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Bang-Fen Zhu

Publications and source records attributed to Bang-Fen Zhu.

18 recordsLinked to original sources

Electrically tunable multiple Dirac cones in thin films of (LaO)2(SbSe2)2 family of materials

Two-dimensional Dirac physics has aroused great interests in condensed matter physics ever since the discovery of graphene and topological insulators due to its importance in both fundamental physics and device applications. The ability to control the properties of Dirac cones, such as bandgap and Fermi velocity, is essential for the occurrence of various new phenomena and the development of next-generation electronic devices. Based on first-principles calculations and an analytical effective model, we propose a new Dirac system with eight Dirac cones in thin films of the (LaO)2(SbSe2)2 family of materials with an external gate voltage. The advantage of this system lies in its tunability: the existence of gapless Dirac cones, their positions, Fermi velocities and anisotropy all can be controlled by an experimentally feasible gate voltage. We identify the layer dependent spin texture induced by spin-orbit coupling as the underlying physical reason for the tunability of Dirac cones in this system. As a consequence, we show that the electrically tunable quantum anomalous Hall effect with a high Chern number can be induced by introducing magnetization into this system.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Effects of excitation frequency on high-order terahertz sideband generation in semiconductors

We theoretically investigate the effects of the excitation frequency on the plateau of high-order terahertz sideband generation (HSG) in semiconductors driven by intense terahertz (THz) fields. We find that the plateau of the sideband spectrum strongly depends on the detuning between the NIR laser field and the band gap. We use the quantum trajectory theory (three-step model) to understand the HSG. In the three-step model, an electron-hole pair is first excited by a weak laser, then driven by the strong THz field, and finally recombine to emit a photon with energy gain. When the laser is tuned below the band gap (negative detuning), the electron-hole generation is a virtual process that requires quantum tunneling to occur. When the energy gained by the electron-hole pair from the THz field is less than 3.2 times the ponderomotive energy, the electron and the hole can be driven to the same position and recombine without quantum tunneling, so the HSG will have large probability amplitude. This leads to a plateau feature of the HSG spectrum with a high-frequency cutoff at about 3.2 times the ponderomotive energy above the band gap. Such a plateau feature is similar to the case of high-order harmonics generation in atoms where electrons have to overcome the binding energy to escape the atomic core. A particularly interesting excitation condition in HSG is that the laser can be tuned above the band gap (positive detuning), corresponding to the unphysical "negative" binding energy in atoms for high-order harmonic generation. Now the electron-hole pair is generation by real excitation, but the recombination process can be real or virtual depending on the energy gained from the THz field, which determines the plateau feature in HSG.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Single Dirac point and helical states in a one-dimensional system

Odd numbers of Dirac points and helical states can exist at edges (surfaces) of two-dimensional (three-dimensional) topological insulators. In the bulk of a one-dimensional lattice (not an edge) with time reversal symmetry, however, a no-go theorem forbids the existence of an odd number of Dirac points or helical states. Introducing a magnetic field can violate the time reversal condition but would usually lift the degeneracy at the Dirac points. We find that a spatially periodic magnetic field with zero mean value can induce a single Dirac point in a one-dimensional system with spin-orbit coupling. A wealth of new physics may emerge due to the existence of a single Dirac point and helical states in the bulk of a one-dimensional lattice (rather than edge states). A series of quantized numbers emerge due to the non-trivial topology of the 1D helical states, including the doubled period of helical Bloch oscillations, quantized conductance near the Dirac point, and 1/2-charge solitons at mass kinks. Such a system can be realized in one-dimensional semiconductor systems or in optical traps of atoms.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Elastic scattering of surface states on three-dimensional topological insulators

Topological insulators as new type of quantum matter materials are characterized by a full insulating gap in the bulk and gapless edge/surface states which are protected by time-reversal symmetry. We propose the interference patterns caused by elastic scattering of defects or impurities are dominated by surface states at the extremal points on the constant energy contour. Within such formalism, we summarize our recent theoretical investigations on elastic scattering of topological surface states by various imperfections, including the non-magnetic impurities, magnetic impurities, step-edges, and various other defects, in comparison with recent related experiments in typical topological materials such as BiSb alloys, Bi$_2$Te$_3$ and Bi$_2$Se$_3$ crystals.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Optical effects of spin currents in semiconductors

A spin current has novel linear and second-order nonlinear optical effects due to its symmetry properties. With the symmetry analysis and the eight-band microscopic calculation we have systematically investigated the interaction between a spin current and a polarized light beam (or the "photon spin current") in direct-gap semiconductors. This interaction is rooted in the intrinsic spin-orbit coupling in valence bands and does not rely on the Rashba or Dresselhaus effect. The light-spin current interaction results in an optical birefringence effect of the spin current. The symmetry analysis indicates that in a semiconductor with inversion symmetry, the linear birefringence effect vanishes and only the circular birefringence effect exists. The circular birefringence effect is similar to the Faraday rotation in magneto-optics but involves no net magnetization nor breaking the time-reversal symmetry. Moreover, a spin current can induce the second-order nonlinear optical processes due to the inversion-symmetry breaking. These findings form a basis of measuring a pure spin current where and when it flows with the standard optical spectroscopy, which may provide a toolbox to explore a wealth of physics connecting the spintronics and photonics.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Topological p-n Junction

