含非均匀结构量子波导中6支振动模中的声子输运和热导

利用散射矩阵方法,研究非均匀结构调制的半导体量子波导中6支最低弹性声子模的输运系数与热导性质.研究结果表明:当4支最低声学声子模的截止频率为0Hz且当频率接近于0Hz时,透射系数总为1;当2支光学模的截止频率大于0Hz且当频率接近截止频率时,透射系数总为0;声子模的输运系数、量子化热导平台以及热导性质与量子点的结构密切相关;在极低温度下,扭转模的热导对结构最敏感,而随着温度的增大,压缩模与y方向的弯曲声学模的热导对量子点的结构最敏感;改变量子点的结构能有效调节6支单模的热导.     

Single-mode heat conduction by photons

The thermal conductance of a single channel is limited by its unique quantum value G(Q), as was shown theoretically in 1983. This result closely resembles the well-known quantization of electrical conductance in ballistic one-dimensional conductors. Interestingly, all particles-irrespective of whether they are bosons or fermions-have the same quantized thermal conductance when they are confined within dimensions that are small compared to their characteristic wavelength. The single-mode heat conductance is particularly relevant in nanostructures. Quantized heat transport through submicrometre dielectric wires by phonons has been observed, and it has been predicted to influence cooling of electrons in metals at very low temperatures due to electromagnetic radiation. Here we report experimental results showing that at low temperatures heat is transferred by photon radiation, when electron-phonon as well as normal electronic heat conduction is frozen out. We study heat exchange between two small pieces of normal metal, connected to each other only via superconducting leads, which are ideal insulators against conventional thermal conduction. Each superconducting lead is interrupted by a switch of electromagnetic (photon) radiation in the form of a DC-SQUID (a superconducting loop with two Josephson tunnel junctions). We find that the thermal conductance between the two metal islands mediated by photons indeed approaches the expected quantum limit of G(Q) at low temperatures. Our observation has practical implications-for example, for the performance and design of ultra-sensitive bolometers (detectors of far-infrared light) and electronic micro-refrigerators, whose operation is largely dependent on weak thermal coupling between the device and its environment.     

Crossover from 'mesoscopic' to 'universal' phase for electron transmission in quantum dots

The measurement of phase in coherent electron systems--that is, 'mesoscopic' systems such as quantum dots--can yield information about fundamental transport properties that is not readily apparent from conductance measurements. Phase measurements on relatively large quantum dots recently revealed that the phase evolution for electrons traversing the dots exhibits a 'universal' behaviour, independent of dot size, shape, and electron occupancy. Specifically, for quantum dots in the Coulomb blockade regime, the transmission phase increases monotonically by pi throughout each conductance peak; in the conductance valleys, the phase returns sharply to its starting value. The expected mesoscopic features in the phase evolution--related to the dot's shape, spin degeneracy or to exchange effects--have not been observed, and there is at present no satisfactory explanation for the observed universality in phase behaviour. Here we report the results of phase measurements on a series of small quantum dots, having occupancies of between only 1-20 electrons, where the phase behaviour for electron transmission should in principle be easier to interpret. In contrast to the universal behaviour observed thus far only in the larger dots, we see clear mesoscopic features in the phase measurements when the dot occupancy is less than approximately 10 electrons. As the occupancy increases, the manner of phase evolution changes and universal behaviour is recovered for some 14 electrons or more. The identification of a transition from the expected mesoscopic behaviour to universal phase evolution should help to direct and constrain theoretical models for the latter.     

