Field emission properties of carbon nanotube arrays with defects and impurities

Field emission from carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in the form of arrays or thin films give rise to several strongly correlated process of electromechanical interaction and degradation. Such processes are mainly due to (1) electron-phonon interaction (2) electromechanical force field leading to stretching of CNTs (3) ballistic transport induced thermal spikes, coupled with high dynamic stress, leading to degradation of emission performance at the device scale. Fairly detailed physics based models of CNTs considering the aspects (1) and (2) above have already been developed by these authors, and numerical results indicate good agreement with experimental results. What is missing in such a system level modeling approach is the incorporation of structural defects and vacancies or charge impurities. This is a practical and important problem due to the fact that degradation of field emission performance is indeed observed in experimental I-V curves. What is not clear from these experiments is whether such degradation in the I-V response is due to dynamic reorientation of the CNTs or due to the defects or due to both of these effects combined. Non-equilibrium Green’s function based simulations using a tight-binding Hamiltonian for single CNT segment show up the localization of carrier density at various locations of the CNTs. About 11% decrease in the drive current with steady difference in the drain current in the range of 0.2-0.4V of the gate voltage was reported in literature when negative charge impurity was introduced at various locations of the CNT over a length of ~20nm. In the context of field emission from CNT tips, a simplistic estimate of defects have been introduced by a correction factor in the Fowler-Nordheim formulae. However, a more detailed physics based treatment is required, while at the same time the device-scale simulation is necessary. The novelty of our present approach is the following. We employ a concept of effective stiffness degradation for segments of CNTs, which is due to structural defects, and subsequently, we incorporate the vacancy defects and charge impurity effects in the Green’s function based approach. Field emission induced current-voltage characteristics of a vertically aligned CNT array on a Cu-Cr substrate is then simulated using a detailed nonlinear mechanistic model of CNTs coupled with quantum hydrodynamics. An array of 10 vertically aligned and each 12 m long CNTs is considered for the device scale analysis. Defect regions are introduced randomly over the CNT length. The result shows the decrease in the longitudinal strain due to defects. Contrary to the expected influence of purely mechanical degradation, this result indicates that the charge impurity and hence weaker transport can lead to a different electromechanical force field, which ultimately can reduce the strain. However, there could be significant fluctuation in such strain field due to electron-phonon coupling. The effect of such fluctuations (with defects) is clearly evident in the field emission current history. The average current also decreases significantly due to such defects.

Origin of structural defects in multiwall carbon nanotube

We investigate the walls of the defective multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT), and give possible mechanism for the formation of defective structure. A generalized model has been proposed for the MWCNT. which consists of (a) catalyst part, (b) embryo part and (c) full grown part. We claim that the weak embryo portion of the MWCNT, is structurally undeveloped. The stress due to pressure imbalance between inside and outside of the MWCNT during growth along with axial load at the embryo portion causes distortion, which is the source of bending and making the walls of the MWCNT off-concentric. At the later stage the stressed embryo retain the distorted structure and get transformed into fully gown defective CNT. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Mutations in Drosophila Myosin Rod Cause Defects in Myofibril Assembly

The roles of myosin during muscle contraction are well studied, but how different domains of this protein are involved in myofibril assembly in vivo is far less understood. The indirect flight muscles (IFMs) of Drosophila melanogaster provide a good model for understanding muscle development and function in vivo. We show that two missense mutations in the rod region of the myosin heavy-chain gene, Mhc, give rise to IFM defects and abnormal myofibrils. These defects likely result from thick filament abnormalities that manifest during early sarcomere development or later by hypercontraction. The thick filament defects are accompanied by marked reduction in accumulation of flightin, a myosin binding protein, and its phosphorylated forms, which are required to stabilise thick filaments. We investigated with purified rod fragments whether the mutations affect the coiled-coil structure, rod aggregate size or rod stability. No significant changes in these parameters were detected, except for rod thermodynamic stability in one mutation. Molecular dynamics simulations suggest that these mutations may produce localised rod instabilities. We conclude that the aberrant myofibrils are a result of thick filament defects, but that these in vivo effects cannot be detected in vitro using the biophysical techniques employed. The in vivo investigation of these mutant phenotypes in IFM development and function provides a useful platform for studying myosin rod and thick filament formation generically, with application to the aetiology of human myosin rod myopathies. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Superconducting fluctuations and anomalous phonon renormalization much above superconducting transition temperature in Ca4Al2O5.7Fe2As2

