Photoreflectance (PR) spectra of a GaN thin film and an AlGaN/GaN heterostructure were measured by using a HeCd laser or a mercury lamp as a pump beam. The wavelengths (£f) of the HeCd laser and the mercury lamp are 325 nm and 253.7 nm, respectively. The energy of the HeCd laser is lower than band-gap energy of AlxGa1-xN (x > 0.2) so that electron-hole pairs cannot be generated in the AlGaN layer. Hence, the PR of the AlGaN was measured by using Argon ion laser (£f=300 nm) or quadrupled Nd:YAG (£f=266 nm) rather than HeCd laser in the previous works. In this work, the mercury lamp (£f=254 nm)was used as the pump beam. The problem with using the mercury lamp as the pump beam is because it is a diffused source so that it cannot be focused to a small spot. Nevertheless, defocused pump and probe beams were used in the PR measurement to improve signal to noise ratio. Hence, the diffused property of the mercury lamp is not a hindrance to the PR measurements.

In this thesis I present a nonequilibrium quantum field theory that describes the production of molecular dimers from a two-component quantum-degenerate atomic Fermi gas, via a linear downward sweep of a magnetic field across an s-wave Feshbach resonance. This problem raises interest because it is presently unclear as to why deviations from the universal Landau-Zener formula for the transition probability at two-level crossing are observed in the experimentally measured production efficiencies. The approach is based on evaluating real-time Green functions within the Keldysh- Schwinger formalism. The effects of quantum statistics associated with Pauli blocking for fermions and induced emission for bosons, characteristic of particle scattering in a quantum-degenerate many-body medium, are fully accounted for. I show that the molecular conversion efficiency is represented by a power series in terms of a dimensionless parameter which, in the zero-temperature limit, depends solely on the initial gas density and the Landau-Zener parameter. This result reveals a hindrance of the canonical Landau-Zener transition probability due to many-body effects, and presents an explanation for the experimentally observed deviations. A second topic treated in this thesis concerns the study of non-adiabatic transitions in N-state Landau-Zener systems. In connection to this, I provide a proof of the conjecture put forth by Brundobler and Elser, regarding the survival probability on the diabatic levels with maximum/minimum slope.

Cette thèse est consacrée à l'étude du transport dans les nanostructures quantiques unidimensionnelles dont les propriétés sont étudiées en s'appuyant notamment sur le bruit en excès à fréquence finie. La première partie de cette thèse est consacrée à l'étude du transport à travers une impureté dans un liquide de Luttinger couplée à un environnement électromagnétique arbitraire. L'impureté est traitée dans deux limites de transmission, la limite tunnel et la limite de faible rétrodiffusion. Les calculs sont menés dans le formalisme de Keldysh. Nous montrons ainsi que la théorie du blocage de Coulomb dynamique, établie pour une jonction tunnel couplée à un environnement à l'équilibre, demeure valide pour un liquide de Luttinger. Par ailleurs nous montrons que les relations de fluctuation dissipation reliant le bruit à fréquence finie au courant reste valide. Nous montrons que cette théorie peut également s'étendre dans la limite de faible rétrodiffusion à condition de prendre en compte la rétro-action du liquide électronique sur l'environnement. En revanche, les relations de fluctuation dissipation ne sont respectées que pour le bruit en émission. Dans une seconde partie nous intéressons effets d'une modulation radiofréquence sur les propriétés de transport des mêmes systèmes. Nous montrons notamment que ces effets peuvent être décrit par une théorie du blocage de Coulomb dynamique effective en convoluant la statistique d'absorption de photon avec la statistique de Tien-Gordon. Notons cependant que les relations de fluctuation dissipation ne sont plus vérifiées. Ces prédictions théoriques sont comparées aux résultats expériments obtenus par une équipe du SPEC au CEA de Saclay. Enfin nous étudions les propriétés de transport lorsque l'environnement, ici un oscillateur harmonique, est maintenu dans un état excité. Nous montrons que la présence de photons autorise d'une part le processus photo-assistés mais favorise également l'absorption de photons par des processus de bunching. Nous montrons finalement que les propriétés du transport s'obtiennent en convoluant la loi de Poisson du blocage de Coulomb avec la fonction caractéristique de Glauber de l'état peuplant l'oscillateur, menant à des statistiques exotiques. Ce dernier point nous permet d'utiliser ce système comme un détecteur d'état quantique. / This thesis discusses electronic transport in uni-dimensional quantum systems whose properties are studied with an extensive use of the finite-frequency non symmetrised excess noise. The first part focuses on transport through an impurity embedded in a Luttinger liquid coupled to an arbitrary electromagnetic environment. The impurity is treated in two paradigmatic situations : The tunneling and the weak backscattering regime. The out-of-equilibrium situation is dealt with the Keldysh Formalism. We show that the dynamical Coulomb blockade theory, extends to the case of a a tunnel junction between Luttinger liquids. Besides, fluctuations dissipation relations that link noise noise and current remain valid. In the transparent regime, we show that the dynamical Coulomb blockade theory applies to the backscattering current albeit back-action effects of the electronic liquid on the electromagnetic environment that have to be taken into account. Fluctuation-dissipation relations remain valid only for the emission noise. The second part focuses on the effects of a micro-wave modulation on the transport properties of the transport properties of these systems. An effective dynamical Coulomb blockade can be obtained by convolving the statistic of absorption of the environment with the Tien-Gordon statistic. Yet, the fluctuation dissipation relations are not verified in this case. These predictions are compared to the experimental results obtained by a team of the SPEC at the CEA Saclay. Last, we study the transport properties of a tunnel junction coupled to a harmonic oscillator maintained in an excited state. We show that the photons within the cavity lead to two distinct processes: photo-assisted transport that enhance the conductance, and bunching effects that enhance the probability to absorbe a large number of photons. An effective dynamical Coulomb blockade theory can also be derived by convolving the Poisson distribution with Glauber characteristic function leading to exotic statistics. These can be probed by excess noise which can thus be used as a quantum state detector.