Laser cooling of a nanomechanical oscillator into its quantum ground state

The simple mechanical oscillator, canonically consisting of a coupled mass-spring system, is used in a wide variety of sensitive measurements, including the detection of weak forces and small masses. On the one hand, a classical oscillator has a well-defined amplitude of motion; a quantum oscillator, on the other hand, has a lowest-energy state, or ground state, with a finite-amplitude uncertainty corresponding to zero-point motion. On the macroscopic scale of our everyday experience, owing to interactions with its highly fluctuating thermal environment a mechanical oscillator is filled with many energy quanta and its quantum nature is all but hidden. Recently, in experiments performed at temperatures of a few hundredths of a kelvin, engineered nanomechanical resonators coupled to electrical circuits have been measured to be oscillating in their quantum ground state. These experiments, in addition to providing a glimpse into the underlying quantum behaviour of mesoscopic systems consisting of billions of atoms, represent the initial steps towards the use of mechanical devices as tools for quantum metrology or as a means of coupling hybrid quantum systems. Here we report the development of a coupled, nanoscale optical and mechanical resonator formed in a silicon microchip, in which radiation pressure from a laser is used to cool the mechanical motion down to its quantum ground state (reaching an average phonon occupancy number of 0.85 ± 0.08). This cooling is realized at an environmental temperature of 20?K, roughly one thousand times larger than in previous experiments and paves the way for optical control of mesoscale mechanical oscillators in the quantum regime.     

Mesoscopic superconductor as a ballistic quantum switch.

Several key experiments have revealed a rich variety of vortex structures in mesoscopic superconductors in which only a few quanta of magnetic flux are trapped: these structures are polygon-like vortex 'molecules' and multi-quanta giant vortices. Ginzburg-Landau calculations confirmed second-order phase transitions between the giant vortex states and stable molecule-like configurations. Here we study theoretically the electronic structure and the related phase-coherent transport properties of such mesoscopic superconductor systems. The quasiparticle excitations in the vortices form coherent quantum-mechanical states that offer the possibility of controlling the phase-coherent transport through the sample by changing the number of trapped flux quanta and their configuration. The sample conductance measured in the direction of the applied magnetic field is determined by the transparency of multi-vortex configurations, which form a set of quantum channels. The transmission coefficient for each channel is controlled by multiple Andreev reflections within the vortex cores and at the sample edge. These interference phenomena result in a stepwise behaviour of the conductance as a function of the applied magnetic field, and we propose to exploit this effect to realize a vortex-based quantum switch where the magnetic field plays the role of the gate voltage.     

热激发态下介观压电石英晶体的量子涨落

利用阻尼谐振子量子化方法,将介观压电石英晶体等效电路量子化,根据热场动力学(TFD)理论,研究了介观压电石英晶体在热激发态下电流和电压的量子涨落.结果表明介观压电石英晶体中存在电流电压的量子涨落,量子涨落不仅和石英晶体等效电路的固有参数有关,而且还和激发量子数、压缩态的压缩度、压缩角及环境温度有关,且随温度的升高而增大,随时间按指数规律而衰减.     

由Rashba效应和横向自旋轨道耦合诱发的量子点接触中的0.7反常结构研究

本文研究了在非对称限制势下由Rashba效应和横向自旋-轨道耦合诱发的量子点接触系统中的反常量子输运行为. 研究发现,在一定范围的Rashba相互作用强度下, 电导在0.8×2e2/h附近有一个较弱的坪台. 该坪台电导的值与非对称限制势的偏压有关. 在某个范围的偏压下, 它会随着偏压的增大而减小. 另外, 由于Rashba自旋-轨道耦合效应, 在非对称限制势作用下电子将会自旋极化. 因此, 在没有任何外加磁场的情况下, 采用纯电学手段即可做成量子点接触自旋偏振器.     

Cu:SiO2渗流系统电输运特性研究

研究了Cu与SiO2组成的渗流系统的电阻率、霍尔系数等电输运特性,该体系临界指数t高于经典渗流理论的预测数值,不同于其它渗流系统.并且在Cux(SiO2)1-x这一非磁性金属系统中,发现了巨霍尔效应(GHE),其数值高于普通金属近3个数量级,为霍尔传感器材料研究提供了新途径.这种非磁性系统中的巨霍尔效应是由界观尺度的量子干涉效应引起的.     

Magnetic impurity formation in quantum point contacts

A quantum point contact (QPC) is a narrow constriction between two wider electron reservoirs, and is the standard building block of sub-micrometre devices such as quantum dots and qubits (the proposed basic elements of quantum computers). The conductance through a QPC changes as a function of its width in integer steps of G(0) = 2e2/h (where e is the charge on an electron, and h is Planck's constant), signalling the quantization of its transverse modes. But measurements of these conductance steps also reveal an additional shoulder at a value around 0.7G(0) (refs 1-4), an observation that has remained a puzzle for more than a decade. It has recently been suggested that this phenomenon can be explained by the existence of a magnetic 'impurity' in the QPC at low electron densities. Here we present extensive numerical density-functional calculations that reveal the formation of an electronic state with a spin-1/2 magnetic moment in the channel under very general conditions. In addition, we show that such an impurity will also form at large magnetic fields, for a specific value of the field, and sometimes even at the opening of the second transverse mode in the QPC. Beyond explaining the source of the '0.7 anomaly', these results may have far-reaching implications for spin-filling of electronic states in quantum dots and for the dephasing of quantum information stored in semiconductor qubits.     

