arXiv subjects

Nitin Samarth

Publications and source records attributed to Nitin Samarth.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Enhanced Superconductivity in Multilayer FeSe Films by Simplified Molecular Beam Epitaxy

Multi-unit-cell (UC) \b{eta}-FeSe films grown on SrTiO3(100) continue to attract attention because of the significant enhancement in the superconducting transition temperature (Tc) compared to that in bulk FeSe. In prior reports of molecular beam epitaxy (MBE)-grown \b{eta}-FeSe/SrTiO3(100), elaborate growth protocols have been used to achieve enhanced Tc, leading to a general belief that careful pre-treatment of the SrTiO3 substrate and post-growth annealing in ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) are essential. Here, we report a greatly simplified protocol for the MBE growth of superconducting multi-UC \b{eta}-FeSe films on SrTiO3(100), eliminating the need for careful substrate pre-treatment and post-growth UHV annealing while still achieving an enhanced Tc. With appropriate capping, epitaxial films with 14 UC thickness exhibit a zero-resistance transition temperature Tc ~ 20 K in ex situ electrical transport measurements. The MBE optimization process is guided by the growth-parameter dependencies of film morphology and structural properties, as characterized by reflection high-energy electron diffraction, X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and scanning transmission electron microscopy.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2026

Nanoscale imaging of ferromagnetic vortex dynamics with scanning NV magnetometry

The generation and manipulation of spin waves at the nanoscale via magnetic vortices are of considerable importance because of their broad applications across magnonic and quantum technologies. Previously, fixed nitrogen-vacancy (NV) centers in diamond have been used to locally characterize vortex dynamics, and scanning NV magnetometry (SNVM) has been used to image vortices' static stray fields. Here, we demonstrate SNVM imaging of both the static and microwave fields generated by vortices in mesoscopic permalloy structures with $\sim$50 nm spatial resolution, achieving excellent agreement with micromagnetic simulations, while revealing the effects of disorder. We further demonstrate a 40$\times$ microwave field enhancement near a vortex core and image the disorder-dependent, spatially varying, evanescent decay of these microwaves. Our ambient, tabletop technique surpasses diffraction-limited techniques' resolutions by at least 5$\times$, with far greater accessibility and throughput than synchrotron radiation-based techniques, offering new opportunities in the study and development of magnonic devices.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2026

Lifetime Sample Tracking (LiST): A Data Platform for Materials Science

The 2D Crystal Consortium Materials Innovation Platform (2DCC-MIP) is an NSF supported national user facility focused on advancing the synthesis of 2D materials, monolayers, surfaces, and interfaces. The need for the facility to organize and share data with users led to the development of an internal data management and analysis engine, the Lifetime Sample Tracking platform (LiST). This infrastructure allows the automated capture, curation, analysis and dissemination of data ranging from experimental materials synthesis parameters and characterization, to theoretical first-principles and ReaxFF molecular dynamics modeling1. The system currently hosts synthesis and property data (accessible via a REST API) on approximately twenty thousand samples produced by the 2DCC grown using a variety of techniques from bulk crystal growth to metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) and molecular beam epitaxy (MBE), among others. Data used in publications can easily be grouped by the system into data packages that are given digital object identifiers (DOIs) for inclusion with each publication. The LiST platform is now being used by groups outside of the 2DCC as a solution for data curation in materials science. Data management tools such as LiST support the materials development process by allowing a closed loop iteration between synthesis, characterization, theory, and targeted materials design. This also enables machine learning (ML) research, artificial intelligence (AI) analysis, and the potential for autonomous synthesis in the future.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2026

Efficiently gate-tunable ferromagnetism in ferromagnetic semiconductor-Dirac semimetal p-n heterojunctions