Estudamos transporte quântico dependente de spin em sistemas de ponto e de poço quântico acoplados a contatos magnéticos. O primeiro passo do nosso estudo foi a dedução de fórmulas originais para a corrente e para o ruído em sistemas com tunelamento dependente de spin, através do formalismo de funções de Green de mão equilíbrio. As equações deduzidas reproduzem casos limites da literatura - em particular as fórmulas de Landauer-Buttiker. Posteriormente aplicamos essas fórmulas para estudar três sistemas distintos: (1) ponto quântico acoplado a contatos ferromagnéticos, (2) um ponto quântico acoplado a múltiplos terminais ferromagnéticos, e (3) um poço quântico acoplado a terminais de semicondutor magnético diluído (DMS). No sistema (1) consideramos os alinhamentos paralelo (P) e anti-paralelo (AP) entre as magnetizações dos terminais. Nesse sistema levamos em conta interação de Coulomb e espalhamento de spin no ponto quântico. Com as fórmulas para corrente e ruído deduzidas aqui, encontramos, por exemplo, que a interação de Coulomb, combinada com o magnetismo dos eletrodos, leva a um bloqueio de Coulomb dependente de spin. Esse efeito por sua vez leva a uma polarização da corrente que pode ser modulada (intensidade e sinal) através de uma tens~ao externa. Também encontramos que o espalhamento de spin leva a comportamentos contrastantes entre corrente e ruído. Enquanto a corrente na configuração AP aumenta com a taxa de espalhamento de spin R, o ruído nessa mesma configuração é suprimido para uma certa faixa de valores de R. Um outro efeito interessante que observamos foi a possibilidade de se suprimir o ruído térmico através de uma tensão de porta. Para o sistema (2) mostramos que é possível injetar corrente &#8593-polarizada no ponto quântico e coletar simultaneamente correntes &#8593 e &#8595 polarizadas em terminais diferentes. Além disso, a corrente ao passar do reservatório emissor para um dos reservatórios coletores tem a sua polarização intensificada. Portanto esse sistema pode operar como inversor e amplificador de polarização de corrente. Por último, analisamos os efeitos de terminais DMS e quantização de Landau (na presença de um campo magnético externo) sobre a corrente e o ruído no sistema (3). Encontramos que o efeito Zeeman gigante nos terminais DMS, gerado pela interação de troca s-d, leva a uma polarização da corrente. Em particular, para uma certa faixa de tensão o efeito Zeeman gigante resulta na completa supressão de uma dada componente de spin no transporte. Com isso é possível controlar a polarização da corrente através de uma tensão externa. Também observamos oscilações na corrente, no ruído e no fator de Fano como função do campo magnético. / We study spin dependent quantum transport in quantum dots and quantum well devices attached to magnetic leads. We first derive general formulas, including electron-electron interaction and spin flip, for both current and noise, using the no equilibrium Green function technique (Keldysh). From our equations we regain limiting cases in the literature - in particular the Landauer-Buttiker formula when we neglect electron-electron interaction. We apply these formulas to study three distinct systems: (1) a quantum dot attached to two ferromagnetic leads, (2) a quantum dot linked to many ferromagnetic leads, and (3) a quantum well coupled to dilute magnetic semiconductor (DMS) terminals. In the first system we consider both parallel (P) and anti-parallel (AP) ferromagnetic alignments of the leads. Coulomb interaction and spin flip scattering are also taken into account. With the formulas for the current and the noise derived here, we find, for instance, that the Coulomb interaction, combined with the magnetism of the electrodes, gives rise to a spin-dependent Coulomb blockade. This effect allows the control (intensity and sign) of the current polarization via the bias voltage. We also observe that spin flip scattering yields contrasting behavior between current and shot noise. While the current in the AP configuration increases with the spin flip, the shot noise becomes suppressed for a range of spin flip rates. Another interesting finding is the possibility to suppress the thermal noise via a gate voltage. For the dot coupled to three magnetic leads, we show that it is possible to inject current &#8593-polarized into the dot from the FM emitter, detect simultaneously &#8593 and &#8595 - polarized currents at distinct collectors. In addition, we find that the current has its polarization amplified when going from the emitter to one of the collectors. Therefore we have a device that operates as both as current polarization inverter and amplifier. Finally, we analyze the effects of DMS leads and Landau quantization on the current and noise of system (3). We and that the giant Zeeman effect in the DMS leads, due to the it s-d exchange interaction, gives rise to a spin polarized current, and for a particular bias voltage range, full suppression of one spin component. This gives rise to the possibility of tuning the current polarization via the bias voltage. We also observe oscillations in the current, the noise and the Fano factor as a function of the magnetic field.