多壁碳纳米管与基体之间界面热输运分子动力学模拟

碳纳米管与基体之间的热耦合对纳米结构界面热输运起主导作用。采用非平衡态分子动力学模拟了垂直生长多壁碳纳米管与Si基体之间的热耦合,得到界面热导的温度效应和作用力效应并利用声子输运理论进行了分析。低温下多壁碳纳米管与Si之间声子的态密度匹配较好,界面热输运能力主要取决于界面两侧低频声子的耦合振动,高温下近界面区域内热输运能力受高频声子的非弹性散射影响而逐渐增强。随着范德瓦尔斯力增强,界面热导线性增大。     

温度对量子点接触电导量子化的影响

利用简单的２Ｄ－准１Ｄ－２Ｄ（二维－准一维－二维）理论模型，研究了零温和有限温度下，介观尺寸量子点接触中的电导随费米能的变化关系，计算表明，在较低温度下（如８Ｋ），温度效应使一定纵横比的量子点接触电导一台振荡消失，但电导仍２ｅ＾２／ｈ为单位的量子化。     

热真空态下介观串并联RLC电路的量子涨落

利用阻尼谐振子量子化方法,将介观RLC串并联电路量子化,在此基础上,研究了热真空态下,各支路电流和电压的量子涨落,结果表明,各支路电流电压的量子涨落均与电路器件的参数以及温度有关,且随时间衰减。     

热真空态下介观并联LC电路的量子涨落

从经典LC并联电路的运动方程出发，将介观LC并联电路量子化．在此基础上，研究了热真空态下各支路电流和电压的量子涨落．结果表明，各支路电流电压的量子涨落均与电路器件的参数以及温度有关．     

基于第一性原理的碳纳米管热输运的计算

基于第一性原理的密度泛函理论方法对碳纳米管结构进行优化,计算出原子间的力常数.在此基础上,计算碳纳米管的声子色散关系,并且利用量子非平衡格林函数方法研究碳纳米管的热导.计算结果表明:随着碳纳米管管径的增大,碳纳米管的声子透射系数和热导均增大;然而对于碳纳米管平均单位面积热导,发现在低温区和高温区具有显著不同的性质:在低温区,不同手征类型的碳纳米管热导几乎接近;在高温区,锯齿型碳纳米管的单位面积热导随着管径的增大而增大,而扶手型碳纳米管的单位面积热导几乎不随管径的变化而变化.     

有限温度下介观串并联RLC电路的量子涨落

将介观串并联RLC电路等效成阻尼谐振子.并量子化，利用热场动力学理论研究了热真空态、热相干态、热压缩态下电流和电压的量子涨落．结果表明，支路电流电压的量子涨落不仅与电路器件的参数有关，而且与压缩因子及压缩角有关．还与环境温度有关．且由于电流焦耳热、环境温度和阻尼电阻的影响，涨落随环境温度升高而增大，随时间增加而衰减．这对微小电路的设计、电路量子噪声的抑制，具有十分重要的理论指导意义．     

介观耗散电容耦合电路的库仑阻塞效应

该文基于介观电路中电荷应是量子化的这一事实，应用正则量子化方法给出了介观耗散电容耦合电路的量子化方法和库仑阻塞条件，研究结果表明：介观耗散电容耦合电路的库仑阻塞条件不仅与电路中的电容和电感有关，而且与耗散电阻有关；随着耗散电阻的增大，库仑阻塞现象更加明显．该文还讨论了介观电容耦合电路的量子涨落。     

