Magnetic control of ferroelectric polarization

The magnetoelectric effect--the induction of magnetization by means of an electric field and induction of polarization by means of a magnetic field--was first presumed to exist by Pierre Curie, and subsequently attracted a great deal of interest in the 1960s and 1970s (refs 2-4). More recently, related studies on magnetic ferroelectrics have signalled a revival of interest in this phenomenon. From a technological point of view, the mutual control of electric and magnetic properties is an attractive possibility, but the number of candidate materials is limited and the effects are typically too small to be useful in applications. Here we report the discovery of ferroelectricity in a perovskite manganite, TbMnO3, where the effect of spin frustration causes sinusoidal antiferromagnetic ordering. The modulated magnetic structure is accompanied by a magnetoelastically induced lattice modulation, and with the emergence of a spontaneous polarization. In the magnetic ferroelectric TbMnO3, we found gigantic magnetoelectric and magnetocapacitance effects, which can be attributed to switching of the electric polarization induced by magnetic fields. Frustrated spin systems therefore provide a new area to search for magnetoelectric media.     

Perspective on Materials Genome~

The author’s perspective on Materials Genome is presented in this paper through several related projects.Current thermodynamic and kinetic databases of multicomponent materials consist of Gibbs energy functions and atomic mobility of individual phases as functions of temperature,composition,and sometimes pressure,i.e.,with the individual phases based on crystal structures as the genome(building blocks)of materials.It is articulated that if an individual phase has its internal configurations,such as magnetic spin configurations and ferroelectric polarization,change significantly with respect to temperature,stress,and magnetic and electric fields,then those individual configurations instead should be considered as the genome of the individual phase.The‘‘mutation’’of an individual phase is governed by the entropy of mixing among the individual stable and metastable configurations,named as microstate configurational entropy,and responsible to anomalies in individual phases.Our ability to tailor the properties of those individual configurations as a function of compositions is the key for the design of materials.     

Stable ultrahigh-density magneto-optical recordings using introduced linear defects

The stability of data bits in magnetic recording media at ultra-high densities is compromised by the thermal 'flips'--magnetic spin reversals--of nano-sized spin domains, which erase the stored information. Media that are magnetized perpendicular to the plane of the film, such as ultrathin cobalt films or multilayered structures, are more stable against thermal self-erasure than conventional memory devices. In this context, magneto-optical memories seem particularly promising for ultrahigh-density recording on portable disks, and bit densities of approximately 100 Gbit inch(-2) (ref. 7) have been demonstrated using recent advances in the bit writing and reading techniques. But the roughness and mobility of the magnetic domain walls prevents closer packing of the magnetic bits, and therefore presents a challenge to reaching even higher bit densities. Here we report that the strain imposed by a linear defect in a magnetic thin film can smooth rough domain walls over regions hundreds of micrometres in size, and halt their motion. A scaling analysis of this process, based on the generic physics of disorder-controlled elastic lines, points to a simple way by which magnetic media might be prepared that can store data at densities in excess of 1 Tbit inch(-2).     

团簇Ti3B2自旋密度及磁性

采用密度泛函理论,在B3LYP/Lanl2DZ水平下,对团簇Ti3B2进行全参数优化计算。通过分析团簇Ti3B2的自旋密度分布及各轨道态密度发现:构型1(3)原子的自旋密度分布均匀,内部原子间成键强弱均匀,对称性好,稳定性最好;Ti原子为体系中未成对电子的主要贡献者;构型1(3)和2(5)中,p轨道对未成对电子的贡献较大,不可忽略;各轨道中未成对电子主要是由Ti-3d轨道贡献且其对团簇磁性起主要贡献作用。     