We use molecular beam epitaxy to develop a gate tunable p-n heterojunction that interfaces a canonical Dirac semimetal, Cd$_3$As$_2$, and a ferromagnetic semiconductor, In$_{1-x}$Mn$_x$As, with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. Measurements of the anomalous Hall effect in top-gated Cd$_3$As$_2$/In$_{1-x}$Mn$_x$As devices show that the ferromagnetic Curie temperature ($T_\mathrm{C}$) can be efficiently tuned using a modest gate voltage of $\sim 10$ V, corresponding to a sensitivity to electric field ($E$) of $\Delta T_{\mathrm{C}}/\Delta E \sim 10$ K/MV/cm). The voltage tuning of $T_\mathrm{C}$ saturates near the charge neutrality point of Cd$_3$As$_2$ and vanishes at positive gate voltage in appropriately designed heterostructures. This non-monotonic behavior cannot be explained solely by hole-mediated ferromagnetism in the In$_{1-x}$Mn$_x$As alone, suggesting an interaction between the Dirac semimetal and the ferromagnetic semiconductor. Our results identify Cd$_3$As$_2$/In$_{1-x}$Mn$_x$As heterojunctions as a potentially attractive platform for studying emergent phenomena arising from the interplay between broken symmetry, topology, and magnetism in a topological semimetal.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2026

Hybridization of topologically distinct quartet modes in three-terminal graphene Josephson junctions

Multiterminal Josephson junctions offer a powerful playground for exploring exotic superconducting and topological phenomena beyond the reach of conventional two-terminal devices. In this work, we present the direct spectroscopic observation of Cooper quartet resonances, a signature of correlated tunneling of two Cooper pairs across the device, in a graphene three-terminal Josephson junction (3TJJ). Using tunneling spectroscopy, we visualize how Andreev bound states (ABS) evolve across a two-dimensional superconducting phase space, controlled by the two independent phase differences in the 3TJJ. These measurements reveal sharp local minima in the differential conductance spectra locked in a specific phase condition of superconducting phase variables. The resulting quantized trajectories around the compact torus of the superconducting phase variables reveal an underlying topological winding in the multipair transport. To interpret our results, we develop a theoretical model that connects the observed quartet resonances to the coherent hybridization of multiple ABS branches, a hallmark of the rich pairing process enabled by multiterminal geometries. Our results highlight the potential of multiterminal superconducting devices to host engineered superconducting states and pave the way for new approaches to topological band structure design based on phase-controlled, higher-order superconducting transport.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2026

Successful growth of low carrier density $\alpha$-In$_2$Se$_3$ single crystals using Se-flux in a modified Bridgman furnace

Indium selenide (In$_2$Se$_3$) has garnered significant attention for its intriguing properties and applications in batteries, solar cells, photodetectors and ferroelectric devices. However, the controlled synthesis of single phase $\alpha$-In$_2$Se$_3$ remains challenging owing to its complex phase diagram, presence of multiple polymorphs and the high volatility of selenium that induces non-stoichiometry and unintentional carrier doping. For ferroelectric {\alpha}-In2Se3, minimizing the carrier density is essential because leakage current can obscure polarization switching. Here, we report the growth of $\alpha$-In$_2$Se$_3$ single crystals using a unique approach, the Se-flux assisted modified vertical Bridgman technique combined with liquid encapsulation under high pressure. This approach creates a high-pressure, Se-rich environment that effectively minimizes Se-vaporization. Structural and compositional analysis using X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy confirm the formation of pure $\alpha$-In$_2$Se$_3$ single crystals with 3R stacking. Furthermore, the crystals exhibit remarkably low carrier density of 1.5-3.2 $\times$ 10$^{16}$ cm$^{-3}$ at 300K$-$the lowest reported to date, reflecting a significant suppression of Se-vacancies relative to the conventional Bridgman or melt-grown crystals. Through transport and ARPES measurements on different batches of crystals, we also demonstrate that the amount of Se-flux plays a crucial role in controlling Se-vacancies. Our results thus establish this modified Bridgman method as an effective strategy for synthesizing large $\alpha$-In$_2$Se$_3$ single crystals with reduced intrinsic defects. This technique can be broadly applied to grow other volatile chalcogenides with reduced defects and controlled stoichiometry.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Examining the Spin Structure of Altermagnetic Candidate MnTe Grown with Near Ideal Stoichiometry

