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Jing Kong

Publications and source records attributed to Jing Kong.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Signatures of pressure-enhanced helimagnetic order in van der Waals multiferroic NiI$_2$

The van der Waals (vdW) type-II multiferroic NiI$_2$ has emerged as a candidate for exploring non-collinear magnetism and magnetoelectric effects in the 2D limit. Frustrated intralayer exchange interactions on a triangular lattice result in a helimagnetic ground state, with spin-induced improper ferroelectricity stabilized by the interlayer interactions. Here we investigate the magnetic and structural phase transitions in bulk NiI$_2$, using high-pressure Raman spectroscopy, optical linear dichroism, and x-ray diffraction. We obtain evidence for a significant pressure enhancement of the antiferromagnetic and helimagnetic transition temperatures, at rates of $\sim15.3/14.4$ K/GPa, respectively. These enhancements are attributed to a cooperative effect of pressure-enhanced interlayer and third-nearest-neighbor intralayer exchange. These results reveal a general path for obtaining high-temperature type-II multiferroicity via high pressures in vdW materials.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

Effects of Pressure on the Electronic and Magnetic Properties of Bulk NiI$_{2}$

Transition metal dihalides have recently garnered interest in the context of two-dimensional van der Waals magnets as their underlying geometrically frustrated triangular lattice leads to interesting competing exchange interactions. In particular, NiI$_{2}$ is a magnetic semiconductor that has been long known for its exotic helimagnetism in the bulk. Recent experiments have shown that the helimagnetic state survives down to the monolayer limit with a layer-dependent magnetic transition temperature that suggests a relevant role of the interlayer coupling. Here, we explore the effects of hydrostatic pressure as a means to enhance this interlayer exchange and ultimately tune the electronic and magnetic response of NiI$_{2}$. We study first the evolution of the structural parameters as a function of external pressure using first-principles calculations combined with x-ray diffraction measurements. We then examine the evolution of the electronic structure and magnetic exchange interactions via first-principles calculations and Monte Carlo simulations. We find that the leading interlayer coupling is an antiferromagnetic second-nearest neighbor interaction that increases monotonically with pressure. The ratio between isotropic third- and first-nearest neighbor intralayer exchanges, which controls the magnetic frustration and determines the magnetic propagation vector $\mathbf{q}$ of the helimagnetic ground state, is also enhanced by pressure. As a consequence, our Monte Carlo simulations show a monotonic increase in the magnetic transition temperature, indicating that pressure is an effective means to tune the magnetic response of NiI$_{2}$.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

Understanding the Impact of Heatwave on Urban Heat Island in Greater Sydney: Temporal Surface Energy Budget Change with Land Types

The impact of heatwaves (HWs) on urban heat island (UHI) is a contentious topic with contradictory research findings. A comprehensive understanding of the response of urban and rural areas to HWs, considering the underlying cause of surface energy budget changes, remains elusive. This study attempts to address this gap by investigating a 2020 HW event in the Greater Sydney Area using the Advanced Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. Findings indicate that the HW intensifies the nighttime surface UHI by approximately 4°C. An analysis of surface energy budgets reveals that urban areas store more heat during the HW due to receiving more solar radiation and less evapotranspiration compared to rural areas. The maximum heat storage flux in urban during the HW can be around 200 W/m2 higher than that during post-HW. The stored heat is released at nightime, raising the air temperature in the urban areas. Forests and savannas have relatively lower storage heat fluxes due to high transpiration and albedo, and the maximum heat storage flux is only around 50 W/m2 higher than that during post-HW. In contrast, a negative synergistic effect is detected between the 2-m UHI and HW. This may be because other meteorological conditions including wind have substantial impacts on the air temperature pattern. The strong hot and dry winds coming from the west and the proximity of tall buildings to the coast diminish the sea breeze coming from the east, resulting in a higher air temperature in the western urban district. Meanwhile, the western forest area also experiences higher temperatures due to the westward winds. In addition, changes in wind direction alter the temperature distribution in the northern rural region. Based on the present study, urban climate simulation data and associated findings can be used to develop urban heat mitigation strategies for UHI during HW.

physics.ao-ph↗

Giant room-temperature nonlinearities from a monolayer Janus topological semiconductor

