Condensed Matter Physics Commons^™

Discrimination Between Spin-Dependent Charge Transport And Spin-Dependent Recombination In Π-Conjugated Polymers By Correlated Current And Electroluminescence-Detected Magnetic Resonance, Marzieh Kavand, Douglas Baird, Kipp Van Schooten, Hans Malissa

Dartmouth Scholarship

Spin-dependent processes play a crucial role in organic electronic devices. Spin coherence can give rise to spin mixing due to a number of processes such as hyperfine coupling, and leads to a range of magnetic field effects. However, it is not straightforward to differentiate between pure single-carrier spin-dependent transport processes which control the current and therefore the electroluminescence, and spin-dependent electron-hole recombination which determines the electroluminescence yield and in turn modulates the current. We therefore investigate the correlation between the dynamics of spin-dependent electric current and spin-dependent electroluminescence in two derivatives of the conjugated polymer poly(phenylene-vinylene) using simultaneously measured pulsed …

Alamethicin In Lipid Bilayers: Combined Use Of X-Ray Scattering And Md Simulations, Jianjun Pan, D. Peter Tieleman, John F. Nagle, Norbert Kučerka, Prof. Stephanie Tristram-Nagle Ph.D.

John Copeland Nagle

We study fully hydrated bilayers of two di-monounsaturated phospholipids diC18:1PC (DOPC) and diC22:1PC with varying amounts of alamethicin (Alm). We combine the use of X-ray diffuse scattering and molecular dynamics simulations to determine the orientation of alamethicin in model lipids. Comparison of the experimental and simulated form factors shows that Alm helices are inserted transmembrane at high humidity and high concentrations, in agreement with earlier results. The X-ray scattering data and the MD simulations agree that membrane thickness changes very little up to 1/10 Alm/ DOPC. In contrast, the X-ray data indicate that the thicker diC22:1PC membrane thins with added …

Interaction-Induced Dirac Fermions From Quadratic Band Touching In Bilayer Graphene, Sumiran Pujari, Thomas C. Lang, Ganpathy Murthy, Ribhu K. Kaul

Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications

We revisit the effect of local interactions on the quadratic band touching (QBT) of the Bernal honeycomb bilayer model using renormalization group (RG) arguments and quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) simulations. We present a RG argument which predicts, contrary to previous studies, that weak interactions do not flow to strong coupling even if the free dispersion has a QBT. Instead, they generate a linear term in the dispersion, which causes the interactions to flow back to weak coupling. Consistent with this RG scenario, in unbiased QMC simulations of the Hubbard model we find compelling evidence that antiferromagnetism turns on at a …

Magnetism In Curved Geometries, Robert Streubel, Peter Fischer, Florian Kronast, Volodymyr P. Kravchuk, Denis D. Sheka, Yuri Gaididei, Oliver G. Schmidt, Denys Makarov

Robert Streubel Papers

Extending planar two-dimensional structures into the three-dimensional space has become a general trend in multiple disciplines, including electronics, photonics, plasmonics and magnetics. This approach provides means to modify conventional or to launch novel functionalities by tailoring the geometry of an object, e.g. its local curvature. In a generic electronic system, curvature results in the appearance of scalar and vector geometric potentials inducing anisotropic and chiral effects. In the specific case of magnetism, even in the simplest case of a curved anisotropic Heisenberg magnet, the curvilinear geometry manifests two exchange-driven interactions, namely effective anisotropy and antisymmetric exchange, i.e. Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya-like interaction. As …

Self-Assembled Copper Nanoparticle Superlattices On Graphene Thin Films, Tianhao Ouyang

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Recently, Giovannetti et al. successfully demonstrated that some metals (such as Cu and Au) only have weak van der waals interaction with graphene and thus can only form weak bonding without severely shifting graphene’s band structure, which describes the energies range of the electrons in the material. Therefore, this opens up windows for graphene enhancement without greatly changing its properties. Furthermore, Zhou et al. later suggested the possibility of self-assembling periodic arrays of alkali atoms on graphene. In our group, graphene thin films fabricated in a cost effective way using solution-processed methods have been used extensively, including decorating …

Electron Correlations In Local Effective Potential Theory, Viraht Sahni, Xiao-Yin Pan, Tao Yang

Publications and Research

Local effective potential theory, both stationary-state and time-dependent, constitutes the mapping from a system of electrons in an external field to one of the noninteracting fermions possessing the same basic variable such as the density, thereby enabling the determination of the energy and other properties of the electronic system. This paper is a description via Quantal Density Functional Theory (QDFT) of the electron correlations that must be accounted for in such a mapping. It is proved through QDFT that independent of the form of external field, (a) it is possible to map to a model system possessing all the basic …

Cubesat Space Environments Effects Studied In The Space Survivability Test Chamber, Jr Dennison, Gregory Wilson, Alex Souvall, Ben Russon, Katie Gamaunt

Posters

CubeSats are particularly susceptible to environmental-induced modifications, which can lead to deleterious or catastrophic consequences. This is increasingly important as small satellites—with minimal shielding due to reduced mass and size constraints and reliance on more compact and sensitive electronics—have longer mission lifetimes and make more diverse, complex and sensitive measurements. The current push to expand deployment of CubeSats beyond LEO, into even more demanding environments where modest relief due to shielding by the Earth’s magnetosphere is absent (such as polar or GEO orbits), can further exacerbate these problems.