Estudamos transporte quântico dependente de spin em sistemas de ponto e de poço quântico acoplados a contatos magnéticos. O primeiro passo do nosso estudo foi a dedução de fórmulas originais para a corrente e para o ruído em sistemas com tunelamento dependente de spin, através do formalismo de funções de Green de mão equilíbrio. As equações deduzidas reproduzem casos limites da literatura - em particular as fórmulas de Landauer-Buttiker. Posteriormente aplicamos essas fórmulas para estudar três sistemas distintos: (1) ponto quântico acoplado a contatos ferromagnéticos, (2) um ponto quântico acoplado a múltiplos terminais ferromagnéticos, e (3) um poço quântico acoplado a terminais de semicondutor magnético diluído (DMS). No sistema (1) consideramos os alinhamentos paralelo (P) e anti-paralelo (AP) entre as magnetizações dos terminais. Nesse sistema levamos em conta interação de Coulomb e espalhamento de spin no ponto quântico. Com as fórmulas para corrente e ruído deduzidas aqui, encontramos, por exemplo, que a interação de Coulomb, combinada com o magnetismo dos eletrodos, leva a um bloqueio de Coulomb dependente de spin. Esse efeito por sua vez leva a uma polarização da corrente que pode ser modulada (intensidade e sinal) através de uma tens~ao externa. Também encontramos que o espalhamento de spin leva a comportamentos contrastantes entre corrente e ruído. Enquanto a corrente na configuração AP aumenta com a taxa de espalhamento de spin R, o ruído nessa mesma configuração é suprimido para uma certa faixa de valores de R. Um outro efeito interessante que observamos foi a possibilidade de se suprimir o ruído térmico através de uma tensão de porta. Para o sistema (2) mostramos que é possível injetar corrente &#8593-polarizada no ponto quântico e coletar simultaneamente correntes &#8593 e &#8595 polarizadas em terminais diferentes. Além disso, a corrente ao passar do reservatório emissor para um dos reservatórios coletores tem a sua polarização intensificada. Portanto esse sistema pode operar como inversor e amplificador de polarização de corrente. Por último, analisamos os efeitos de terminais DMS e quantização de Landau (na presença de um campo magnético externo) sobre a corrente e o ruído no sistema (3). Encontramos que o efeito Zeeman gigante nos terminais DMS, gerado pela interação de troca s-d, leva a uma polarização da corrente. Em particular, para uma certa faixa de tensão o efeito Zeeman gigante resulta na completa supressão de uma dada componente de spin no transporte. Com isso é possível controlar a polarização da corrente através de uma tensão externa. Também observamos oscilações na corrente, no ruído e no fator de Fano como função do campo magnético. / We study spin dependent quantum transport in quantum dots and quantum well devices attached to magnetic leads. We first derive general formulas, including electron-electron interaction and spin flip, for both current and noise, using the no equilibrium Green function technique (Keldysh). From our equations we regain limiting cases in the literature - in particular the Landauer-Buttiker formula when we neglect electron-electron interaction. We apply these formulas to study three distinct systems: (1) a quantum dot attached to two ferromagnetic leads, (2) a quantum dot linked to many ferromagnetic leads, and (3) a quantum well coupled to dilute magnetic semiconductor (DMS) terminals. In the first system we consider both parallel (P) and anti-parallel (AP) ferromagnetic alignments of the leads. Coulomb interaction and spin flip scattering are also taken into account. With the formulas for the current and the noise derived here, we find, for instance, that the Coulomb interaction, combined with the magnetism of the electrodes, gives rise to a spin-dependent Coulomb blockade. This effect allows the control (intensity and sign) of the current polarization via the bias voltage. We also observe that spin flip scattering yields contrasting behavior between current and shot noise. While the current in the AP configuration increases with the spin flip, the shot noise becomes suppressed for a range of spin flip rates. Another interesting finding is the possibility to suppress the thermal noise via a gate voltage. For the dot coupled to three magnetic leads, we show that it is possible to inject current &#8593-polarized into the dot from the FM emitter, detect simultaneously &#8593 and &#8595 - polarized currents at distinct collectors. In addition, we find that the current has its polarization amplified when going from the emitter to one of the collectors. Therefore we have a device that operates as both as current polarization inverter and amplifier. Finally, we analyze the effects of DMS leads and Landau quantization on the current and noise of system (3). We and that the giant Zeeman effect in the DMS leads, due to the it s-d exchange interaction, gives rise to a spin polarized current, and for a particular bias voltage range, full suppression of one spin component. This gives rise to the possibility of tuning the current polarization via the bias voltage. We also observe oscillations in the current, the noise and the Fano factor as a function of the magnetic field.