Nonlinear optical materials possess wide applications, ranging from terahertz and mid-infrared detection to energy harvesting. Recently, the correlations between nonlinear optical responses and topological properties, such as Berry curvature and the quantum metric tensor, have stimulated great interest. Here, we report giant room-temperature nonlinearities in an emergent non-centrosymmetric two-dimensional topological material, the Janus transition metal dichalcogenides in the 1T' phase, which are synthesized by an advanced atomic-layer substitution method. High harmonic generation, terahertz emission spectroscopy, and second harmonic generation measurements consistently reveal orders-of-the-magnitude enhancement in terahertz-frequency nonlinearities of 1T' MoSSe (e.g., > 50 times higher than 2H MoS$_2$ for 18th order harmonic generation; > 20 times higher than 2H MoS$_2$ for terahertz emission). It is elucidated that such colossal nonlinear optical responses come from topological band mixing and strong inversion symmetry breaking due to the Janus structure. Our work defines general protocols for designing materials with large nonlinearities and preludes the applications of topological materials in optoelectronics down to the monolayer limit. This two-dimensional form of topological materials also constitute a unique platform for examining origin of the anomalous high-harmonic generation, with potential applications as building blocks for scalable attosecond sources.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Van der Waals device integration beyond the limits of van der Waals forces via adhesive matrix transfer

Pristine van der Waals (vdW) interfaces between two-dimensional (2D) and other materials are core to emerging optical and electronic devices. Their direct fabrication is, however, challenged as the vdW forces are weak and cannot be tuned to accommodate integration of arbitrary layers without solvents, sacrificial-layers or high-temperatures, steps that can introduce damage. To address these limitations, we introduce a single-step 2D material-to-device integration approach in which forces promoting transfer are decoupled from the vdW forces at the interface of interest. We use this adhesive matrix transfer to demonstrate conventionally-forbidden direct integration of diverse 2D materials (MoS2, WSe2, PtS2, GaS) with dielectrics (SiO2, Al2O3), and scalable, aligned heterostructure formation, both foundational to device development. We then demonstrate a single-step integration of monolayer-MoS2 into arrays of transistors. With no exposure to polymers or solvents, clean interfaces and pristine surfaces are preserved, which can be further engineered to demonstrate both n- and p-type behavior. Beyond serving as a platform to probe the intrinsic properties of sensitive nanomaterials without the influence of processing steps, our technique allows efficient formation of unconventional device form-factors, with an example of flexible transistors demonstrated.

physics.app-ph↗

Synergistic Photon Management and Strain-Induced Band Gap Engineering of Two-Dimensional MoS2 Using Semimetal Composite Nanostructures

2D MoS2 attracts increasing attention for its application in flexible electronics and photonic devices. For 2D material optoelectronic devices, light absorption of the molecularly thin 2D absorber would be one of the key limiting factors in device efficiency, and conventional photon management techniques are not necessarily compatible with them. In this paper, we show two semimetal composite nanostructures for synergistic photon management and strain-induced band gap engineering of 2D MoS2: (1) pseudo-periodic Sn nanodots, (2) conductive SnOx (x<1) core-shell nanoneedle structures. Without sophisticated nanolithography, both nanostructures are self-assembled from physical vapor deposition. 2D MoS2 achieves up to >15x enhancement in absorption at λ=650-950 nm under Sn nanodots, and 20-30x at λ=700-900 nm under SnOx (x<1) nanoneedles, both spanning from visible to near infrared regime. Enhanced absorption in MoS2 results from strong near field enhancement and reduced MoS2 band gap due to the tensile strain induced by the Sn nanostructures, as confirmed by Raman and photoluminescence spectroscopy. Especially, we demonstrate that up to 3.5% biaxial tensile strain is introduced to 2D MoS2 using conductive nanoneedle-structured SnOx (x<1), which reduces the band gap by ~0.35 eV to further enhance light absorption at longer wavelengths. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of a synergistic triple-functional photon management, stressor, and conductive electrode layer on 2D MoS2. Such synergistic photon management and band gap engineering approach for extended spectral response can be further applied to other 2D materials for future 2D photonic devices.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Detecting the oscillation and propagation of the nascent dynamic solar wind structure at 2.6 solar radii using VLBI radio telescopes

