Blog
- New study reveals spin in quantum dots' carrier multiplication 18/07/2023 A new approach to developing semiconductor materials at tiny scales could help boost applications that rely on converting light to energy. A Los Alamos-led research team incorporated magnetic dopants into specially engineered colloidal quantum dots—nanoscale-size semiconductor crystals—and was able to achieve effects that may power solar cell technology, photo detectors and applications that depend on light to drive chemical reactions.
- 3D pattern generation via chemical vapor deposition of ceramic eutectic system for novel solid-state phosphors 13/07/2023 The eutectic structure of metals and ceramics occurs when multiple solid phases solidify from a liquid phase, forming a three-dimensional (3D) pattern through a self-organizing phenomenon. Traditionally, it was believed that eutectic structures could only be obtained through a melt-solidification process.
- Researchers develop a new source of quantum light 11/07/2023 Using novel materials that have been widely studied as potential new solar photovoltaics, researchers at MIT have shown that nanoparticles of these materials can emit a stream of single, identical photons.
- Researchers demonstrate single-molecule electronic 'switch' using ladder-like molecules 06/07/2023 Researchers have demonstrated a new material for single-molecule electronic switches, which can effectively vary current at the nanoscale in response to external stimuli. The material for this molecular switch has a unique structure created by locking a linear molecular backbone into a ladder-type structure. A new study finds that the ladder-type molecular structure greatly enhances the stability of the material, making it highly promising for use in single-molecule electronics applications.
- Discovering features of band topology in amorphous thin films 04/07/2023 In recent years, scientists have been studying special materials called topological materials, with special attention paid to the shape, or topology, of their electronic structures (electronic bands). Although it is not visible in real space, their unusual shape in topological materials produces various unique properties that can be suitable for making next-generation devices.
- Combining Twistronics with Spintronics Could Be the Next Giant Leap in Quantum Electronics 29/06/2023 Twistronics isn't a new dance move, exercise equipment, or new music fad. No, it's much cooler than any of that. It is an exciting new development in quantum physics and material science where van der Waals materials are stacked on top of each other in layers, like sheets of paper in a ream that can easily twist and rotate while remaining flat, and quantum physicists have used these stacks to discover intriguing quantum phenomena.
- New low-temperature synthesis method for high-quality tellurium nanomesh for next-gen electronics 27/06/2023 A collaborative team led by researchers from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) recently invented an innovative method for synthesizing high-quality, semiconducting nanomesh at a lower temperature and production cost than conventional methods. The findings will help enable the large-scale production of nanomesh for next-generation electronics.
- Exploring gravity's effect on quantum spins 22/06/2023 A joint research group led by Prof. Sheng Dong and Prof. Lu Zhengtian from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), investigated the coupling effect between neutron spin and gravitational force via employing a high-precision xenon isotope magnetometer. This work was published in Physical Review Letters.
- Designing spin and orbital sources of Berry curvature at oxide interfaces 20/06/2023 Quantum materials can display physical phenomena rooted in the geometry of electronic wavefunctions. The corresponding geometric tensor is characterized by an emergent field known as the Berry curvature (BC). Large BCs typically arise when electronic states with different spin, orbital or sublattice quantum numbers hybridize at finite crystal momentum. In all the materials known to date, the BC is triggered by the hybridization of a single type of quantum number. Here we report the discovery of the first material system having both spin- and orbital-sourced BC: LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interfaces grown along the [111] direction. We independently detect these two sources and probe the BC associated to the spin quantum number through the measurements of an anomalous planar Hall effect. The observation of a nonlinear Hall effect with time-reversal symmetry signals large orbital-mediated BC dipoles. The coexistence of different forms of BC enables the combination of spintronic and optoelectronic functionalities in a single material.
- The Sun rises on perovskites 15/06/2023 With the first solar cells scheduled for commercial sale this year, Tim Wogan looks at the long, hard road to producing stable perovskite photovoltaics
- New model found for microsphere-enhanced interferometry 13/06/2023 Optical measurement techniques collecting light intensity in the far-field such as conventional and confocal microscopy or coherence scanning interferometry (CSI) enable fast and contactless inspection of several types of specimens. Nonetheless, optical measurement instruments suffer from diffraction effects leading to a fundamental lateral resolution limitation given by the minimum resolvable period length of Abbe-limit and the objective lens's numerical aperture (NA).