Altermagnets are a recently-discovered class of materials with magnetic ordering that have a zero net magnetization and a momentum-dependent spin splitting in their band structure, arising from a collinear spin arrangement with alternating polarizations in the crystal lattice. The nickeline-structured manganese telluride ({\alpha}-MnTe) is an attractive altermagnet candidate due to its predicted large spin splitting energy and a transition temperature near 300K. In this work, we present a thorough investigation of the spin structure of {\alpha}-MnTe thin films grown by molecular beam epitaxy with very high crystal quality and low residual magnetization. The epitaxial {\alpha}-MnTe films have a full-width-at-half-maximum of 0.1{\deg} as measured by x-ray-diffraction rocking curves and a root-mean-square roughness below 1 nm. Neutron diffraction measurements confirm the antiferromagnetic order in the {\alpha}-MnTe film and show a N\'eel temperature of 307 K. Polarized neutron reflectometry detects a vanishingly small net magnetization which may be confined to the MnTe/InP interface, highlighting the near-ideal stoichiometry in the sample. In vacuo angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy reveals that the bulk band spectrum of the MnTe films is consistent with the weak altermagnetic order as theoretically predicted and observed for the high symmetry nodal plane in the center of the Brillouin zone. This study establishes optimized growth conditions for the synthesis of stoichiometric {\alpha}-MnTe thin films which exhibit exceptional structural and magnetic ordering, thereby providing a robust platform for the precise characterization of their altermagnetic properties.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Non-Hermitian Dynamics in Quantum Anomalous Hall Insulators

Magnetically doped topological insulators (TIs) exhibit two distinct phases: the quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) phase when the Fermi level resides within the surface gap, and a metallic phase outside the gap. The QAH phase hosts unidirectional transport channels known as chiral edge states, while the metallic phase exhibits non-reciprocal transport due to unbalanced bidirectional edge states. Utilizing the chiral edge states in Cr-doped (Bi, Sb)2Te3 sandwich structures, we realize non-Hermitian conductance matrices in a one-dimensional Corbino chain with well-defined chirality. By tuning the boundary conditions from open to periodic, we reveal the non-Hermitian skin effect, where eigenstates localize exponentially at one end of the chain. In the metallic phase, we further observe asymmetric, bidirectional coupling between the neighboring sites in the conductance matrix, a direct consequence of the system's intrinsic non-reciprocity. These results establish magnetic TIs as a powerful platform for investigating emergent non-Hermitian phenomena in topological systems.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Quantum confinement effect in Sb thin films

Antimony (Sb), an element with strong spin-orbit coupling, is predicted to undergo a topological phase transition from a topological semimetal to a topological insulator as its dimensionality approaches the two-dimensional limit, driven by the quantum confinement effect. In this study, we investigate this transition in Sb thin films grown by molecular beam epitaxy, employing electrical transport measurements and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). Electrical transport measurements revealed signatures of a modified electronic band structure, including a Hall response with multiple carrier types, a decreasing carrier concentration, and a transition in the curvature of the longitudinal resistance from quadratic to linear with decreasing film thickness. Temperature-dependent magnetoresistance further showed weak antilocalization below 16 K, indicating strong spin-orbit coupling and suggesting the presence of non-trivial topological states. Analysis of the WAL characteristics revealed a single coherent conducting channel and a thickness-dependent change in the phase decoherence mechanism. Complementary ARPES measurements confirmed that reducing the film thickness lifts the conduction band at the M-point, consistent with the emergence of a band gap. These findings support theoretical predictions of a thickness-dependent band structure evolution driven by the quantum confinement effect, providing a foundation for further exploration of topological phase transitions in Sb as well as Bi1-xSbx. The realization of an elemental topological material with simplified stoichiometry and semiconductor compatibility presents a promising avenue for next-generation hybrid systems and applications in spintronics and quantum technologies.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Emergent anisotropic three-phase order in critically doped superconducting diamond films

Two decades since its discovery, superconducting heavily boron-doped diamond (HBDD) still presents unresolved fundamental questions whose resolution is relevant to the development of this material for quantum technologies. We use electrical magnetotransport measurements of critically-doped homoepitaxial single crystal HBDD films to reveal signatures of intrinsic (electronic) granular superconductivity. By studying the dependence of electrical resistivity on temperature and magnetic field vector, we infer that this granularity arises from electron correlations. This is revealed by a striking three-phase anisotropy in the magnetoresistance, accompanied by a spontaneous transverse voltage (Hall anomaly). Our findings indicate an emergent magnetically tunable intrinsic order in an otherwise isotropic three dimensional single crystal HBDD film, offering new insights into the mechanism of superconductivity in this quantum material.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