Probing the solar corona is crucial to study the coronal heating and solar wind acceleration. However, the transient and inhomogeneous solar wind flows carry large-amplitude inherent Alfven waves and turbulence, which make detection more difficult. We report the oscillation and propagation of the solar wind at 2.6 solar radii (Rs) by observation of China Tianwen and ESA Mars Express with radio telescopes. The observations were carried out on Oct.9 2021, when one coronal mass ejection (CME) passed across the ray paths of the telescope beams. We obtain the frequency fluctuations (FF) of the spacecraft signals from each individual telescope. Firstly, we visually identify the drift of the frequency spikes at a high spatial resolution of thousands of kilometers along the projected baselines. They are used as traces to estimate the solar wind velocity. Then we perform the cross-correlation analysis on the time series of FF from different telescopes. The velocity variations of solar wind structure along radial and tangential directions during the CME passage are obtained. The oscillation of tangential velocity confirms the detection of streamer wave. Moreover, at the tail of the CME, we detect the propagation of an accelerating fast field-aligned density structure indicating the presence of magnetohydrodynamic waves. This study confirm that the ground station-pairs are able to form particular spatial projection baselines with high resolution and sensitivity to study the detailed propagation of the nascent dynamic solar wind structure.

astro-ph.SR↗

Giant enhancement of third-harmonic generation in graphene-metal heterostructures

Nonlinear nanophotonics leverages engineered nanostructures to funnel light into small volumes and intensify nonlinear optical processes with spectral and spatial control. Due to its intrinsically large and electrically tunable nonlinear optical response, graphene is an especially promising nanomaterial for nonlinear optoelectronic applications. Here we report on exceptionally strong optical nonlinearities in graphene-insulator-metal heterostructures, demonstrating an enhancement by three orders of magnitude in the third-harmonic signal compared to bare graphene. Furthermore, by increasing the graphene Fermi energy through an external gate voltage, we find that graphene plasmons mediate the optical nonlinearity and modify the third-harmonic signal. Our findings show that graphene-insulator-metal is a promising heterostructure for optically-controlled and electrically-tunable nano-optoelectronic components.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

Multiplication of freestanding semiconductor membranes from a single wafer by advanced remote epitaxy

Freestanding single-crystalline membranes are an important building block for functional electronics. Especially, compounds semiconductor membranes such as III-N and III-V offer great opportunities for optoelectronics, high-power electronics, and high-speed computing. Despite huge efforts to produce such membranes by detaching epitaxial layers from donor wafers, however, it is still challenging to harvest epitaxial layers using practical processes. Here, we demonstrate a method to grow and harvest multiple epitaxial membranes with extremely high throughput at the wafer scale. For this, 2D materials are directly formed on III-N and III-V substrates in epitaxy systems, which enables an advanced remote epitaxy scheme comprised of multiple alternating layers of 2D materials and epitaxial layers that can be formed by a single epitaxy run. Each epilayer in the multi-stack structure is then harvested by layer-by-layer peeling, producing multiple freestanding membranes with unprecedented throughput from a single wafer. Because 2D materials allow peeling at the interface without damaging the epilayer or the substrate, wafers can be reused for subsequent membrane production. Therefore, this work represents a meaningful step toward high-throughput and low-cost production of single-crystal membranes that can be heterointegrated.

physics.app-ph↗

Panoramic mapping of phonon transport from ultrafast electron diffraction and machine learning

One central challenge in understanding phonon thermal transport is a lack of experimental tools to investigate mode-based transport information. Although recent advances in computation lead to mode-based information, it is hindered by unknown defects in bulk region and at interfaces. Here we present a framework that can reveal microscopic phonon transport information in heterostructures, integrating state-of-the-art ultrafast electron diffraction (UED) with advanced scientific machine learning. Taking advantage of the dual temporal and reciprocal-space resolution in UED, we are able to reliably recover the frequency-dependent interfacial transmittance with possible extension to frequency-dependent relaxation times of the heterostructure. This enables a direct reconstruction of real-space, real-time, frequency-resolved phonon dynamics across an interface. Our work provides a new pathway to experimentally probe phonon transport mechanisms with unprecedented details.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

