No abstract

No abstract

Hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) is drawing increasing attention as an insulator and substrate material to develop next generation graphene-based electronic devices. In this paper, we investigate the quantum transport in heterostructures consisting of a few atomic layers thick hBN film sandwiched between graphene nanoribbon electrodes. We show a gate-controllable vertical transistor exhibiting strong negative differential resistance (NDR) effect with multiple resonant peaks, which stay pronounced for various device dimensions. We find two distinct mechanisms that are responsible for NDR, depending on the gate and applied biases, in the same device. The origin of first mechanism is a Fabry-Pérot like interference and that of the second mechanism is an in-plane wave vector matching when the Dirac points of the electrodes align. The hBN layers can induce an asymmetry in the current-voltage characteristics which can be further modulated by an applied bias. We find that the electron-phonon scattering suppresses the first mechanism whereas the second mechanism remains relatively unaffected. We also show that the NDR features are tunable by varying device dimensions. The NDR feature with multiple resonant peaks, combined with ultrafast tunneling speed provides prospect for the graphene-hBN-graphene heterostructure in the high-performance electronics.

The present study explores the effect of Dy3+ rare-earth ion substitution on the crystal structure, morphology, and magnetic properties of magnetostrictive Co0.7Mn0.3Fe2O4 spinel ferrite and demonstrates their potential applications in magnetomechanical sensors. The intrinsic CoFe2O4 and Dy-substituted Co0.7Mn0.3Fe2−xDyxO4 (x = 0.0–0.1) were prepared by the standard solid-state chemical reaction method. X-ray diffraction studies along with the Rietveld refinement confirm that all the samples exhibit single-phase cubic spinel structure with space group Fd3¯m. Raman and Mössbauer data analyses reveal that the cation redistribution with Mn and Dy cosubstitution in CoFe2O4 and confirm the presence of a mixed spinel structure. Electron microscopy analysis indicates the significant effect of Mn, Dy cosubstitution on the microstructure of CoFe2O4. All the samples exhibit the magnetic hysteresis (M-H) loops at 5 K and 300 K. Saturation magnetization (Ms) and the cubic anisotropy constant (K1) values increase with Mn substitution, while with Dy substitution, Ms reduces due to the decrease of magnetic interactions with Dy substitution. However, the coercive field decreases with Mn and increases with Dy substitution. Higher values of magnetostriction coefficients (λ11 = −95 ppm and λ12 = 52 ppm) and the strain derivative (dλ/dH=0.075ppm/Oeat600Oe) observed make Co0.7Mn0.3Fe1.95Dy0.05O4 a suitable candidate for designing torque/stress sensors and a magnetostrictive phase for making magnetoelectric composite. Chemical composition optimization yields higher values Ms (89 emu/g, i.e., 3.73 μB) at lower coercivity (Hc = 241 Oe) for Co0.7Mn0.3Fe2O4 and higher values of λ11, λ12, and dλ/dH at a lower magnetic field (below 800 Oe) for Co0.7Mn0.3Fe1.95Dy0.05O4. The results suggest and demonstrate that Co0.7Mn0.3Fe2O4 and Co0.7Mn0.3Fe1.95Dy0.05O4 are the potential candidates for designing magnetomechanical sensor applications.

Epitaxial films of La2/3Ca1/3MnO3 were successively implanted with 100 and 200 keV silver ions at fluences of 4.5×1015 and 1×1016 ions/cm2, respectively, to achieve a fairly uniform implant distribution. The as-implanted films are insulating and do not show a metal–insulator transition. Postimplantation annealing at 950 °C shows a recovery of the high structural quality of the films, along with an increase in the metal–insulator transition temperature (Tp), magnetoresistance, and the peak temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) at the transition. The peak TCR of 23% for manganite films is clearly significant for bolometric applications.

We report on the combined experimental and theoretical simulation results of lead-free ferroelectrics, Ba(1-x)CaxTiO3 (x = 0.0–0.3) and BaTi(1-y)ZryO3 (y = 0.0–0.2), synthesized by standard solid state reaction method. First principles density functional calculations are used to investigate the electronic structure, dynamical charges, and spontaneous polarization of these compounds. In addition, the structural, ferroelectric, piezoelectric, and dielectric properties are studied using extensive experiments. The X-ray diffraction and temperature dependent Raman spectroscopy studies indicate that the calcium (Ca) substituted compositions exhibit a single phase crystal structure, while zirconium (Zr) substituted compositions are biphasic. The scanning electron micrographs reveal the uniform and highly dense microstructure. The presence of polarization-electric field and strain-electric field hysteresis loops confirms the ferroelectric and piezoelectric nature of all the compositions. Our results demonstrate higher values for polarization, percentage strain, piezoelectric coefficients, and electrostrictive coefficient compared to those existing in the literature. For smaller substitutions of Ca and Zr in BaTiO3, a direct piezoelectric coefficient (d33) is enhanced, while the highest d33 value (∼300 pC/N) is observed for BaTi0.96Zr0.04O3 due to the biphasic ferroelectric behavior. Calculation of Born effective charges indicates that doping with Ca or Zr increases the dynamical charges on Ti as well as on O and decreases the dynamical charge on Ba. An increase in the dynamical charges on Ti and O is ascribed to the increase in covalency of Ti-O bond that reduces the polarizability of the crystal. A broader range of temperatures is demonstrated to realize the stable phase in the Ca substituted compounds. The results indicate enhancement in the temperature range of applicability of these compounds for device applications. The combined theoretical and experimental study is expected to enhance the current scientific understanding of the lead-free ferroelectric materials.

No abstract

No abstract