Giant magnetoresistance in organic spin-valves

A spin valve is a layered structure of magnetic and non-magnetic (spacer) materials whose electrical resistance depends on the spin state of electrons passing through the device and so can be controlled by an external magnetic field. The discoveries of giant magnetoresistance and tunnelling magnetoresistance in metallic spin valves have revolutionized applications such as magnetic recording and memory, and launched the new field of spin electronics--'spintronics'. Intense research efforts are now devoted to extending these spin-dependent effects to semiconductor materials. But while there have been noteworthy advances in spin injection and detection using inorganic semiconductors, spin-valve devices with semiconducting spacers have not yet been demonstrated. pi-conjugated organic semiconductors may offer a promising alternative approach to semiconductor spintronics, by virtue of their relatively strong electron-phonon coupling and large spin coherence. Here we report the injection, transport and detection of spin-polarized carriers using an organic semiconductor as the spacer layer in a spin-valve structure, yielding low-temperature giant magnetoresistance effects as large as 40 per cent.     

Manipulating spin and charge in magnetic semiconductors using superconducting vortices

The continuous need for miniaturization and increase in device speed drives the electronics industry to explore new avenues of information processing. One possibility is to use electron spin to store, manipulate and carry information. All such 'spintronics' applications are faced with formidable challenges in finding fast and efficient ways to create, transport, detect, control and manipulate spin textures and currents. Here we show how most of these operations can be performed in a relatively simple manner in a hybrid system consisting of a superconducting film and a paramagnetic diluted magnetic semiconductor (DMS) quantum well. Our proposal is based on the observation that the inhomogeneous magnetic fields of the superconducting film create local spin and charge textures in the DMS quantum well, leading to a variety of effects such as Bloch oscillations and an unusual quantum Hall effect. We exploit recent progress in manipulating magnetic flux bundles (vortices) in superconductors and show how these can create, manipulate and control the spin textures in DMSs.     

团簇Mn3BP的电子自旋密度

为研究团簇Mn_3BP电子自旋密度的性质,借助密度泛函理论(DFT),在B3LYP/Lan12dz水平下对团簇Mn_3BP的全部可能构型进行优化和计算,得到二、四重态共有9种不同的优化构型;分析各构型的电子自旋密度对构型稳定性的影响。研究表明所有构型中B、P原子外是自旋向下的β电子(除了构型1~((4))外),B-P原子间电子分布为α电子过剩,金属原子Mn影响B-P原子成键时的电子分布;多重度不同但几何构型相同或相似的构型,四重态构型更稳定;电子自旋密度是影响构型稳定性的重要因素但不是唯一因素。     

铁磁180°畴层结构中的畴层振动模

本文探讨了具有反平行磁化矢量的铁磁层状结构的磁畴振动谱,给出了普遍的色散方程.当外加磁场为零,整个分布成180°畴层状态时,给出了一般的色散曲钱.理论预言可能同时存在一种具有二维铁磁性和一维反铁磁性的新型磁有序材料.     

纳米尺度的极化磁化理论

首先给出一种新的极化磁化方程,讨论纳米尺度的物质的极化、磁化、简并和相变,并给出适用于纳米尺度的极化磁化方程.然后研究电子自旋,讨论电子自旋的数学模式,指出电子的自旋是模不变的极矢量,电子的自旋是旋度矢量.最后把上述理论应用于二维纳米材料和石墨烯的研究和讨论.     

Detecting excitation and magnetization of individual dopants in a semiconductor

An individual magnetic atom doped into a semiconductor is a promising building block for bottom-up spintronic devices and quantum logic gates. Moreover, it provides a perfect model system for the atomic-scale investigation of fundamental effects such as magnetism in dilute magnetic semiconductors. However, dopants in semiconductors so far have not been studied by magnetically sensitive techniques with atomic resolution that correlate the atomic structure with the dopant's magnetism. Here we show electrical excitation and read-out of a spin associated with a single magnetic dopant in a semiconductor host. We use spin-resolved scanning tunnelling spectroscopy to measure the spin excitations and the magnetization curve of individual iron surface-dopants embedded within a two-dimensional electron gas confined to an indium antimonide (110) surface. The dopants act like isolated quantum spins the states of which are governed by a substantial magnetic anisotropy that forces the spin to lie in the surface plane. This result is corroborated by our first principles calculations. The demonstrated methodology opens new routes for the investigation of sample systems that are more widely studied in the field of spintronics-that is, Mn in GaAs (ref. 5), magnetic ions in semiconductor quantum dots, nitrogen-vacancy centres in diamond and phosphorus spins in silicon.     

