arXiv subjects

S. Liu

Publications and source records attributed to S. Liu.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2023

Structural Origin of Recovered Ferroelectricity in BaTiO$_3$ Nanoparticles

Nanoscale BaTiO3 particles (approximately 10 nm) prepared by ball-milling a mixture of oleic acid and heptane have been reported to have an electric polarization several times larger than that for bulk BaTiO3. In this work, detailed local, intermediate, and long-range structural studies are combined with spectroscopic measurements to develop a model structure of these materials. The X-ray spectroscopic measurements reveal large Ti off-centering as the key factor producing the large spontaneous polarization in the nanoparticles. Temperature-dependent lattice parameter changes reveal the sharpening of the structural phase transitions in these BaTiO3 nanoparticles compared to the pure nanoparticle systems. Sharp crystalline-type peaks in the barium oleate Raman spectra suggest that this component in the composite core-shell matrix, a product of mechanochemical synthesis, stabilizes an enhanced polar structural phase of the BaTiO3 core nanoparticles.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2022

Birefringence and dichroism effects in the spin noise spectra of a spin-1 system

We perform spin noise spectroscopy experiments in metastable helium atoms at room temperature, with a probe light whose frequency is blue detuned from the D0 line. Both circular birefringence fluctuations (Faraday noise) and linear birefringence fluctuations (ellipticity noise) are explored theoretically and experimentally. In particular, it is shown that in both cases but for different optical detunings, two noise resonances are isolated at the Larmor frequency and at twice the Larmor frequency with a behaviour, which strongly depends on the orientation of the probe field polarization. The simple structure of metastable helium allows us to probe, model and explain the changes in the behavior of these peaks in terms of circular and linear dichroisms and birefringences as well as in terms of spin oscillation modes.

quant-ph↗

arXiv2022

The role of mobility in the dynamics of the COVID-19 epidemic in Andalusia

Metapopulation models have been a popular tool for the study of epidemic spread over a network of highly populated nodes (cities, provinces, countries) and have been extensively used in the context of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In the present work, we revisit such a model, bearing a particular case example in mind, namely that of the region of Andalusia in Spain during the period of the summer-fall of 2020 (i.e., between the first and second pandemic waves). Our aim is to consider the possibility of incorporation of mobility across the province nodes focusing on mobile-phone time dependent data, but also discussing the comparison for our case example with a gravity model, as well as with the dynamics in the absence of mobility. Our main finding is that mobility is key towards a quantitative understanding of the emergence of the second wave of the pandemic and that the most accurate way to capture it involves dynamic (rather than static) inclusion of time-dependent mobility matrices based on cell-phone data. Alternatives bearing no mobility are unable to capture the trends revealed by the data in the context of the metapopulation model considered herein.

physics.soc-ph↗

arXiv2022

First-principles analysis of the Al-rich corner of Al-Li-Cu phase diagram

The phase diagram of Al-Li-Cu system in the Al-rich region was determined by means of first-principles calculations and statistical mechanics. The mixing enthalpies of many configurations for different lattices in the whole Al-Li-Cu system were determined by density functional theory simulations to find the stable phases in the convex hull. They were fitted with a cluster expansion to calculate the free energy of the configurations with different compositions as a function of temperature in the Al-rich region (Al content > 40 at. %) by means of Monte Carlo simulations. It was found that the ground state phases in the Al-rich part of the Al-Li-Cu phase diagram were α-Al, θ' (Al2Cu), δ' (Al3Li), δ (AlLi) and T1 (Al6Cu4Li3), while θ'' (Al3Cu), T1' (Al2CuLi) and Al3Cu2Li were found on the lowest mixing enthalpy surfaces of their lattices and were metastable. α-Al, δ and T1 are stable phases in the whole temperature range while δ' becomes metastable at very low temperature and θ (Al2Cu) replaces θ' as the stable phase at approximately 550 K due to the vibrational entropic contribution. In addition, the phase diagram in the Al-rich region was built and it was shown in isothermal sections from 100 K to 900 K. They were in good agreement with the limited experimental data in the literature and provided new information regarding the stability, solubility and stoichiometry of the different phases. This information is important to understand the precipitation mechanisms during high temperature aging.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2022

Bulk evidence of anisotropic $s$-wave pairing with no sign change in the kagome superconductor CsV$_3$Sb$_5$