Raman studies on Ca4Al2O5.7Fe2As2 superconductor in the temperature range of 5K to 300 K, covering the superconducting transition temperature T-c = 28.3 K, reveal that the Raman mode at similar to 230 cm(-1) shows a sharp jump in frequency by similar to 2% and linewidth increases by similar to 175% at T-o similar to 60 K. Below T-o, anomalous softening of the mode frequency and a large decrease by similar to 10 cm(-1) in the linewidth are observed. These precursor effects at T-0 (similar to 2T(c)) are attributed to significant superconducting fluctuations, possibly enhanced due to reduced dimensionality arising from weak coupling between the well separated (similar to 15 angstrom) Fe-As layers in the unit cell. A large blue-shift of the mode frequency between 300 K and 60 K (similar to 7%) indicates strong spin-phonon coupling in this superconductor. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4724206]

Nonstoichiometry, defects and thermodynamic properties of YFeO3, YFe2O4 and Y3Fe5O12

Oxygen nonstoichiometry of three ternary oxides. YFeO3-delta, YFe2O4-alpha and Y3Fe5O12-theta. in the system Y-Fe-O was investigated as a function of oxygen partial pressure by thermogravimetry at high temperature. The defects responsible for nonstoichiometry were identified as oxygen vacancies for YFeO3-delta and YFe2O4-alpha although the manner of variation of nonstoichiometric parameter with oxygen partial pressure for these two oxides is quite different. Cation interstitials are the predominant defects in Y3Fe5O12-theta. Gibbs energies of formation of the three nonstoichiometric oxides were determined using solid-state electrochemical cells in the temperature range from 975 to 1475 K. YFe2O4-alpha was found to be stable only above 1391 K. Gibbs energies of formation of the three stoichiometric compounds from their component binary oxides were obtained by combining information from solid state cells with results of thermogravimetric analysis using the Gibbs-Duhem relation. The results can be summarized as: (1/2)Y2O3 + (1/2)Fe2O3 -> YFeO3;Delta G(f(ox))(O)(+/- 250)(J/mol) = 17, 126-8.263T (1/2)Y2O3 + FeO + (1/2)Fe2O3 -> YFe2O4;Delta G(f(ox))(O)(+/- 260)(J/mol) = -10,352-13.24T (3/2)Y2O3 + (5/2)Fe2O3 -> Y3Fe5O12;Delta G(f(ox))(O)(+/- 780)(J/mol) = -56, 647-31.091T. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

ZnO/Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) Poly(styrenesulfonate) Based Ultraviolet and Visible Photodetectors: Role of Defects

Here, we report the ZnO/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) based photodetectors that can response to ultraviolet as well as visible light. The temporal response of the heterostructures for various excitations in the ultraviolet (UV) and visible range are performed. The time constants are found to be excitation-dependent, the response to visible light is better as compared to UV. The reason behind the better response to UV light is the high level of defects present in ZnO as confirmed by the photoluminescence (PL) measurements. This is corroborated by the time resolved fluorescence (TRF) measurements which provides sufficient information behind the slow response time under the UV excitations. The possible explanation being the non-radiative recombinations occurring due to the traps or impurities present in the film which slows down the photoresponse.

Acoustic and optical phonon dynamics from femtosecond time-resolved optical spectroscopy of the superconducting iron pnictide Ca(Fe0.944Co0.056)(2)As-2

We report the temperature evolution of coherently excited acoustic and optical phonon dynamics in the superconducting iron pnictide single crystal Ca(Fe0.944Co0.056)(2)As-2 across the spin density wave transition at T-SDW similar to 85 K and the superconducting transition at T-SC similar to 20 K. The strain pulse propagation model applied to the generation of the acoustic phonons yields the temperature dependence of the optical constants, and longitudinal and transverse sound velocities in the temperature range from 3.1 K to 300 K. The frequency and dephasing times of the phonons show anomalous temperature dependence below T-SC indicating a coupling of these low-energy excitations with the Cooper-pair quasiparticles. A maximum in the amplitude of the acoustic modes at T similar to 170 is seen, attributed to spin fluctuations and strong spin-lattice coupling before T-SDW. Copyright (c) EPLA, 2012

Majorana fermions in superconducting 1D systems having periodic, quasiperiodic, and disordered potentials