Altermagnetic band splitting in 10 nm epitaxial CrSb thin films

Altermagnets are a newly identified family of collinear antiferromagnets with momentum-dependent spin-split band structure of non-relativistic origin, derived from spin-group symmetry-protected crystal structures. Among candidate altermagnets, CrSb is attractive for potential applications because of a large spin-splitting near the Fermi level and a high Neel transition temperature of around 700 K. We use molecular beam epitaxy to synthesize CrSb (0001) thin films with thicknesses ranging from 10 nm to 100 nm. Structural characterization, using reflection high energy electron diffraction, scanning transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction, demonstrates the growth of epitaxial films with good crystallinity. Polarized neutron reflectometry shows the absence of any net magnetization, consistent with antiferromagnetic order. In vacuo angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) measurements probe the band structure in a previously unexplored regime of film thickness, down to 10 nm. These ARPES measurements show a three-dimensional momentum-dependent band splitting of up to 0.7 eV with g-wave symmetry, consistent with that seen in prior studies of bulk single crystals. The distinct altermagnetic band structure required for potential spin-transport applications survives down to the 10 nm thin film limit at room temperature.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Emergent superconductivity and non-reciprocal transport in a van der Waals Dirac semimetal/antiferromagnet heterostructure

We investigate emergent superconductivity and non-reciprocal transport (magnetochiral anisotropy, superconducting diode effect) at the heterointerface of two non-superconducting van der Waals (vdW) materials, the Dirac semimetal ZrTe$_2$ and the antiferromagnetic iron chalcogenide FeTe, grown using molecular beam epitaxy. We show from electrical transport measurements that two-dimensional (2D) superconductivity arises at the heterointerface below a critical temperature $T_c \sim 10$~K. In the superconducting transition region, non-reciprocal transport, characterized by the magneto-chiral anisotropy, exhibits a magnitude comparable to that observed in topological insulators, and is enhanced by a factor of three when the heterostructure is capped with a 2D vdW ferromagnet (CrTe$_2$). Below $T_c$, the superconducting diode effect exhibits an efficiency of 29\%. With strong spin-orbit coupling in ZrTe$_2$, these epitaxial heterostructures provide an attractive epitaxial vdW platform for exploring unconventional superconductivity in Dirac semimetals and for developing non-reciprocal devices for superconducting electronics.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

Visualizing the breakdown of the quantum anomalous Hall effect

The creation of topologically non-trivial matter across electronic, mechanical, cold-atom, and photonic platforms is advancing rapidly, yet understanding the breakdown of topological protection remains a major challenge. In this work, we use magnetic imaging combined with global electrical transport measurements to visualize the current-induced breakdown of the quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE) in a magnetically doped topological insulator. We find that dissipation emerges at localized hot spots near electrical contacts, where an abrupt change in Hall angle leads to significant distortions of the current density. Using the local magnetization as a proxy for electron temperature, we directly observe that the electrons are driven out of equilibrium with the lattice at the hot spots and throughout the device in the breakdown regime. By characterizing energy relaxation processes in our device, we show that the breakdown of quantization is governed entirely by electron heating, and that a vanishing thermal relaxation strength at millikelvin temperatures limits the robustness of the QAHE. Our findings provide a framework for diagnosing energy relaxation in topological materials and will guide realizing robust topological protection in magnetic topological insulators.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Imaging signatures of edge currents in a magnetic topological insulator

Magnetic topological insulators (MTIs) host topologically protected edge states, but the role that these edge states play in electronic transport remains unclear. Using scanning superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) microscopy, we performed local measurements of the current distribution in a quantum anomalous Hall (QAH) insulator at large bias currents, where the quantization of the conductivity tensor breaks down. We find that bulk currents in the channel interior coexist with edge currents at the sample boundary. While the position of the edge current changes with the reversal of the magnetic field, it does not depend on the current direction. To understand our observations, we introduce a model which includes contributions from both the sample magnetization and currents driven by chemical potential gradients. To parameterize our model, we use local measurements of the chemical potential induced changes in the sample magnetization. Our model reveals that the observed edge currents can be understood as changes in the magnetization generated by the electrochemical potential distribution in the sample under bias. Our work underscores the complexity of electronic transport in MTIs and highlights both the value and challenges of using magnetic imaging to disentangle various contributions to the electronic transport signatures.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Flux channeling induced nano-confinement and enhancement of microwaves imaged by Rabi oscillation mapping