The recently discovered kagome superconductors $A$V$_3$Sb$_5$ ($A$ = K, Rb, Cs) possess a unique band structure with van Hove singularities and Dirac dispersions, in which unusual charge-density-wave (CDW) orders with time-reversal and rotational symmetry breaking have been reported. One of the most crucial unresolved issues is identifying the symmetry of the superconductivity that develops inside the CDW phase. Theory predicts a variety of unconventional superconducting symmetries, including exotic states with chiral and topological properties accompanied by a sign-changing superconducting gap. Experimentally, however, the phase information on the superconducting gap in $A$V$_3$Sb$_5$ is still lacking. Here we report the electron irradiation effects in CsV$_3$Sb$_5$ using introduced impurities as a phase-sensitive probe of superconductivity. Our magnetic penetration depth measurements reveal that with increasing impurities, a highly anisotropic fully-gapped state changes gradually to an isotropic full-gap state without passing through a nodal state. Furthermore, transport measurements under high pressure show that the double superconducting dome in the pressure-temperature phase diagram survives against sufficient impurities. These results are strong bulk evidence that CsV$_3$Sb$_5$ is a non-chiral, anisotropic $s$-wave superconductor with no sign change both at ambient and high pressure, which provides a clue to understanding the relationship between CDW and superconductivity in kagome superconductors.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2022

GAlaxy Light profile convolutional neural NETworks (GaLNets). I. fast and accurate structural parameters for billion galaxy samples

Next generation large sky surveys will observe up to billions of galaxies for which basic structural parameters are needed to study their evolution. This is a challenging task that, for ground-based observations, is complicated by seeing limited point-spread function (PSF). To perform a fast and accurate analysis of galaxy surface brightness, we have developed a family of supervised Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) to derive Sersic profile parameters of galaxies. This work presents the first two Galaxy Light profile convolutional neural Networks (GaLNets) of this family. The first one is trained using galaxy images only (GaLNet-1), and the second is trained with both galaxy images and the local PSF (GaLNet-2). We have compared the results from the GaLNets with structural parameters (total magnitude, effective radius, Sersic index etc.) derived on a set of galaxies from the Kilo-Degree Survey (KiDS) by 2DPHOT, as a representative of "standard" PSF convolved Sersic fitting tools. The comparison shows that GaLNet-2 can reach an accuracy as high as 2DPHOT, while GaLNet-1 performs worse because it misses the information on the local PSF. Both GaLNets are three orders of magnitude faster than standard methods in terms of computational speed. This first application of CNNs to ground-based galaxy surface photometry shows that they are promising tools to perform parametric analyses of very large galaxy samples, like the ones expected from Vera Rubin/LSST surveys. However, the GaLNets can be easily modified for space observations from Euclid and the China Space Station Telescope.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2022

Enhanced superconducting pairing strength near a nonmagnetic nematic quantum critical point

The quest for high-temperature superconductivity at ambient pressure is a central issue in physics. In this regard, the relationship between unconventional superconductivity and the quantum critical point (QCP) associated with the suppression of some form of symmetry-breaking order to zero temperature has received particular attention. The key question is how the strength of the electron pairs changes near the QCP, and this can be verified by high-field experiments. However, such studies are limited mainly to superconductors with magnetic QCPs, and the possibility of unconventional mechanisms by which nonmagnetic QCP promotes strong pairing remains a nontrivial issue. Here, we report systematic measurements of the upper critical field $H_{\rm c2}$ in nonmagnetic FeSe$_{1-x}$Te$_{x}$ superconductors, which exhibit a QCP of electronic nematicity characterized by spontaneous rotational-symmetry breaking. As the magnetic field increases, the superconducting phase of FeSe$_{1-x}$Te$_{x}$ shrinks to a narrower dome surrounding the nematic QCP. The analysis of $H_{\rm c2}$ reveals that the Pauli-limiting field is enhanced toward the QCP, implying that the pairing interaction is significantly strengthened via nematic fluctuations emanated from the QCP. Remarkably, this nonmagnetic nematic QCP is not accompanied by a divergent effective mass, distinct from the magnetically mediated pairing. Our observation opens up a nonmagnetic route to high-temperature superconductivity.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2021

A Study on Correcting the Effect of Polarization Crosstalk in Full-Disk Solar Photospheric Magnetic Fields Observations