We present a unified study of the effect of periodic, quasiperiodic, and disordered potentials on topological phases that are characterized by Majorana end modes in one-dimensional p-wave superconducting systems. We define a topological invariant derived from the equations of motion for Majorana modes and, as our first application, employ it to characterize the phase diagram for simple periodic structures. Our general result is a relation between the topological invariant and the normal state localization length. This link allows us to leverage the considerable literature on localization physics and obtain the topological phase diagrams and their salient features for quasiperiodic and disordered systems for the entire region of parameter space. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.110.146404

Surface ferromagnetism and superconducting properties of nanocrystalline niobium nitride

Nanocrystalline delta-NbNx samples have been synthesized by reacting NbCl5 and urea at three different temperatures. A comparison of their structural, magnetic, transport and thermal properties is reported in the present study. The size of the particles and their agglomeration extent increase with increasing reaction temperature. The sample prepared at 900 degrees C showed the highest superconducting transition temperature (T-c) of 16.2 K with a transition width, similar to 1.8 K, as obtained from the resistivity measurement on cold-pressed bars. Above T-c, magnetization measurements revealed the presence of surface ferromagnetism which coexists with superconductivity below T-c. Heat capacity measurements confirm superconductivity with strong electron-phonon coupling constant. The sample prepared at 800 degrees C shows a lower T-c (10 K) while that prepared at 700 degrees C exhibit no superconductivity down to the lowest temperature (3 K) measured.

Ultrafast quasiparticle relaxation dynamics in superconducting iron pnictide Ca(Fe0.944Co0.056)(2)As-2

Nonequilibrium quasiparticle relaxation dynamics is reported in superconducting Ca(Fe0.944Co0.056)(2)As-2 single crystals by measuring transient reflectivity changes using femtosecond time-resolved pump-probe spectroscopy. Large changes in the temperature-dependent differential reflectivity values in the vicinity of the spin density wave (T-SDW) and superconducting (T-SC) transition temperatures of the sample have been inferred to have charge gap opening at those temperatures. We have estimated the zero-temperature charge gap value in the superconducting state to be similar to 1.8k(B)T(SC) and an electron-phonon coupling constant lambda of similar to 0.1 in the normal state that signifies the weak coupling in iron pnictides. From the peculiar temperature-dependence of the quasiparticle dynamics in the intermediate temperature region between T-SC and T-SDW we infer a temperature scale where the charge gap associated with the spin ordered phase is maximum and closes on either side while approaching the two phase transition temperatures.

Interstitial Defects Induced Ferroelectricity in Undoped ZnO Nanorods at Room Temperature

A simple approach for obtaining room temperature ferroelectricity in ZnO rod structures at the nanoscale is reported. A systematic comparative study between two kinds of nanorods prepared by different processes reveals the physics behind it. It is observed that ZnO nanorods grown (in-situ) by a sol gel method on platinum substrate show ferroelectric behaviour. On the contrary, ZnO nanorods first grown by a sol gel method and then spin-coated on a platinum substrate (ex-situ) do not demonstrate this kind of feature. X-ray diffraction analysis confirms partially (002) and (100) plane oriented growth of both samples. From photoluminescence (PL) spectral analysis it is interpreted that oxygen vacancies/zinc interstitial defects, which arises from the large lattice mismatch between the Pt substrate and the ZnO nanorods grown thereon, and preferential ZnO growth along 002], can be causes of this type of phenomena. C-V characterization, P-E hysteresis loop along with piezoelectric force microscopy support this observation.

Investigating thermal stability of structural defects and its effect on d(0) ferromagnetism in undoped SnO2

The effect of annealing on structural defects and d(0) ferromagnetism in SnO2 nanoparticles prepared by solution combustion method is investigated. The as-synthesized SnO2 nanoparticles were annealed at 400-800 degrees C for 2 h, in ambient conditions. The crystallinity, size, and morphology of the samples were studied using x-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy studies. The annealing results in grain growth due to coarsening as well as reduction in oxygen vacancies as confirmed by Raman spectroscopy, photoluminescence spectroscopy, and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. All the as synthesized and annealed samples exhibit room temperature ferromagnetism (RTFM) with distinct hysteresis loops and the saturation magnetization as high as similar to 0.02 emu/g in as-synthesized samples. However, the saturation magnetization is drastically reduced with increasing annealing temperature. Further the presence of singly charged oxygen vacancies (V-o(-) signal at g-value 1.99) is confirmed by electron paramagnetic resonance studies, which also diminish with increasing annealing temperature. The observed diminishing RTFM and simultaneous evidences of diminishing O vacancies clearly indicate that RTFM is driven by defects in oxide lattice and confirms primary role of oxygen vacancies in inducing ferromagnetic ordering in metal oxide semiconductors. The study also provides improved fundamental understanding regarding the ambiguity in the origin of intrinsic RTFM in semiconducting metal oxides and projects their technological application in the field of spintronics. (C) 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.