X掺杂团簇Bn+1(n=1~11; X=Be, Mn)的密度泛函研究

本文利用密度泛函理论对BnX(n=1~11; X=B, Be, Mn)基态结构、稳定性、电子构型与磁性开展了系统研究. 结果表明: 团簇BnX( n=5~11; X=Be, Mn)中的X原子均位于高配位,BnBe的基态构型为多重度为1或2的低重态;团簇BnX的平均结合能均随尺寸的增大而逐渐增大,n取值相同时,Bn+1团簇的平均结合能最高. HOMO-LOMO能隙结果表明, 掺杂铍原子、锰原子有利于提高纯硼团簇的化学活性;团簇BnBe中的Be原子是电荷的受体,团簇BnMn中Mn原子轨道电子表现出显著的spd杂化;团簇BnX (X=B,Be)中的开壳层结构磁矩主要由2p轨道贡献. 团簇BnMn均为开壳层结构,总磁矩主要由Mn3d轨道贡献. 随着团簇BnMn尺寸的增大,Mn原子的配位数增大,B-Mn平均键长增大,Mn3d轨道磁矩减小而导致团簇的总磁矩减小.     

磁场对体心立方双层铁磁性薄膜中的自旋波能谱的影响

采用界面重参数化方法,在周期性边界条件下严格求解了界面铁磁耦合的体心立方异质型双层铁磁性薄膜自旋波本征值问题,研究了两层薄膜中自旋波能带结构.在此基础上重点讨论了垂直于膜面的外加磁场对自旋波能带结构的影响,结果表明,磁场对自旋波的能带结构有很大的影响,足够大的磁场可以使体模消失.     

连接构型对铬卟啉分子自旋过滤效应的调控

采用第一性原理方法对不同连接构型的铬卟啉分子电子自旋输运性质进行计算分析.结果表明，对角连接构型的铬卟啉分子在0～0.2 V偏压区间范围内的自旋极化率高达95%以上，水平连接构型的导电性能比对角连接高约1个数量级.说明改变铬卟啉分子连接构型，可以改变电子自旋前线分子轨道分布和输运路径，从而实现其自旋过滤效应，对基于不同连接构型的铬卟啉分子器件的电子自旋输运性质进行有效调控.     

Electrical detection of spin precession in a metallic mesoscopic spin valve

To study and control the behaviour of the spins of electrons that are moving through a metal or semiconductor is an outstanding challenge in the field of 'spintronics', where possibilities for new electronic applications based on the spin degree of freedom are currently being explored. Recently, electrical control of spin coherence and coherent spin precession during transport was studied by optical techniques in semiconductors. Here we report controlled spin precession of electrically injected and detected electrons in a diffusive metallic conductor, using tunnel barriers in combination with metallic ferromagnetic electrodes as spin injector and detector. The output voltage of our device is sensitive to the spin degree of freedom only, and its sign can be switched from positive to negative, depending on the relative magnetization of the ferromagnetic electrodes. We show that the spin direction can be controlled by inducing a coherent spin precession caused by an applied perpendicular magnetic field. By inducing an average precession angle of 180 degrees, we are able to reverse the sign of the output voltage.     