Magnetography using magnetic sensitive lines is regarded traditionally as the main instrument for measuring the magnetic field of the whole Sun. Full polarized Stockes parameters ($I$, $Q$, $U$, $V$) observed can be used to deduce the magnetic field under specific theoretical model or inversion algorithms. Due to various reasons, there are often cross-talk effects among Stokes signals observed directly by magnetographs. Especially, the circular polarized signal $V$ usually affects the linear polarized ones $Q$ and $U$ seriously, which is one of the main errors of the value of the transverse magnetic field (parallel to the solar surface) that is related to $Q$ and $U$. The full-disk magnetograph onboard the Advanced Space based Solar Observatory (ASO-S/FMG) is designed to observe Stockes parameters to deduce the vector magnetic field. In this paper, the methods correcting the effects of cross-talk $V$ to $Q$ and $U$ are based on the assumption of perfectly symmetric Q and U and anti-symmetric Stokes V profiles and a new method to reduce the crosstalk effect under observation mode of FMG is developed. Through the test, it is found that the two methods have better effect in cross-talk removal in the sunspot region, and have better consistency. Addtionally, the developed methodcan be applied to remove the cross-talk effect using only one group of $Q$, $U$ and $V$ images observed at one wavelength position.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2021

SNIa-Cosmology Analysis Results from Simulated LSST Images: from Difference Imaging to Constraints on Dark Energy

The Vera Rubin Observatory Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) is expected to process ${\sim}10^6$ transient detections per night. For precision measurements of cosmological parameters and rates, it is critical to understand the detection efficiency, magnitude limits, artifact contamination levels, and biases in the selection and photometry. Here we rigorously test the LSST Difference Image Analysis (DIA) pipeline using simulated images from the Rubin Observatory LSST Dark Energy Science Collaboration (DESC) Data Challenge (DC2) simulation for the Wide-Fast-Deep (WFD) survey area. DC2 is the first large-scale (300 deg$^2$) image simulation of a transient survey that includes realistic cadence, variable observing conditions, and CCD image artifacts. We analyze ${\sim}$15 deg$^2$ of DC2 over a 5-year time-span in which artificial point-sources from Type Ia Supernovae (SNIa) light curves have been overlaid onto the images. We measure the detection efficiency as a function of Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) and find a $50\%$ efficiency at $\rm{SNR}=5.8$. The magnitude limits for each filter are: $u=23.66$, $g=24.69$, $r=24.06$, $i=23.45$, $z=22.54$, $y=21.62$ $\rm{mag}$. The artifact contamination is $\sim90\%$ of detections, corresponding to $\sim1000$ artifacts/deg$^2$ in $g$ band, and falling to 300 per deg$^2$ in $y$ band. The photometry has biases $<1\%$ for magnitudes $19.5 < m <23$. Our DIA performance on simulated images is similar to that of the Dark Energy Survey pipeline applied to real images. We also characterize DC2 image properties to produce catalog-level simulations needed for distance bias corrections. We find good agreement between DC2 data and simulations for distributions of SNR, redshift, and fitted light-curve properties. Applying a realistic SNIa-cosmology analysis for redshifts $z<1$, we recover the input cosmology parameters to within statistical uncertainties.

astro-ph.CO↗

arXiv2021

First principles prediction of the Al-Li phase diagram

The phase diagram of the Al-Li system was determined by means of first principles calculations in combination with the cluster expansion formalism and statistical mechanics. The ground state phases were determined from first principles calculations of fcc and bcc configurations in the whole compositional range while the phase transitions as a function of temperature were ascertained from the thermodynamic grand potential and the Gibbs free energies of the phases. Overall, the calculated phase diagram was in good agreement with the currently accepted experimental phase diagram but the simulations provided new insights that are important to optimize microstructure of these alloys by means of heat treatments. In particular, the structure of the potential GP zones, made up of Al0.5Li0.5 (001) monolayers embedded in Al matrix, was identified. It was found that Al3Li is a stable phase although the energy barrier for the transformation of Al3Li into AlLi is very small (a few meV) and can be overcome by thermal vibrations. Moreover, bcc AlLi was found to be formed by martensitic transformation of fcc configurations and Al3Li precipitates stand for favorable sites for the nucleation of AlLi because they contain the basic blocks of such fcc ordering. Finally, polynomial expressions of the Gibbs free energies of the different phases as a function of temperature and composition were given, so they can be used in mesoscale simulations of precipitation in Al-Li alloys.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2021

Cyclotron resonance overtones and near-field magnetoabsorption via terahertz Bernstein modes in graphene