Effect of Stress and Interface defects on Photo Luminescence of Si nano-crystals embedded in SiO2

Effect of stress and interface defects on photo luminescence property of a silicon nano-crystal (Si-nc) embedded in amorphous silicon dioxide (a-SiO2) are studied in this paper using a self-consistent quantum-continuum based modeling framework. Si-ncs or quantum dots show photoluminescence at room temperature. Whether its origin is due to Si-nc/a-SiO2 interface defects or quantum confinement of carriers in Si-nc is still an outstanding question. Earlier reports have shown that stresses greater than 12 GPa change the indirect energy band gap structure of bulk Si to a direct energy band gap structure. Such stresses are observed very often in nanostructures and these stresses influence the carrier confinement energy significantly. Hence, it is important to determine the effect of stress in addition to the structure of interface defects on photoluminescence property of Si-nc. In the present work, first a Si-nc embedded in a-SiO2 is constructed using molecular dynamics simulation framework considering the actual conditions they are grown so that the interface and residual stress in the structure evolves naturally during formation. We observe that the structure thus created has an interface of about 1 nm thick consisting of 41.95% of defective states mostly Sin+ (n = 0 to 3) coordination states. Further, both the Si-nc core and the embedding matrix are observed to be under a compressive strain. This residual strain field is applied in an effective mass k.p Hamiltonian formulation to determine the energy states of the carriers. The photo luminescence property computed based on the carrier confinement energy and interface energy states associated with defects will be analysed in details in the paper.

Majorana fermions in superconducting wires: Effects of long-range hopping, broken time-reversal symmetry, and potential landscapes

We present a comprehensive study of two of the most experimentally relevant extensions of Kitaev's spinless model of a one-dimensional p-wave superconductor: those involving (i) longer-range hopping and superconductivity and (ii) inhomogeneous potentials. We commence with a pedagogical review of the spinless model and, as a means of characterizing topological phases exhibited by the systems studied here, we introduce bulk topological invariants as well as those derived from an explicit consideration of boundary modes. In time-reversal symmetric systems, we find that the longer range hopping leads to topological phases characterized by multiple Majorana modes. In particular, we investigate a spin model that respects a duality and maps to a fermionic model with multiple Majorana modes; we highlight the connection between these topological phases and the broken symmetry phases in the original spin model. In the presence of time-reversal symmetry breaking terms, we show that the topological phase diagram is characterized by an extended gapless regime. For the case of inhomogeneous potentials, we explore phase diagrams of periodic, quasiperiodic, and disordered systems. We present a detailed mapping between normal state localization properties of such systems and the topological phases of the corresponding superconducting systems. This powerful tool allows us to leverage the analyses of Hofstadter's butterfly and the vast literature on Anderson localization to the question of Majorana modes in superconducting quasiperiodic and disordered systems, respectively. We briefly touch upon the synergistic effects that can be expected in cases where long-range hopping and disorder are both present.

Negative differential resistance and effect of defects and deformations in MoS2 armchair nanoribbon metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor

In this work, we present a study on the negative differential resistance (NDR) behavior and the impact of various deformations (like ripple, twist, wrap) and defects like vacancies and edge roughness on the electronic properties of short-channel MoS2 armchair nanoribbon MOSFETs. The effect of deformation (3 degrees-7 degrees twist or wrap and 0.3-0.7 angstrom ripple amplitude) and defects on a 10 nm MoS2 ANR FET is evaluated by the density functional tight binding theory and the non-equilibrium Green's function approach. We study the channel density of states, transmission spectra, and the I-D-V-D characteristics of such devices under the varying conditions, with focus on the NDR behavior. Our results show significant change in the NDR peak to valley ratio and the NDR window with such minor intrinsic deformations, especially with the ripple. (C) 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.