Testing of small satellites is therefore critical to avoid such problems. A …

Photonicstd-2d: Modeling Light Scattering In Periodic Multilayer Photonic Structures, Alexey Bondarev, Shaimaa Azzam, Zhaxylyk Kudyshev, Alexander V. Kildishev

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Efficient modeling of electromagnetic processes in optical and plasmonic metamaterials is important for enabling new and exciting ways to manipulate light for advanced applications. In this work, we put together a tool for numerical simulation of propagation of normally incident light through a nanostructured multilayer composite material. The user builds a unit cell of a given material layer-by-layer starting from a substrate up to a superstrate, splitting each layer further into segments. The segments are defined by width and material -- dielectric, metal or active medium. Simulations are performed with the finite difference time domain (FDTD) method. A database of …

Classifying Pattern Formation In Materials Via Machine Learning, Lukasz Burzawa, Shuo Liu, Erica W. Carlson

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Scanning probe experiments such as scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) on strongly correlated materials often reveal complex pattern formation that occurs on multiple length scales. We have shown in two disparate correlated materials that the pattern formation is driven by proximity to a disorder-driven critical point. We developed new analysis concepts and techniques that relate the observed pattern formation to critical exponents by analyzing the geometry and statistics of clusters observed in these experiments and converting that information into critical exponents. Machine learning algorithms can be helpful correlating data from scanning probe experiments to theoretical models …

Characterizing Local Order And Physical Properties Of Rare Earth Complex Oxides, Thomas Jacob Shamblin

Doctoral Dissertations

With more than 500 compositions, materials possessing the pyrochlore structure have a myriad of technological applications and physical phenomena. Three of the most noteworthy properties are the structure’s ability to resist amorphization making it a possible host matrix for spent nuclear fuel, its exotic magnetic properties arising from geometric frustration, and fast ionic conductivity for solid-oxide fuel cell applications. This work focuses on these three aspects of the pyrochlore’s many potential uses. Structural characterization revealed that pyrochlore-type oxides have a tendency to disorder from a high symmetry cubic structure to a lower symmetry orthorhombic arrangement in response to a variety …

Hydrogel Microphones For Stealthy Underwater Listening, Yang Gao, Jingfeng Song, Shumin Li, Christian Elowsky, You Zhou, Stephen Ducharme, Yong Mei Chen, Qin Zhou, Li Tan

Stephen Ducharme Publications

Exploring the abundant resources in the ocean requires underwater acoustic detectors with a high-sensitivity reception of low-frequency sound from greater distances and zero reflections. Here we address both challenges by integrating an easily deformable network of metal nanoparticles in a hydrogel matrix for use as a cavity-free microphone. Since metal nanoparticles can be densely implanted as inclusions, and can even be arranged in coherent arrays, this microphone can detect static loads and air breezes from different angles, as well as underwater acoustic signals from 20 Hz to 3 kHz at amplitudes as low as 4 Pa. Unlike dielectric capacitors or …

Probing Symmetry And Disorder Effects In The Fractional Quantum Hall States Of The Second Landau Level, Ethan I. Kleinbaum

Open Access Dissertations

Electrons confined to two dimensions, cooled to cryogenic temperatures, and placed in a strong perpendicular magnetic field exhibit a set of ground states referred to as the fractional quantum Hall states (FQHS). The FQHSs forming in the region called the second Landau level are some of the most exciting states as several theories predict that they are very different from the well understood FQHS in the lowest Landau level. Nonetheless, the nature of these FQHSs continue to evade understanding. In this thesis, a unique ultra-low temperature setup is used to examine the FQHSs of the second Landau level in regimes …

Localization And Delocalization In Two-Dimensional Quantum Percolation, Brianna S. Dillon Thomas

Open Access Dissertations

Quantum percolation is one of several disorder-only models that address the question of whether conduction, or more generally, delocalization, is possible in two dimensional disordered systems. Whether quantum percolation exhibits a delocalization-localization phase transition in two dimensions is an ongoing debate, but many recent studies point toward there being a delocalized phase at non-zero disorder, in contradiction to the behavior of the Anderson model, another disorder-only model. In this dissertation, I present my research on quantum percolation that shows a delocalized state is possible, both on isotropic lattices and on highly anisotropic lattices, and shows that the essential characteristics of …

