arXiv subjects

Florian Libisch

Publications and source records attributed to Florian Libisch.

36 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2020

Phonon Renormalization in Reconstructed MoS$_2$ Moiré Superlattices

In moiré crystals formed by stacking van der Waals (vdW) materials, surprisingly diverse correlated electronic phases and optical properties can be realized by a subtle change in the twist angle. Here, we discover that phonon spectra are also renormalized in MoS$_2$ twisted bilayers, adding a new perspective to moiré physics. Over a range of small twist angles, the phonon spectra evolve rapidly due to ultra-strong coupling between different phonon modes and atomic reconstructions of the moiré pattern. We develop a new low-energy continuum model for phonons that overcomes the outstanding challenge of calculating properties of large moiré supercells and successfully captures essential experimental observations. Remarkably, simple optical spectroscopy experiments can provide information on strain and lattice distortions in moiré crystals with nanometer-size supercells. The newly developed theory promotes a comprehensive and unified understanding of structural, optical, and electronic properties of moiré superlattices.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2020

Electron-hole crossover in gate-controlled bilayer graphene quantum dots

Electron and hole Bloch states in gapped bilayer graphene exhibit topological orbital magnetic moments with opposite signs near the band edges, which allows for tunable valley-polarization in an out-of-plane magnetic field. This intrinsic property makes electron and hole quantum dots (QDs) in bilayer graphene interesting for valley and spin-valley qubits. Here we show measurements of the electron-hole crossover in a bilayer graphene QD, demonstrating the opposite sign of the orbital magnetic moments associated with the Berry curvature. Using three layers of metallic top gates, we independently control the tunneling barriers of the QD while tuning the occupation from the few-hole regime to the few-electron regime, crossing the displacement-field controlled band gap. The band gap is around 25 meV, while the charging energies of the electron and hole dots are between 3-5 meV. The extracted valley g-factor is around 17 and leads to opposite valley polarization for electron and hole states at moderate B-fields. Our measurements agree well with tight-binding calculations for our device.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2020

Electrostatic detection of Shubnikov-de-Haas oscillations in bilayer graphene by Coulomb resonances in gate-defined quantum dots

A gate-defined quantum dot in bilayer graphene is utilized as a sensitive electrometer for probing the charge density of its environment. Under the influence of a perpendicular magnetic field, the charge carrier density of the channel region next to the quantum dot oscillates due to the formation of Landau levels. This is experimentally observed as oscillations in the gate-voltage positions of the Coulomb resonances of the nearby quantum dot. From the frequency of the oscillations, we extract the charge carrier density in the channel and from the amplitude the shift of the quantum dot potential. We compare these experimental results with an electrostatic simulation of the device and find good agreement.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2020

Secondary Electron Emission by Plasmon Induced Symmetry Breaking in Highly Oriented Pyrolitic Graphite (HOPG)

Two-particle spectroscopy with correlated electron pairs is used to establish the causal link between the secondary electron spectrum, the $(π+σ)-$plasmon peak and the unoccupied band structure of highly oriented pyrolitic graphite. The plasmon spectrum is resolved with respect to the involved interband transitions and clearly exhibits final state effects, in particular due to the energy gap between the interlayer resonances along the $Γ$A-direction. The corresponding final state effects can also be identified in the secondary electron spectrum. Interpretation of the results is performed on the basis of density functional theory and tight binding calculations. Excitation of the plasmon perturbs the symmetry of the system and leads to hybridisation of the interlayer resonances with atom-like $σ^*$ bands along the $ΓA$-direction. These hybrid states have a high density of states as well as sufficient mobility along the graphite $c$-axis leading to the sharp $\sim$3\ eV resonance in the spectrum of emitted secondary electrons reported throughout the literature.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2019

Energy of the $^{229}$Th nuclear clock transition

The first nuclear excited state of $^{229}$Th offers the unique opportunity for laser-based optical control of a nucleus. Its exceptional properties allow for the development of a nuclear optical clock which offers a complementary technology and is expected to outperform current electronic-shell based atomic clocks. The development of a nuclear clock was so far impeded by an imprecise knowledge of the energy of the $^{229}$Th nuclear excited state. In this letter we report a direct excitation energy measurement of this elusive state and constrain this to 8.28$\pm$0.17 eV. The energy is determined by spectroscopy of the internal conversion electrons emitted in-flight during the decay of the excited nucleus in neutral $^{229}$Th atoms. The nuclear excitation energy is measured via the valence electronic shell, thereby merging the fields of nuclear- and atomic physics to advance precision metrology. The transition energy between ground and excited state corresponds to a wavelength of 149.7$\pm$3.1 nm. These findings set the starting point for high-resolution nuclear laser spectroscopy and thus the development of a nuclear optical clock of unprecedented accuracy. A nuclear clock is expected to have a large variety of applications, ranging from relativistic geodesy over dark matter research to the observation of potential temporal variation of fundamental constants.

