

We present new general relationships among the material properties of an isotropic material kept in homogeneous stress conditions with hydrostatic pressure and plane shear. The derivation is not limited to the proximity of the zero shear-stress and -strain condition, which allows us to identify the relationship between adiabatic and isothermal shear compliances (inverse of the moduli of rigidity) along with new links, among others, between isobaric and isochoric shear thermal expansion coefficients and heat capacities at constant stress and constant shear strain. Such relationships are important for a variety of applications, including the determination of constitutive equations, the characterization of nanomaterials, and the identification of properties related to earthquakes precursors and complex media (e.g., soil) behavior. The results may be useful to investigate the behavior of materials during phase transitions involving shear or in non-homogeneous conditions within a local thermodynamic equilibrium framework.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2016

Surface and finite size effects impact on the phase diagrams, polar, and dielectric properties of (Sr,Bi)Ta{sub 2}O{sub 9} ferroelectric nanoparticles

In the framework of the thermodynamic approach Landau-Ginzburg-Devonshire (LGD) combined with the equations of electrostatics, we investigated the effect of polarization surface screening on finite size effects of the phase diagrams, polar, and dielectric properties of ferroelectric nanoparticles of different shapes. We obtained and analyzed the analytical results for the dependences of the ferroelectric phase transition temperature, critical size, spontaneous polarization, and thermodynamic coercive field on the shape and size of the nanoparticles. The pronounced size effect of these characteristics on the scaling parameter, the ratio of the particle characteristic size to the length of the surface screening, was revealed. Also our modeling predicts a significant impact of the flexo-chemical effect (that is a joint action of flexoelectric effect and chemical pressure) on the temperature of phase transition, polar, and dielectric properties of nanoparticles when their chemical composition deviates from the stoichiometric one. We showed on the example of the stoichiometric nanosized SrBi{sub 2}Ta{sub 2}O{sub 9} particles that except the vicinity of the critical size, where the system splitting into domains has an important role, results of analytical calculation of the spontaneous polarization have a little difference from the numerical ones. We revealed a strong impact of the flexo-chemical effect on the phase transition temperature, polar, and dielectric properties of Sr{sub y}Bi{sub 2+x}Ta{sub 2}O{sub 9} nanoparticles when the ratio Sr/Bi deviates from the stoichiometric value of 0.5 within the range from 0.35 to 0.65. From the analysis of experimental data, we derived the parameters of the theory, namely, the coefficients of expansion of the LGD functional, the contribution of flexo-chemical effect, and the length of the surface screening.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2023

Real-space imaging of periodic nanotextures in thin films via phasing of diffraction data

New properties and exotic quantum phenomena can form due to periodic nanotextures, including Moire patterns, ferroic domains, and topologically protected magnetization and polarization textures. Despite the availability of powerful tools to characterize the atomic crystal structure, the visualization of nanoscale strain-modulated structural motifs remains challenging. Here, we develop nondestructive real-space imaging of periodic lattice distortions in thin epitaxial films and report an emergent periodic nanotexture in a Mott insulator. Specifically, we combine iterative phase retrieval with unsupervised machine learning to invert the diffuse scattering pattern from conventional X-ray reciprocal-space maps into real-space images of crystalline displacements. Our imaging in PbTiO 3 /SrTiO 3 superlattices exhibiting checkerboard strain modulation substantiates published phase-field model calculations. Furthermore, the imaging of biaxially strained Mott insulator Ca 2 RuO 4 reveals a strain-induced nanotexture comprised of nanometer-thin metallic-structure wires separated by nanometer-thin Mott-insulating-structure walls, as confirmed by cryogenic scanning transmission electron microscopy (cryo-STEM). The nanotexture in Ca 2 RuO 4 film is induced by the metal-to-insulator transition and has not been reported in bulk crystals. We expect the phasing of diffuse X-ray scattering from thin crystalline films in combination with cryo-STEM to open a powerful avenue for discovering, visualizing, and quantifying the periodic strain-modulated structures in quantum materials.