We consider a junction between surface $p$-type and surface $n$-type on an ideal topological insulator in which carrier type and density in two adjacent regions are locally controlled by composition graded doping or electrical gating. Such junction setting on topological insulators are fundamental for possible device application. A single gapless chiral edge state localized along the junction interface appears in the presence of an external magnetic field, and it can be probed by scanning tunneling microscopy and transport measurements. We propose to realize this topological \emph{p-n} junction in (Bi$_{1-x}$Sb$_x$)$_2$Te$_3$, which has insulating bulk properties and a tunable surface state across the Dirac cone.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Power-Law Decay of Standing Waves on the Surface of Topological Insulators

We propose a general theory on the standing waves (quasiparticle interference pattern) caused by the scattering of surface states off step edges in topological insulators, in which the extremal points on the constant energy contour of surface band play the dominant role. Experimentally we image the interference patterns on both Bi$_2$Te$_3$ and Bi$_2$Se$_3$ films by measuring the local density of states using a scanning tunneling microscope. The observed decay indices of the standing waves agree excellently with the theoretical prediction: In Bi$_2$Se$_3$, only a single decay index of -3/2 exists; while in Bi$_2$Te$_3$ with strongly warped surface band, it varies from -3/2 to -1/2 and finally to -1 as the energy increases. The -1/2 decay indicates that the suppression of backscattering due to time-reversal symmetry does not necessarily lead to a spatial decay rate faster than that in the conventional two-dimensional electron system. Our formalism can also explain the characteristic scattering wave vectors of the standing wave caused by non-magnetic impurities on Bi$_2$Te$_3$.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Landau Quantization of Massless Dirac Fermions in Topological Insulator

The recent theoretical prediction and experimental realization of topological insulators (TI) has generated intense interest in this new state of quantum matter. The surface states of a three-dimensional (3D) TI such as Bi_2Te_3, Bi_2Se_3 and Sb_2Te_3 consist of a single massless Dirac cones. Crossing of the two surface state branches with opposite spins in the materials is fully protected by the time reversal (TR) symmetry at the Dirac points, which cannot be destroyed by any TR invariant perturbation. Recent advances in thin-film growth have permitted this unique two-dimensional electron system (2DES) to be probed by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and spectroscopy (STS). The intriguing TR symmetry protected topological states were revealed in STM experiments where the backscattering induced by non-magnetic impurities was forbidden. Here we report the Landau quantization of the topological surface states in Bi_2Se_3 in magnetic field by using STM/STS. The direct observation of the discrete Landau levels (LLs) strongly supports the 2D nature of the topological states and gives direct proof of the nondegenerate structure of LLs in TI. We demonstrate the linear dispersion of the massless Dirac fermions by the square-root dependence of LLs on magnetic field. The formation of LLs implies the high mobility of the 2DES, which has been predicted to lead to topological magneto-electric effect of the TI.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Second-order nonlinear optical effects of spin currents

A pure spin current formed by opposite spins moving in opposite directions is a rank-2 axial tensor which breaks the inversion symmetry. Thus a spin current has a second-order optical susceptibility, with unique polarization-dependence determined by the symmetry properties of the current. In particular, a longitudinal spin current, in which the spin polarization directions are parallel or anti-parallel to the moving directions, being a chiral quantity, leads to a chiral sum-frequency effect. Microscopic calculations based on the eight-band model of a III-V compound semiconductor confirm the symmetry analysis and show that the susceptibility is quite measurable under realistic conditions. The second-order nonlinear optical effects may be used for in-situ and non-destructive detection of spin currents, as a standard spectroscopy tool in research of spintronics.

cond-mat.other

Optical phonon scattering and theory of magneto-polarons in a quantum cascade laser in a strong magnetic field

We report a theoretical study of the carrier relaxation in a quantum cascade laser (QCL) subjected to a strong magnetic field. Both the alloy (GaInAs) disorder effects and the Frohlich interaction are taken into account when the electron energy differences are tuned to the longitudinal optical (LO) phonon energy. In the weak electron-phonon coupling regime, a Fermi's golden rule computation of LO phonon scattering rates shows a very fast non-radiative relaxation channel for the alloy broadened Landau levels (LL's). In the strong electron-phonon coupling regime, we use a magneto-polaron formalism and compute the electron survival probabilities in the upper LL's with including increasing numbers of LO phonon modes for a large number of alloy disorder configurations. Our results predict a nonexponential decay of the upper level population once electrons are injected in this state.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Direct measurement of a pure spin current by a polarized light beam