Phase Sensitive Thermography Of Magnetostrictive Materials Under Periodic Excitations, Peng Yang

Theses and Dissertations

The use of giant magnetostrictive materials in actuator and sensor applications is still relatively new. Giant magnetostrictive materials, such as Terfenol-D, are unique in producing large deformation under a magnetic field. Applications of these materials in solid state actuators and transducers may require more knowledge on the interaction between geometry and material properties for a specific design. In order to gain more understanding of the magnetostriction mechanism, phase sensitive or lock-in thermography has been used to study Terfenol-D. Thermography is useful in that it allows for full field measurement of the surface of an object with a relatively simple setup. …

Metal Semiconductor Contact Between Gold And Boron Carbide, Ethiyal Raj Wilson, Elena Echeverria, Aiyun Liu, Bin Dong, George Peterson, Michael Nastasi, Peter A. Dowben

UCARE Research Products

We have investigated the interaction of gold (Au) with the semiconductor boron carbide through X-ray photoemission and heterojunction diode fabrication. The plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) hydrogenated semiconducting boron carbide films, deposited from closo-1,7-dicarbadodecaborane (metacarborane, m-B₁₀C₂H₁₂), shows a shift in the binding energies of the core level photoemission features when gold is deposited on the surface. The shifting of the B 1s level is smaller than for the C 1s level and the non-uniform nature of the shifts indicates a strong, complex and reversible gold chemical interaction with the surface, particularly with the …

Low-Dimensional Materials For Organic Electronic Applications, Sumit Beniwal

Department of Physics and Astronomy: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This thesis explores the self-assembly, surface interactions and electronic properties of functional molecules that have potential applications in electronics. Three classes of molecules - organic ferroelectric, spin-crossover complex, and molecules that assemble into a 2D semiconductor, have been studied through scanning tunneling microscopy and surfacesensitive spectroscopic methods. The scientific goal of this thesis is to understand the self-assembly of these molecules in low-dimensional (2D) configurations and the influence of substrate on their properties. First, a H-bonded organic ferroelectric, the 3-Hydroxyphenalenone, is studied on two noble metal substrates. It is demonstrated how a variety of different assemblies including 1D chains, p-p …

Materials Design And Band Gap Engineering Of Complex Nanostructures Using A Semi-Empirical Approach : Low Dimensional Boron Nanostructures, H-Bn Sheet With Graphene Domains And Holey Graphene., Cherno Baba Kah

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation will explore the potential of a semi-empirical Hamiltonian, developed by the research group at the University of Louisville, in predicting the existence of new families of low-dimensional boron nanostructures based on icosahedral α-B₁₂ clusters, and in tuning the band gaps of h-BN sheets with graphene domains and holey graphene. This semi-empirical Hamiltonian models electron-electron and electron-ion interactions using environment-dependent (ED) functions, and ion-ion interactions via usual pairwise terms. Additional features of our approach are that it uses a linear combination of atomic orbitals (LCAO) framework to describe the Hamiltonian and it calculates the charge distribution around a …

Omcvd Gold Nanoparticles Covalently Attached To Polystyrene For Biosensing Applications, Sivayini Kandeepan

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Remarkable developments and successes were witnessed in the fabrication and implementation of optical sensors based on localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) for the investigation of chemical and biological material quantities and to detect lethal diseases such as cancer in early stages. Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are ideal candidate for sensing purposes due to their chemical stability, ease of surface functionalization and strong LSPR in the visible range. Although there are several designs of sensors published, most of them are still limited to small scale research laboratory use partly due to their high cost of fabrication and waste management, in particular critical …

Morphological And Material Effects In Van Der Waals Interactions, Jaime C. Hopkins

Doctoral Dissertations

Van der Waals (vdW) interactions influence a variety of mesoscale phenomena, such as surface adhesion, friction, and colloid stability, and play increasingly important roles as science seeks to design systems on increasingly smaller length scales. Using the full Lifshitz continuum formulation, this thesis investigates the effects of system materials, shapes, and configurations and presents open-source software to accurately calculate vdW interactions. In the Lifshitz formulation, the microscopic composition of a material is represented by its bulk dielectric response. Small changes in a dielectric response can result in substantial variations in the strength of vdW interactions. However, the relationship between these …

Designing Active Granular Squares, Christopher C. Olson

Masters Theses

The goal of this thesis has been to find a means of i) designing an active square particle, and ii) continuously varying its degree of activity with the objective of understanding the effects of activity on the various phases of granular matter. The motivations, results and limitations of our methods of creating active particles are discussed in this thesis. The applicability of a stochastic model based on the Langevin equation in 2D as well as implications for future experiments are also discussed.