nucl-ex↗

arXiv2018

Topologically non-trivial valley states in bilayer graphene quantum point contacts

We present measurements of quantized conductance in electrostatically induced quantum point contacts in bilayer graphene. The application of a perpendicular magnetic field leads to an intricate pattern of lifted and restored degeneracies with increasing field: at zero magnetic field the degeneracy of quantized one-dimensional subbands is four, because of a twofold spin and a twofold valley degeneracy. By switching on the magnetic field, the valley degeneracy is lifted. Due to the Berry curvature states from different valleys split linearly in magnetic field. In the quantum Hall regime fourfold degenerate conductance plateaus reemerge. During the adiabatic transition to the quantum Hall regime, levels from one valley shift by two in quantum number with respect to the other valley, forming an interweaving pattern that can be reproduced by numerical calculations.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2018

Large tunable valley splitting in edge-free graphene quantum dots on boron nitride

Coherent manipulation of binary degrees of freedom is at the heart of modern quantum technologies. Graphene offers two binary degrees: the electron spin and the valley. Efficient spin control has been demonstrated in many solid state systems, while exploitation of the valley has only recently been started, yet without control on the single electron level. Here, we show that van-der Waals stacking of graphene onto hexagonal boron nitride offers a natural platform for valley control. We use a graphene quantum dot induced by the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope and demonstrate valley splitting that is tunable from -5 to +10 meV (including valley inversion) by sub-10-nm displacements of the quantum dot position. This boosts the range of controlled valley splitting by about one order of magnitude. The tunable inversion of spin and valley states should enable coherent superposition of these degrees of freedom as a first step towards graphene-based qubits.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2017

High Visibility in Two-Color Above-Threshold Photoemission from Tungsten Nanotips in a Coherent Control Scheme

In this article we present coherent control of above-threshold photoemission from a tungsten nanotip achieving nearly perfect modulation. Depending on the pulse delay between fundamental (1560 nm) and second harmonic (780 nm) pulses of a femtosecond fiber laser at the nanotip, electron emission is significantly enhanced or depressed during temporal overlap. Electron emission is studied as a function of pulse delay, optical near-field intensities, DC bias field, and final photoelectron energy. Under optimized conditions modulation amplitudes of the electron emission of 97.5% are achieved. Experimental observations are discussed in the framework of quantum- pathway interference supported by local density of states (LDOS) simulations.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2016

Two-color coherent control of femtosecond above-threshold photoemission from a tungsten nanotip

We demonstrate coherent control of multiphoton and above-threshold photoemission from a single solid-state nanoemitter driven by a fundamental and a weak second harmonic laser pulse. Depending on the relative phase of the two pulses, electron emission is modulated with a contrast of the oscillating current signal of up to 94%. Electron spectra reveal that all observed photon orders are affected simultaneously and similarly. We confirm that photoemission takes place within 10 fs. Accompanying simulations indicate that the current modulation with its large contrast results from two interfering quantum pathways leading to electron emission.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2016

Electrostatically confined monolayer graphene quantum dots with orbital and valley splittings

The electrostatic confinement of massless charge carriers is hampered by Klein tunneling. Circumventing this problem in graphene mainly relies on carving out nanostructures or applying electric displacement fields to open a band gap in bilayer graphene. So far, these approaches suffer from edge disorder or insufficiently controlled localization of electrons. Here we realize an alternative strategy in monolayer graphene, by combining a homogeneous magnetic field and electrostatic confinement. Using the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope, we induce a confining potential in the Landau gaps of bulk graphene without the need for physical edges. Gating the localized states towards the Fermi energy leads to regular charging sequences with more than 40 Coulomb peaks exhibiting typical addition energies of 7-20 meV. Orbital splittings of 4-10 meV and a valley splitting of about 3 meV for the first orbital state can be deduced. These experimental observations are quantitatively reproduced by tight binding calculations, which include the interactions of the graphene with the aligned hexagonal boron nitride substrate. The demonstrated confinement approach appears suitable to create quantum dots with well-defined wave function properties beyond the reach of traditional techniques.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

Dynamically encircling exceptional points in a waveguide: asymmetric mode switching from the breakdown of adiabaticity

Physical systems with loss or gain feature resonant modes that are decaying or growing exponentially with time. Whenever two such modes coalesce both in their resonant frequency and their rate of decay or growth, a so-called "exceptional point" occurs, around which many fascinating phenomena have recently been reported to arise. Particularly intriguing behavior is predicted to appear when encircling an exceptional point sufficiently slowly, like a state-flip or the accumulation of a geometric phase. Experiments dedicated to this issue could already successfully explore the topological structure of exceptional points, but a full dynamical encircling and the breakdown of adiabaticity inevitably associated with it remained out of reach of any measurement so far. Here we demonstrate that a dynamical encircling of an exceptional point can be mapped onto the problem of scattering through a two-mode waveguide, which allows us for the first time to access the elusive effects occurring in this context. Specifically, we present experimental results from a waveguide structure that steers incoming waves around an exceptional point during the transmission process. In this way mode transitions are induced that make this device perfectly suited as a robust and asymmetric switch between different waveguide modes. Our work opens up new and exciting avenues to explore exceptional point physics at the crossroads between fundamental research and practical applications.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2015