Two-dimensional electron systems subjected to a perpendicular magnetic field absorb electromagnetic radiation via the cyclotron resonance (CR). Here we report a qualitative breach of this well-known behaviour in graphene. Our study of the terahertz photoresponse reveals a resonant burst at the main overtone of the CR, drastically exceeding the signal detected at the position of the ordinary CR. In accordance with the developed theory, the photoresponse dependencies on the magnetic field, doping level, and sample geometry suggest that the origin of this anomaly lies in the near-field magnetoabsorption facilitated by the Bernstein modes, ultra-slow magnetoplasmonic excitations reshaped by nonlocal electron dynamics. Close to the CR harmonics, these modes are characterized by a flat dispersion and a diverging plasmonic density of states that strongly amplifies the radiation absorption. Besides fundamental interest, our experimental results and developed theory show that the radiation absorption via nonlocal collective modes can facilitate a strong photoresponse, a behaviour potentially useful for infrared and terahertz technology.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2021

High-Resolution In-situ Synchrotron X-ray Studies of Inorganic Perovskite CsPbBr$_3$: New Symmetry Assignments and Structural Phase Transitions

Perovskite photovoltaic ABX$_3$ systems are being studied due to their high energy-conversion efficiencies with current emphasis placed on pure inorganic systems. In this work, synchrotron single-crystal diffraction measurements combined with second harmonic generation measurements reveal the absence of inversion symmetry below room temperature in CsPbBr$_3$. Local structural analysis by pair distribution function and X-ray absorption fine structure methods are performed to ascertain the local ordering, atomic pair correlations, and phase evolution in a broad range of temperatures. The currently accepted space group assignments for CsPbBr$_3$ are found to be incorrect in a manner that profoundly impacts physical properties. New assignments are obtained for the bulk structure: $Im$$\bar{3}$ (above $\sim$ 410 K), $P$2$_1$/$m$ (between $\sim$ 300 K and $\sim$ 410 K), and the polar group $Pm$ (below $\sim$ 300 K), respectively. The newly observed structural distortions exist in the bulk structure consistent with the expectation of previous photoluminescence and Raman measurements. High-pressure measurements reveal multiple low-pressure phases, one of which exists as a metastable phase at ambient pressure. This work should help guide research in the perovskite photovoltaic community to better control the structure under operational conditions and further improve transport and optical properties.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2021

Measurement of Electronic Structure and Surface Reconstruction in the Superionic Cu2-xTe

Recently, layered copper chalcogenides Cu2X family (X=S, Se, Te) has attracted tremendous research interests due to their high thermoelectric (TE) performance, which is partly due to the superionic behavior of mobile Cu ions, making these compounds phonon liquids. Here, we systematically investigate the electronic structure and its temperature evolution of the less studied single crystal Cu2-xTe by the combination of angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) and scanning tunneling microscope/spectroscopy (STM/STS) experiments. While the band structure of the Cu2-xTe shows agreement with the calculations, we clearly observe a 2 * 2 surface reconstruction from both our low temperature ARPES and STM/STS experiments which survives up to room temperature. Interestingly, our low temperature STM experiments further reveal multiple types of reconstruction patterns, which suggests the origin of the surface reconstruction being the distributed deficiency of liquid-like Cu ions. Our findings reveal the electronic structure and impurity level of Cu2Te, which provides knowledge about its thermoelectric properties from the electronic degree of freedom.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2021

Enhanced Light-Matter Interaction in B-10 Monoisotopic Boron Nitride Infrared Nanoresonators

Phonon-polaritons, mixed excitations of light coupled to lattice vibrations (phonons), are emerging as a powerful platform for nanophotonic applications. This is because of their ability to concentrate light into extreme sub-wavelength scales and because of their longer phonon lifetimes than their plasmonic counterparts. In this work, the infrared properties of phonon-polaritonic nanoresonators made of monoisotopic B-10 hexagonal-boron nitride (h-BN) are explored, a material with increased phonon-polariton lifetimes compared to naturally abundant h-BN due to reduced photon scattering from randomly distributed isotopes. An average relative improvement of 50% in the nanoresonators Q factor is obtained with respect of nanoresonators made of naturally abundant h-BN. Moreover, the monoisotopic h-BN nano-ribbon arrays are used to sense nanometric-thick films of molecules, both through surface-enhanced absorption spectroscopy and refractive index sensing. In addition, strong coupling is achieved between a molecular vibration and the phonon-polariton resonance in monoisotopic h-BN ribbons.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2021

