Search results for "insulators"
showing 10 items of 24 documents
Screening Order–Disorder Phase Transition in 1-D Perovskite-like Crystals of [Azetidinium]CdBr3
2022
In search for new polar compounds, we have synthesized the organic–inorganic hybrid [C3H8N]CdBr3 (AZECdBr3). This is a bromide analog of [C3H8N]CdCl3, which has been studied by us earlier. The chloride compound exhibited ferroelectric properties, so it seemed reasonable to check the properties of AZECdBr3. The AZECdBr3 crystals reveal three phase transitions (PTs): the first one (I → II) of the second order at 437.0/436.7 K (heating/cooling), the next (also of the second order) at 231.0 K (II → III), and the last one (classified as a first-order transition) at 197.0/194.0 K (III → IV). On the basis of the DSC data, the thermodynamic parameters have been estimated. The single-crystal X-ray m…
Dielectric-Optical Switches: Photoluminescent, EPR, and Magnetic Studies on Organic–Inorganic Hybrid (azetidinium)2MnBr4
2022
A new organic–inorganic hybrid, AZEMnBr, has been synthesized and characterized. The thermal differential scanning calorimetry, differential thermal analysis, and thermogravimetric analyses indicate one structural phase transition (PT) at 346 and 349 K, on cooling and heating, respectively. AZEMnBr crystallizes at 365 K in the orthorhombic, Pnma, structure, which transforms to monoclinic P21/n at 200 K. Due to the X-ray diffraction studies, the anionic MnBr42– moiety is discrete. The azetidinium cations show dynamical disorder in the high-temperature phase. In the proposed structural PT, the mechanism is classified as an order–disorder type. The structural changes affect the dielectric resp…
Topological insulators in filled skutterudites
2011
We propose new topological insulators in cerium filled skutterudite (FS) compounds based on ab initio calculations. We find that two compounds CeOs4As12 and CeOs4Sb12 are zero gap materials with band inversion between Os-d and Ce-f orbitals, which are thus parent compounds of two and three-dimensional topological insulators just like bulk HgTe. At low temperature, both compounds become topological Kondo insulators, which are Kondo insulators in the bulk, but have robust Dirac surface states on the boundary. This new family of topological insulators has two advantages compared to previous ones. First, they can have good proximity effect with other superconducting FS compounds to realize Maja…
Topological protection of highly entangled non-Gaussian two-photon states
2021
Abstract We study theoretically the evolution of entangled non-Gaussian two-photon states in disordered topological lattices. Specifically, we consider spatially entangled two-photon states, modulated by Laguerre polynomials up to the 3rd order, which feature ring-shaped spatial and spectral correlation patterns. Such states are discrete analogs of photon-subtracted squeezed states, which are ubiquitous in optical quantum information processing or sensing applications. We find that, in general, a higher degree of entanglement coincides with a loss of topological protection against disorder, this is in line with previous results for Gaussian two-photon states. However, we identify a particul…
Hybrid quantum anomalous Hall effect at graphene-oxide interfaces
2021
Interfaces are ubiquitous in materials science, and in devices in particular. As device dimensions are constantly shrinking, understanding the physical properties emerging at interfaces is crucial to exploit them for applications, here for spintronics. Using first-principles techniques and Monte Carlo simulations, we investigate the mutual magnetic interaction at the interface between graphene and an antiferromagnetic semiconductor BaMnO3. We find that graphene deeply affects the magnetic state of the substrate, down to several layers below the interface, by inducing an overall magnetic softening, and switching the in-plane magnetic ordering from antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic. The grap…
Raman Scattering Applied to Materials Science
2015
Abstract One of the most powerful techniques to extract physical and chemical information of a material is the light scattering. Opposite to x-ray scattering for instance, where an average of the sample properties is obtained, Raman scattering is a local probe which can be used to detect inhomogeneities, local strain, lack of crystallinity, anharmonicities or information on the electronic structure by means of resonant Raman scattering. In this work, we will analyze the main contributions of Raman scattering in Materials Sciences. After a brief introduction of the technique and the equipment needed for the physical measurements, we will give practical examples of Raman scattering measuremen…
Topological magneto-optical effects and their quantization in noncoplanar antiferromagnets
2018
Reflecting the fundamental interactions of polarized light with magnetic matter, magneto-optical effects are well known since more than a century. The emergence of these phenomena is commonly attributed to the interplay between exchange splitting and spin-orbit coupling in the electronic structure of magnets. Using theoretical arguments, we demonstrate that topological magneto-optical effects can arise in noncoplanar antiferromagnets due to the finite scalar spin chirality, without any reference to exchange splitting or spin-orbit coupling. We propose spectral integrals of certain magneto-optical quantities that uncover the unique topological nature of the discovered effect. We also find th…
High-pressure studies of topological insulators Bi2Se3, Bi2Te3, and Sb2Te3
2013
Bi2Se3, Bi2Te3, and Sb2Te3 are narrow bandgap semiconductors with tetradymite crystal structure (R-3m) which have been extensively studied along with their alloys due to their promising operation as thermoelectric materials in the temperature range between 300 and 500¿K. Studies on these layered semiconductors have increased tremendously in the last years since they have been recently predicted and demonstrated to behave as 3D topological insulators. In particular, a number of high-pressure studies have been done in the recent years in these materials. In this work we summarize the main results of the high-pressure studies performed in this family of semiconductors to date. In particular, w…
Ferromagnetic kinetic exchange interaction in magnetic insulators
2020
The superexchange theory predicts dominant antiferromagnetic kinetic interaction when the orbitals accommodating magnetic electrons are covalently bonded through diamagnetic bridging atoms/groups. Here we show that explicit consideration of magnetic and (leading) bridging orbitals, together with the electron transfer between the former, reveals a strong ferromagnetic kinetic exchange contribution. First principle calculations show that it is comparable in strength with antiferromagnetic superexchange in a number of magnetic materials with diamagnetic metal bridges. In particular, it is responsible for a very large ferromagnetic coupling ($-10$ meV) between the iron ions in a Fe$^{3+}$-Co$^{…
Topological Protection and Control of Quantum Markovianity
2020
This article belongs to the Special Issue Topological Photonics.