Percolating States in the Topological Anderson Insulator

We investigate the presence of percolating states in disordered two-dimensional topological insulators. In particular, we uncover a close connection between these states and the so-called topological Anderson insulator (TAI), which is a topologically non-trivial phase induced by the presence of disorder. The decay of this phase could previously be connected to a delocalization of bulk states with increasing disorder strength. In this work we identify this delocalization to be the result of a percolation transition of states that circumnavigate the hills of the bulk disorder potential.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2014

Photovoltaic effect in an electrically tunable van der Waals heterojunction

Semiconductor heterostructures form the cornerstone of many electronic and optoelectronic devices and are traditionally fabricated using epitaxial growth techniques. More recently, heterostructures have also been obtained by vertical stacking of two-dimensional crystals, such as graphene and related two- dimensional materials. These layered designer materials are held together by van der Waals forces and contain atomically sharp interfaces. Here, we report on a type- II van der Waals heterojunction made of molybdenum disulfide and tungsten diselenide monolayers. The junction is electrically tunable and under appropriate gate bias, an atomically thin diode is realized. Upon optical illumination, charge transfer occurs across the planar interface and the device exhibits a photovoltaic effect. Advances in large-scale production of two-dimensional crystals could thus lead to a new photovoltaic solar technology.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2014

Characterizing wave functions in graphene nanodevices: electronic transport through ultrashort graphene constrictions on a boron nitride substrate

We present electronic transport measurements through short and narrow (30x30 nm) single layer graphene constrictions on a hexagonal boron nitride substrate. While the general observation of Coulomb-blockade is compatible with earlier work, the details are not: we show that the area on which charge is localized can be significantly larger than the area of the constriction, suggesting that the localized states responsible for Coulomb-blockade leak out into the graphene bulk. The high bulk mobility of graphene on hexagonal boron nitride, however, seems not consistent with the short bulk localization length required to see Coulomb-blockade. To explain these findings, charge must instead be primarily localized along the imperfect edges of the devices and extend along the edge outside of the constriction. In order to better understand the mechanisms, we compare the experimental findings with tight-binding simulations of such constrictions with disordered edges. Finally we discuss previous experiments in the light of these new findings.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2013

Semiclassical wavefunctions for open quantum billiards

We present a semiclassical approximation to the scattering wavefunction $Ψ(\mathbf{r},k)$ for an open quantum billiard which is based on the reconstruction of the Feynman path integral. We demonstrate its remarkable numerical accuracy for the open rectangular billiard and show that the convergence of the semiclassical wavefunction to the full quantum state is controlled by the path length or equivalently the dwell time. Possible applications include leaky billiards and systems with decoherence present.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2011

Generating particle-like scattering states in wave transport

We introduce a procedure to generate scattering states which display trajectory-like wave function patterns in wave transport through complex scatterers. These deterministic scattering states feature the dual property of being eigenstates to the Wigner-Smith time-delay matrix and to the transmission matrix with classical (noiseless) transmission eigenvalues close to 0 or 1. Our procedure to create such beam-like states is based solely on the scattering matrix and successfully tested numerically for regular, chaotic and disordered cavities. These results pave the way for the experimental realization of highly collimated wave fronts in transport through complex media with possible applications like secure and low-power communication.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2010

Probing decoherence through Fano resonances

We investigate the effect of decoherence on Fano resonances in wave transmission through resonant scattering structures. We show that the Fano asymmetry parameter q follows, as a function of the strength of decoherence, trajectories in the complex plane that reveal detailed information on the underlying decoherence process. Dissipation and unitary dephasing give rise to manifestly different trajectories. Our predictions are successfully tested against microwave experiments using metal cavities with different absorption coefficients and against previously published data on transport through quantum dots. These results open up new possibilities for studying the effect of decoherence in a wide array of physical systems where Fano resonances are present.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2008

Decreasing excitation gap in Andreev billiards by disorder scattering

We investigate the distribution of the lowest-lying energy states in a disordered Andreev billiard by solving the Bogoliubov-de Gennes equation numerically. Contrary to conventional predictions we find a decrease rather than an increase of the excitation gap relative to its clean ballistic limit. We relate this finding to the eigenvalue spectrum of the Wigner-Smith time delay matrix between successive Andreev reflections. We show that the longest rather than the mean time delay determines the size of the excitation gap. With increasing disorder strength the values of the longest delay times increase, thereby, in turn, reducing the excitation gap.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