The photon helicity may be mapped to a spin-1/2, whereby we put forward an intrinsic interaction between a polarized light beam as a ``photon spin current'' and a pure spin current in a semiconductor, which arises from the spin-orbit coupling in valence bands as a pure relativity effect without involving the Rashba or the Dresselhaus effect due to inversion asymmetries. The interaction leads to circular optical birefringence, which is similar to the Faraday rotation in magneto-optics but nevertheless involve no net magnetization. The birefringence effect provide a direct, non-demolition measurement of pure spin currents.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Anisotropic transport for $ν=2/5$ FQH state at intermediate magnetic field

The $ν=2/5$ state is spin-unpolarized at weak magnetic field and fully polarized at strong field. At intermediate field, a plateau of half the maximal polarization is observed. We study this phenomenon in the frame of composite fermion theory. Due to the mixing of the composite fermion Landau levels, the unidirectional charge/spin density wave state of composite fermions is lower in energy than the Wigner crystal. It means that transport anisotropy, similar to those for electrons in higher Landau levels at half fillings, may take place at this fractional quantum Hall state when the external magnetic field is in an appropriate range. When the magnetic field is tilted an angle, the easy transport direction is perpendicular to the direction of the in-plane field. Varying the partial filling factor of composite fermion Landau level from 0 to 1, we find that the energy minimum occurs in the vicinity of one-half.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Tunable Fano effect in parallel-coupled double quantum dot system

With the help of the Green function technique and the equation of motion approach, the electronic transport through a parallel-coupled double quantum dot(DQD) is theoretically studied. Owing to the inter-dot coupling, the bonding and antibonding states of the artificial quantum-dot-molecule may constitute an appropriate basis set. Based on this picture, the Fano interference in the conductance spectra of the DQD system is readily explained. The possibility of manipulating the Fano lineshape in the tunnelling spectra of the DQD system is explored by tuning the dot-lead coupling, the inter-dot coupling, the magnetic flux threading the ring connecting dots and leads, and the flux difference between two sub-rings. It has been found that by making use of various tuning, the direction of the asymmetric tail of Fano lineshape may be flipped by external fields, and the continuous conductance spectra may be magnetically manipulated with lineshape retained. More importantly, by adjusting the magnetic flux, the function of two molecular states can be exchanged, giving rise to a swap effect, which might play a role as a qubit in the quantum computation.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Tunable terahertz emission from difference-frequency in biased superlattices

The terahertz emission from difference-frequency in biased superlattices is calculated with the excitonic effect included. Owing to the doubly resonant condition and the excitonic enhancement, the typical susceptibility can be as large as $10^{-5}$ m/V. The doubly resonant condition can always be realized by adjusting the bias voltage and the laser frequencies, thus the in-situ tunable emission is efficient in a range of several terahertz. Continuous wave operation with 1% quantum efficiency and $μ$W output power is feasible as the signal absorption in undoped superlattices is negligible.

cond-mat.mes-hall

Nonlinear optics of semiconductors under an intense terahertz field

A theory for nonlinear optics of semiconductors in the presence of an intense terahertz electric field is constructed based on the double-line Feynman diagrams, in which the nonperturbative effect of the intense terahertz field is fully taken into account through using the Floquet states as propagating lines in the Feynman diagrams.

cond-mat

Metal-to-semiconductor transition in squashed armchair carbon nanotubes

We investigate electronic transport properties of the squashed armchair carbon nanotubes, using tight-binding molecular dynamics and Green's function method. We demonstrate a metal-to-semiconductor transistion while squashing the nanotubes and a general mechanism for such transistion. It is the distinction of the two sublattices in the nanotube that opens an energy gap near the Fermi energy. We show that the transition has to be achieved by a combined effect of breaking of mirror symmetry and bond formation between the flattened faces in the squashed nanotubes.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Adiabatic stabilization of excitons in intense terahertz laser

High-precise calculation of near-infrared absorption and transient spectra in bulk semiconductors irradiated by an intense terahertz (THz) laser shows that, the ionization rate of the ground-state exciton, probed through the dynamic Fano resonance, may decrease with the increase of the THz laser intensity. This counterintuitive effect indicates the excitons are stabilized against the field-ionization. The much lower Rydberg energy and ``atomic unit'' of laser intensity for excitons, and the possibility of creating excitons from the ``vacuum state'' allow observing the excitonic stabilization in experiments, in contrast to the case of atomic stabilization.

cond-mat

Bloch Oscillation under a Bichromatic Laser: Quasi-Miniband Formation, Collapse, and Dynamical Delocalization and Localization

A novel DC and AC driving configuration is proposed for semiconductor superlattices, in which the THz AC driving is provided by an intense bichromatic cw laser. The two components of the laser, usually in the visible light range, are near but not exactly resonant with interband Wannier-Stark transitions, and their frequency difference equals the Wannier-Stark ladder spacing. Multi-photon processes with the intermediate states in the conduction (valence) band cause dynamical delocalization and localization of valence (conduction) electrons, and the corresponding formation and collapse of the quasi-minibands.

cond-mat.mes-hall