无序杂质、磁场对“三明治”式二维系统电导的影响

为研究二维电子系统中电子输运的问题及在磁场作用下二维无序杂质系统电导的物理性质,通过运用格林函数以及散射矩阵理论的方法,在格点模型的基础上,对"三明治"式二维电子系统电导的量子化现象进行了分析。导线与散射体的接触减小了系统的电导,削减了电导量子台阶现象,使得系统的电导随着导线与介质间耦合的变小而降低;当系统受到外磁场作用时,系统电导的变化随着磁场的变化表现出周期性震荡行为,这种震荡变化的剧烈程度与电子的能量有关;受杂质散射的影响,系统电导随无序杂质浓度的增大而减小,在某些特殊掺杂的浓度下,对于一些特殊的电子能量,系统的电导可以达到理想情况下的阶梯值。研究成果对于"三明治"式二维电子系统电导的进一步研究具有借鉴意义。     

声子输运模型预测石墨烯与基体之间界面热导

界面热导随着微纳米结构、器件的日益微型化而对内部热输运起着主导作用。本文采用扩散失配模型和非弹性散射模型从理论上预测了石墨烯与Si基体之间的声子透射系数和界面热导,并用声子输运理论进行了分析。声子透射系数和界面热导都随着温度的升高而增大,由于被激发的声子模式达到饱和,二者在高温时逐渐收敛。非弹性散射作用为声子透射提供了额外的通道,导致声子透射系数和界面导热能力的提升。     

Phase-slip-induced dissipation in an atomic Bose-Hubbard system

Phase-slips control dissipation in many bosonic systems, determining the critical velocity of superfluid helium and the generation of resistance in thin superconducting wires. Technological interest has been largely motivated by applications involving nanoscale superconducting circuit elements, such as standards based on quantum phase-slip junctions. Although phase slips caused by thermal fluctuations at high temperatures are well understood, controversy remains over the role of phase slips in small-scale superconductors--in solids, problems such as uncontrolled noise sources and disorder complicate their study and application. Here we show that phase slips can lead to dissipation in a clean and well-characterized Bose-Hubbard system, by experimentally studying the transport of ultracold atoms trapped in an optical lattice. In contrast to previous work, we explore a low-velocity regime described by the three-dimensional Bose-Hubbard model that is unaffected by instabilities, and we measure the effect of temperature on the dissipation strength. The damping rate of atomic motion (the analogue of electrical resistance in a solid) in the confining parabolic potential is well fitted by a model that includes finite damping at zero temperature. The low-temperature behaviour is consistent with the theory of quantum tunnelling of phase slips, whereas at higher temperatures a crossover consistent with a transition to thermal activation of phase slips is evident. Motion-induced features reminiscent of vortices and vortex rings associated with phase slips are also observed in time-of-flight imaging. These results clarify the role of phase slips in superfluid systems. They may also be of relevance in understanding the source of metallic phases observed in thin films, or serve as a test bed for theories of bosonic dissipation based upon variants of the Bose-Hubbard model.     

Quantum oscillations in a molecular magnet

The term 'molecular magnet' generally refers to a molecular entity containing several magnetic ions whose coupled spins generate a collective spin, S (ref. 1). Such complex multi-spin systems provide attractive targets for the study of quantum effects at the mesoscopic scale. In these molecules, the large energy barriers between collective spin states can be crossed by thermal activation or quantum tunnelling, depending on the temperature or an applied magnetic field. There is the hope that these mesoscopic spin states can be harnessed for the realization of quantum bits--'qubits', the basic building blocks of a quantum computer--based on molecular magnets. But strong decoherence must be overcome if the envisaged applications are to become practical. Here we report the observation and analysis of Rabi oscillations (quantum oscillations resulting from the coherent absorption and emission of photons driven by an electromagnetic wave) of a molecular magnet in a hybrid system, in which discrete and well-separated magnetic clusters are embedded in a self-organized non-magnetic environment. Each cluster contains 15 antiferromagnetically coupled S = 1/2 spins, leading to an S = 1/2 collective ground state. When this system is placed into a resonant cavity, the microwave field induces oscillatory transitions between the ground and excited collective spin states, indicative of long-lived quantum coherence. The present observation of quantum oscillations suggests that low-dimension self-organized qubit networks having coherence times of the order of 100 micros (at liquid helium temperatures) are a realistic prospect.