Science & Technology - Other Topics↗
DOE OSTI2016

Baryogenesis and gravitational waves from runaway bubble collisions

We propose a novel mechanism for production of baryonic asymmetry in the early Universe. The mechanism takes advantage of the strong first order phase transition that produces runaway bubbles in the hidden sector that propagate almost without friction with ultra-relativistic velocities. Collisions of such bubbles can non-thermally produce heavy particles that further decay out-of-equilibrium into the SM and produce the observed baryonic asymmetry. This process can proceed at the very low temperatures, providing a new mechanism of post-sphaleron baryogenesis. In this paper we present a fully calculable model which produces the baryonic asymmetry along these lines as well as evades all the existing cosmological constraints. We emphasize that the Gravitational Waves signal from the first order phase transition is completely generic and can potentially be detected by the future eLISA interferometer. We also discuss other potential signals, which are more model dependent, and point out the unresolved theoretical questions related to our proposal.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2014

Final Report, DOE grant DE-FG02-99ER45780, "Indirect Excitons in Coupled Quantum Wells"

The is the final technical report for this project, which was funded by the DOE from 1999 to 2012. The project focused on experimental studies of spatially indirect excitons in coupled quantum wells, with the aim of understanding the quantum physics of these particles, including such effects as pattern formation due to electron-hole charge separation, the Mott plasma-insulator transition, luminescence up-conversion through field-assisted tunneling, luminescence line shifts due to many-body renormalization and magnetic field effects on tunneling, and proposed effects such as Bose-Einstein condensation of indirect excitons and phase separation of bright and dark indirect excitons. Significant results are summarized here and the relation to other work is discussed.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2017

Universal properties of the FQH state from the topological entanglement entropy and disorder effects

The topological entanglement entropy (TEE) is a robust measurement of the quantum many-body state with topological order. In fractional quantum Hall (FQH) state, it has a connection to the quantum dimension of the state itself and its quasihole excitations from the conformal field theory (CFT) description. We study the entanglement entropy (EE) in the Moore–Read (MR) and Read–Rezayi (RR) FQH states. The non-Abelian quasihole excitation induces an extra correction of the TEE which is related to its quantum dimension. With considering the effects of the disorder, the ground state TEE is stable before the spectral gap closing and the level statistics seems to have significant change with a stronger disorder, which indicates a many-body localization (MBL) transition. - Highlights: • The TEE in Read–Rezayi FQH series are studied on cylinder in real space. • Ground state TEE is robust before gap closing in the presence of the disorder. • Strong disorder drives the system into a MBL phase.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2019

The quantum Hall effect at a weak magnetic field

Using a weak limit for the hopping integral in one direction in the Hofstadter model, we show that the fermion states in the gaps of the spectrum are determined within the Kitaev chain. The proposed approach allows us to study the behavior of Chern insulators (CI) in different classes of symmetry. We consider the Hofstadter model on the square and honeycomb lattices in the case of rational and irrational magnetic fluxes ϕ, and discuss the behavior of the Hall conductance at a weak magnetic field in a sample of finite size. We show that in the semiclassical limit at the center of the fermion spectrum, the Bloch states of fermions turn into chiral Majorana fermion liquid when the magnetic scale (1/ϕ) is equal to the sample size N. We are talking about the dielectric–metal phase transition, which is determined by the behavior of the Landau levels in 2D fermion systems in a transverse magnetic field. When a magnetic scale, which determines the wave function of fermions, exceeds the size of the sample, a jump in the longitudinal conductance occurs. The wave function describes non-localized states of fermions, the sample becomes a conductor, the system changes from the dielectric state to the metallic one. It is shown, that at 1∕ϕ>N the quantum Hall effect and the Landau levels are not realized, which makes possibility to study the behavior of CI in irrational magnetic fluxes.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Fabrication and characterization of organic solar cells using metal complex of phthalocyanines

Fabrication and characterization of organic solar cells using shuttle-cock-type phthalocyanines were carried out. Photovoltaic properties of the solar cells with inverted structures were investigated by current density-voltage characteristics. Effects of phase transition between H and J aggregates on the photovoltaic and optical properties were investigated. The photovoltaic mechanisms, energy levels and band gap of active layers were discussed.

30 DIRECT ENERGY CONVERSION↗
DOE OSTI2017

Magnetic order-disorder transitions on a one-third-depleted square lattice

Quantum Monte Carlo simulations are used to study the magnetic and transport properties of the Hubbard Model, and its strong coupling Heisenberg limit, on a one-third depleted square lattice. This is the geometry occupied, after charge ordering, by the spin-$\frac{1}{2}$ Ni 1+ atoms in a single layer of the nickelate materials La 4 Ni 3 O 8 and (predicted) La 3 Ni 2 O 6 . Our model is also a description of strained graphene, where a honeycomb lattice has bond strengths which are inequivalent. For the Heisenberg case, we determine the location of the quantum critical point (QCP) where there is an onset of long range antiferromagnetic order (LRAFO), and the magnitude of the order parameter, and then compare with results of spin wave theory. An ordered phase also exists when electrons are itinerant. Finally, in this case, the growth in the antiferromagnetic structure factor coincides with the transition from band insulator to metal in the absence of interactions.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