椭圆钴纳米环磁化动力学研究

利用Monte-Carlo方法模拟了不同偏心率、不同厚度的椭圆钴纳米环的磁特性.模拟结果表明:当系统的偏心率较小时,厚度越大的椭圆钴纳米环的涡旋态（“vortex”态）越稳定,此系统的磁滞回线保持圆形纳米环的主要特征;系统的偏心率较大时,系统的磁特性与圆形纳米环有较大差别,涡旋态的稳定性与厚度并无明显关联;对椭圆钴纳米环的自旋组态分析发现,椭圆系统在极化态（“onion”态）与涡旋态之间出现了更多的亚稳态     

Spin electromagnetic field and dipole: A localized and quantized field

This paper investigates the structure of a spin electromagnetic (EM) field and its various physical properties. A spin EM field is an intrinsic mode of free space, which satisfies the spin equations derived from Maxwell equations. A spin mode has two basic properties: the spin along its axis and the localization of electromagnetic field. The source and EM structure of this electric and magnetic mode are described in detail in this paper. The distributed charge and current of a spin mode can be integrated to obtain the electric and magnetic moment, and they can be treated as the electromagnetic dipole. A spin mode possesses both wave and particle properties: a wave number, angular frequency and characteristic speed are its wave parameters; an intrinsic radius, energy and angular momentum are its dynamic parameters. The former is analogous to an EM resonant mode; the latter is similar to the behavior of a particle with intrinsic spin. There are two kinds of electric modes present, one can be expressed through a pair of charges, and the other can be expressed by a magnetic current. They both have the same electric moment, but have different divergence properties.     

Emergent excitations in a geometrically frustrated magnet

Frustrated systems are ubiquitous, and they are interesting because their behaviour is difficult to predict; frustration can lead to macroscopic degeneracies and qualitatively new states of matter. Magnetic systems offer good examples in the form of spin lattices, where all interactions between spins cannot be simultaneously satisfied. Here we report how unusual composite spin degrees of freedom can emerge from frustrated magnetic interactions in the cubic spinel ZnCr(2)O(4). Upon cooling, groups of six spins self-organize into weakly interacting antiferromagnetic loops, whose directors -- the unique direction along which the spins are aligned, parallel or antiparallel -- govern all low-temperature dynamics. The experimental evidence comes from a measurement of the magnetic form factor by inelastic neutron scattering; the data show that neutrons scatter from hexagonal spin clusters rather than individual spins. The hexagon directors are, to a first approximation, decoupled from each other, and hence their reorientations embody the long-sought local zero energy modes for the pyrochlore lattice.     

矩形自旋偏压驱动下的量子点动力学

文章计算了矩形自旋偏压驱动下电流随时间演化的表达式,并由此研究了受磁场影响量子点系统的瞬时隧穿过程.数值结果表明:在矩形自旋偏压驱动下出现了进出电荷的现象;无磁场时会产生纯自旋流,而加磁场时会对电荷流和自旋流的值产生影响,电荷流和自旋流在量子点系统中同时存在.     

线偏振磁场中的自旋演化及Berry位相

自旋在线偏振磁场中的演化是无法精确求解，本文用转动 波近似求得线偏振磁场中自旋演化的波函数，并求得演化一周化所产生的Ｂｅｒｒｙ位相。     

Single-shot read-out of an individual electron spin in a quantum dot

Spin is a fundamental property of all elementary particles. Classically it can be viewed as a tiny magnetic moment, but a measurement of an electron spin along the direction of an external magnetic field can have only two outcomes: parallel or anti-parallel to the field. This discreteness reflects the quantum mechanical nature of spin. Ensembles of many spins have found diverse applications ranging from magnetic resonance imaging to magneto-electronic devices, while individual spins are considered as carriers for quantum information. Read-out of single spin states has been achieved using optical techniques, and is within reach of magnetic resonance force microscopy. However, electrical read-out of single spins has so far remained elusive. Here we demonstrate electrical single-shot measurement of the state of an individual electron spin in a semiconductor quantum dot. We use spin-to-charge conversion of a single electron confined in the dot, and detect the single-electron charge using a quantum point contact; the spin measurement visibility is approximately 65%. Furthermore, we observe very long single-spin energy relaxation times (up to approximately 0.85 ms at a magnetic field of 8 T), which are encouraging for the use of electron spins as carriers of quantum information.