With rapid advances in qubit technologies, techniques for localizing, modulating, and measuring RF fields and their impact on qubit performance are of the utmost importance. Here, we demonstrate that flux-channeling from a permalloy nanowire can be used to achieve localized spatial modulation of an RF field and that the modulated field can be mapped with high resolution using the Rabi oscillations of an NV center. Rabi maps reveal ~100 mm wavelength microwaves concentrated in sub-300 nm-scale regions with up to ~16$\times$ power enhancement. This modulation is robust over a 20 dBm power range and has no adverse impact on NV $T_2$ coherence time. Micromagnetic simulations confirm that the modulated field results from the nanowire's stray field through its constructive/destructive interference with the incident RF field. Our findings provide a new pathway for controlling qubits, amplifying RF signals, and mapping local fields in various on-chip RF technologies.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2025

Charge to spin conversion in atomically thin bismuth

We report charge to spin conversion in a hybrid heterostructure comprised of atomically thin bismuth (Bi) confined between a silicon carbide (SiC) substrate and epitaxial graphene (EG). We confirm composition, dimensionality, and a 96.5 \% intercalation coverage using X-ray photolectron spectroscopy, scanning transmission microscopy, low energy electron diffraction, and Raman spectroscopy. Electrical transport measurements show signs of weak antilocalization in the heterostructure, consistent with spin-orbit coupling in this hybrid heterostructure. Spin torque ferromagnetic resonance measurements in permalloy/EG/2D-Bi heterostructures probe charge-to-spin conversion and revealing that an in plane polarization of the spin current, perpendicular to the charge current. The ratio of the in-plane to out-of-plane torque is 3.75 times higher than in hydrogenated graphene control samples.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2024

Anomalous electronic energy relaxation and soft phonons in the Dirac semimetal Cd$_3$As$_2$

We have used a combination of linear response time-domain THz spectroscopy (TDTS) and high-field non-linear THz spectroscopy to separately probe the electronic momentum and energy relaxation rates respectively of the Dirac semimetal Cd$_3$As$_2$. We find, consistent with prior measurements, that Cd$_3$As$_2$ has an enormous nonlinearities in the THz frequency range. We extract the momentum relaxation rate of Cd$_3$As$_2$ using Drude fits to the optical conductivity. We also conduct THz range 2D coherent spectroscopy. The dominant response is a pump-probe signal, which allow us to separately extract the energy relaxation rate. We find that the rate of energy relaxation decreases down to the lowest measured temperatures. We connect this to Cd$_3$As$_2$ anomalous lattice dynamics, evidence for which is found in its low thermal conductivity and soft phonons in Raman scattering. The lack of a peak in the energy relaxation rate as a function of T can be connected to the linear in T dependence of the current relaxation e.g. the phonon scattering is elastic down to the lowest measured temperatures approximately 120 K.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2024

Nonequilibrium Andreev resonances in ballistic graphene Andreev interferometers

We study nonequilibrium Andreev resonances in a voltage-biased graphene three-terminal Josephson junction (JJ). We observe periodic oscillations of resistance with maxima at multiples of the magnetic flux quantum (noninversion regime). As we increase the bias voltage, we further observe a transition point beyond which oscillations exhibit a $\pi$ phase shift (inversion regime) with maxima of resistance occuring at multiples of half-flux quantum. At this transition point, the frequency of the oscillations is doubled. We develop a model based on the coupling of the static Andreev bound states (ABSs) to the nonequilibrium Fermi surface of graphene to explain the observed noninversion to inversion crossovers. Our model associates these crossovers to microscopic phase-sensitive Andreev reflections which couple the normal and superfluid components of the current. Our findings show that multiterminal JJs can be used to engineer unconventional energy-phase relations such as those expected in the $\pi$-shifted ABSs without relying on quartet and Floquet physics. These nonequilibrium ABSs could potentially find applications in superconducting $\pi$ qubits.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