Waveguide-Integrated Mid-Infrared Photodetection using Graphene on a Scalable Chalcogenide Glass Platform

The development of compact and fieldable mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectroscopy devices represents a critical challenge for distributed sensing with applications from gas leak detection to environmental monitoring. Recent work has focused on mid-IR photonic integrated circuit (PIC) sensing platforms and waveguide-integrated mid-IR light sources and detectors based on semiconductors such as PbTe, black phosphorus and tellurene. However, material bandgaps and reliance on SiO$_2$ substrates limit operation to wavelengths $λ\lesssim4\,μ\textrm{m}$. Here we overcome these challenges with a chalcogenide glass-on-CaF$_2$ PIC architecture incorporating split-gate photothermoelectric graphene photodetectors. Our design extends operation to $λ=5.2\,μ\textrm{m}$ with a Johnson noise-limited noise-equivalent power of $1.1\,\mathrm{nW}/\mathrm{Hz}^{1/2}$, no fall-off in photoresponse up to $f = 1\,\mathrm{MHz}$, and a predicted 3-dB bandwidth of $f_{3\textrm{dB}}>1\,\mathrm{GHz}$. This mid-IR PIC platform readily extends to longer wavelengths and opens the door to applications from distributed gas sensing and portable dual comb spectroscopy to weather-resilient free space optical communications.

physics.optics↗

Analyzing cases of significant nondynamic correlation with DFT using the Atomic Populations of Effectively Localized Electrons

Multireference effects are associated with degeneracies and near-degeneracies of the ground state and are critical to a variety of systems. Most approximate functionals of density functional theory (DFT) fail to properly describe these effects. A number of diagnostics have been proposed that allow to estimate the reliability of a given single-reference solution in this respect. Some of these diagnostics however lack size-consistency, while remaining computationally expensive. In this work we use the DFT method of determining atomic populations of effectively localized electrons (APELE) as a novel diagnostic in this vein. It is compared with several existing diagnostics of nondynamic correlation on select exemplary systems. We show that the APELE method is on average in good agreement with the existing diagnostics, while being both size-consistent and less costly. It becomes particularly informative in cases involving bond stretching or bond breaking. The APELE method is applied next to organic diradicals like the bis-acridine dimer and the p-quinodimethane molecule which possess unusually high nonlinear optical response, and to the reaction of ethylene addition to Ni dithiolene, where our results shed some more light on how the oxidation state of the Ni center may change when going from the initial reactant to the product.

quant-ph↗

Spectroscopic Signatures of Interlayer Coupling in Janus MoSSe/MoS2 Heterostructures

The interlayer coupling in van der Waals heterostructures governs a variety of optical and electronic properties. The intrinsic dipole moment of Janus transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) offers a simple and versatile approach to tune the interlayer interactions. In this work, we demonstrate how the van der Waals interlayer coupling and charge transfer of Janus MoSSe/MoS2 heterobilayers can be tuned by the twist angle and interface composition. Specifically, the Janus heterostructures with a sulfur/sulfur (S/S) interface display stronger interlayer coupling than the heterostructures with a selenium/sulfur (Se/S) interface as shown by the low-frequency Raman modes. The differences in interlayer interactions are explained by the interlayer distance computed by density-functional theory (DFT). More intriguingly, the built-in electric field contributed by the charge density redistribution and interlayer coupling also play important roles in the interfacial charge transfer. Namely, the S/S and Se/S interfaces exhibit different levels of PL quenching of MoS2 A exciton, suggesting the enhanced and reduced charge transfer at the S/S and Se/S interface, respectively. Our work demonstrates how the asymmetry of Janus TMDs can be used to tailor the interfacial interactions in van der Waals heterostructures.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

Tuning color centers at a twisted interface

Color center is a promising platform for quantum technologies, but their application is hindered by the typically random defect distribution and complex mesoscopic environment. Employing cathodoluminescence, we demonstrate that an ultraviolet-emitting single photon emitter can be readily activated and controlled on-demand at the twisted interface of two hexagonal boron nitride flakes. The brightness of the color center can be enhanced by two orders of magnitude by altering the twist angle. Additionally, a brightness modulation of nearly 100% of this color center is achieved by an external voltage. Our ab-initio GW calculations suggest that the emission is correlated to nitrogen vacancies and that a twist-induced moiré potential facilitates electron-hole recombination. This mechanism is further exploited to draw nanoscale color center patterns using electron beams.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