Evidence of topological edge states in a superconducting nonsymmorphic nodal-line semimetal

Topological materials host fascinating low dimensional gapless states at the boundary. As a prominent example, helical topological edge states (TESs) of two-dimensional topological insulators (2DTIs) and their stacked three-dimensional (3D) equivalent, weak topological insulators (WTIs), have sparked research enthusiasm due to their potential application in the next generation of electronics/spintronics with low dissipation. Here, we propose layered superconducting material CaSn as a WTI with nontrivial Z2 as well as nodal line semimetal protected by crystalline non-symmorphic symmetry. Our systematic angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) investigation on the electronic structure exhibits excellent agreement with the calculation. Furthermore, scanning tunnelling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS) at the surface step edge shows signatures of the expected TES. These integrated evidences from ARPES, STM/STS measurement and corresponding ab initio calculation strongly support the existence of TES in the non-symmorphic nodal line semimetal CaSn, which may become a versatile material platform to realize multiple exotic electronic states as well as topological superconductivity.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2021

Observation of Topological Superconductivity in a Stoichiometric Transition Metal Dichalcogenide 2M-WS2

Topological superconductors (TSCs) are unconventional superconductors with bulk superconducting gap and in-gap Majorana states on the boundary that may be used as topological qubits for quantum computation. Despite their importance in both fundamental research and applications, natural TSCs are very rare. Here, combining state of the art synchrotron and laser-based angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we investigated a stoichiometric transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD), 2M-WS2 with a superconducting transition temperature of 8.8 K (the highest among all TMDs in the natural form up to date) and observed distinctive topological surface states (TSSs). Furthermore, in the superconducting state, we found that the TSSs acquired a nodeless superconducting gap with similar magnitude as that of the bulk states. These discoveries not only evidence 2M-WS2 as an intrinsic TSC without the need of sensitive composition tuning or sophisticated heterostructures fabrication, but also provide an ideal platform for device applications thanks to its van der Waals layered structure.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2021

Planar nano-optics in anisotropic media: anomalous refraction and diffraction-free lensing of highly confined polaritons

As one of the most fundamental optical phenomena, refraction between isotropic media is characterized by light bending towards the normal to the boundary when passing from a low- to a high-refractive-index medium. However, in anisotropic media, refraction is a much more exotic phenomenon. The most general case of refraction between two anisotropic media remains unexplored, particularly in natural media and at the nanoscale. Here, we visualize and comprehensively study refraction of electromagnetic waves between two strongly anisotropic (hyperbolic) media, and, importantly, we do it with the use of polaritons confined to the nanoscale in a low-loss natural medium, alpha-MoO3. Our images show refraction of polaritons under the general case in which both the direction of propagation and the wavevector are not collinear. As they traverse planar nanoprisms tailored in alpha-MoO3, refracted polaritons exhibit non-intuitive directions of propagation, enabling us to unveil an exotic optical effect: bending-free refraction. Furthermore, we succeed in developing the first in-plane refractive hyperlens, which yields foci as small as lamdap/6, being lamdap the polariton wavelength (lamda0/50 with respect to the wavelength of light in free space). Our results set the grounds for planar nano-optics in strongly anisotropic media, with potential for unprecedented control of the flow of energy at the nanoscale.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2021

Fizeau Drag in Graphene Plasmonics

Dragging of light by moving dielectrics was predicted by Fresnel and verified by Fizeau's celebrated experiments with flowing water. This momentous discovery is among the experimental cornerstones of Einstein's special relativity and is well understood in the context of relativistic kinematics. In contrast, experiments on dragging photons by an electron flow in solids are riddled with inconsistencies and so far eluded agreement with the theory. Here we report on the electron flow dragging surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs): hybrid quasiparticles of infrared photons and electrons in graphene. The drag is visualized directly through infrared nano-imaging of propagating plasmonic waves in the presence of a high-density current. The polaritons in graphene shorten their wavelength when launched against the drifting carriers. Unlike the Fizeau effect for light, the SPP drag by electrical currents defies the simple kinematics interpretation and is linked to the nonlinear electrodynamics of the Dirac electrons in graphene. The observed plasmonic Fizeau drag enables breaking of time-reversal symmetry and reciprocity at infrared frequencies without resorting to magnetic fields or chiral optical pumping.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