Enhanced Raman Scattering on Functionalized Graphene Substrates

The graphene-enhanced Raman scattering of Rhodamine 6G molecules on pristine, fluorinated and 4-nitrophenyl functionalized graphene substrates was studied. The uniformity of the Raman signal enhancement was studied by making large Raman maps. The relative enhancement of the Raman signal is demonstrated to be dependent on the functional groups, which was rationalized by the different doping levels of pristine, fluorinated and 4-nitrophenyl functionalized graphene substrates. The impact of the Fermi energy of graphene and the phonon energy of the molecules was considered together for the first time in order to explain the enhancement. Such approach enables to understand the enhancement without assuming anything about the uniformity of the molecules on the graphene surface. The agreement between the theory and our measured data was further demonstrated by varying excitation energy.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

Reducing charge delocalization error of density functional theory

The charge delocalization error, besides nondynamic correlation, has been a major challenge to density functional theory. Contemporary functionals undershoot the dissociation of symmetric charged dimers A2+, a simple but stringent test, predict a spurious barrier and improperly delocalize charges for charged molecular clusters. We extend a functional designed for nondynamic correlation to treat the charge delocalization error by modifying the nondynamic correlation for parallel spins. The modified functional eliminates those problems and reduces the multielectron self-interaction error. Furthermore, its results are the closest to those of CCSD(T) in the whole range of the dissociation compared with contemporary functionals. It correctly localizes the net positive charge in (CH4)n+ clusters and predicts a nearly constant ionization potential as a result. Testing of the SIE4x4 set shows that the new functional outperforms a wide variety of functionals assessed for this set in the literature. Overall, we show the feasibility of treating charge delocalization together with nondynamic correlation.

physics.chem-ph↗

Revealing the Brønsted-Evans-Polanyi Relation in Halide-Activated Fast MoS2 Growth Towards Millimeter-Sized 2D Crystals

Achieving large-size two-dimensional (2D) crystals is key to fully exploiting their remarkable functionalities and application potentials. Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) growth of 2D semiconductors such as monolayer MoS2 has been reported to be activated by halide salts, yet clear identification of the underlying mechanism remains elusive. Here we provide unambiguous experimental evidence showing that the MoS2 growth dynamics are halogen-dependent through the Brønsted-Evans-Polanyi relation, based on which we build a growth model by considering MoS2 edge passivation by halogens, and theoretically reproduces the trend of our experimental observations. These mechanistic understandings enable us to further optimize the fast growth of MoS2 and reach record-large domain sizes that should facilitate practical applications.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

Colossal switchable photocurrents in topological Janus transition metal dichalcogenides

Nonlinear optical properties, such as bulk photovoltaic effects, possess great potential in energy harvesting, photodetection, rectification, etc. To enable efficient light-current conversion, materials with strong photo-responsivity are highly desirable. In this work, we predict that monolayer Janus transition metal dichalcogenides (JTMDs) in the 1T' phase possess colossal nonlinear photoconductivity owing to their topological band mixing, strong inversion symmetry breaking, and small electronic bandgap. 1T' JTMDs have inverted bandgaps on the order of 10 meV and are exceptionally responsive to light in the terahertz (THz) range. By first-principles calculations, we reveal that 1T' JTMDs possess shift current (SC) conductivity as large as $2300 ~\rm nm \cdot μA / V^2$, equivalent to a photo-responsivity of $2800 ~\rm mA/W$. The circular current (CC) conductivity of 1T' JTMDs is as large as $10^4~ \rm nm \cdot μA / V^2$. These remarkable photo-responsivities indicate that the 1T' JTMDs can serve as efficient photodetectors in the THz range. We also find that external stimuli such as the in-plane strain and out-of-plane electric field can induce topological phase transitions in 1T' JTMDs and that the SC can abruptly flip their directions. The abrupt change of the nonlinear photocurrent can be used to characterize the topological transition and has potential applications in 2D optomechanics and nonlinear optoelectronics.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