[pt] Neste trabalho estudamos as propriedades eletrônicas e de transporte de uma molécula artificial diatômica que consiste de dois pontos quânticos conectados a dois contatos submetidos a um potencial externo. Cada ponto quântico é descrito por um nível de energia no qual os elétrons estão fortmente correlacionados pela interação Coulombiana no interior e entre os pontos quânticos. Duas topologias são consideradas para o sistema: uma corresponde aos dois pontos dispostos numa linha de condução e o outro a uma configuração em paralelo. O problema é tratado com as funções de Green obtidas a partir do formalismo de Keldysh para o sistema fora do equilíbrio. Estas funções permitem o cálculo da carga nos pontos quânticos e da corrente elétrica no sistema. A física do sistema é controlada principalmente pelas várias interações Coulombianas. Para a configuração em paralelo existem dois canais interferindo para a propagação do elétron pelo sistema, cujas propriedades dependem do estado de carga de cada ponto quântico. Para a configuração em série a corrente é controlada pela possibilidade da carga ser drenada de um ponto quântico ao outro. O estado de carga em cada ponto quântico e a corrente elétrica são discutidos em detalhe para as duas configurações e para diferentes valores dos parâmetros que definem o sistema. / [en] In this work we study the electronic and transport properties of an artificial diatomic molecule consisting of two quantum dots connected to two leads under the effect of an applied potential. Each dot is described by one energy level in which the electrons are supposed to be strongly correlated due to intra-dot and inter-dot Coulomb interaction. Two topologies are considered for the system: one corresponds to two dots along a conducting line and the other in a parallel configuration. The problem is treated using the out-of-equilibrium Green function Keldysh formalism. The Green functions permit the calculation of the charge in the dots and the electronic current of the system. The physics is controlled mainly by the various Coulomb interactions. For the parallel configuration there are two interfering channels for the electron to go along the system, which properties depend upon the state of charge of each dot. For the serial configuration the current is controlled by the possibility of the charge to be drained from one dot to the other. The state of charge at each dot and the electronic current are discussed in detail for the two configurations and for different values of the parameters that define the system.

Après la découverte de la magnéto-résistance géante (GMR) par Albert Fert et Peter Grünberg, l'électronique a connu une véritable avancée avec la naissance d'une nouvelle branche appelée spintronique. Cette discipline, encore jeune, consiste à exploiter le spin des électrons dans le but notamment de stocker de l'information numérique. La plupart des dispositifs exploitant cette propriété quantique des électrons consistent en une alternance de fines couches magnétiques et non magnétiques sur un substrat semi-conducteur. L'un des outils de choix pour la caractérisation de ces structures, inventé en 1988 par Kaiser et Bell, est le microscope à émission d'électrons balistiques (BEEM). A l'origine, ce microscope, dérivé du microscope à effet tunnel (STM), était dédié à l'imagerie d'objets (nanométriques) enterrés ainsi qu'à l'étude de la barrière de potentiel (barrière Schottky) qui se forme à l'interface d'un métal et d'un semi-conducteur lors de leur mise en contact. Avec l'essor de la spintronique, le BEEM est devenu une technique de spectroscopie essentielle mais encore fondamentalement incomprise. C'est en 1996 que le premier modèle réaliste, basé sur le formalisme hors équilibre de Keldysh, a été proposé pour décrire le transport des électrons dans cette microscopie. Il permettait notamment d'expliquer certains résultats expérimentaux jusqu'alors incompris. Cependant, malgré son succès, son usage a été limité à l'étude de structures semi-infinies via un méthode de calcul appelée décimation de fonctions de Green. Dans ce contexte, nous avons étendu ce modèle au cas des films minces et des hétéro-structures du type vanne de spin : partant du même postulat que les électrons suivent la structure de bandes du matériaux dans lesquels ils se propagent, nous avons établi une formule itérative permettant le calcul des fonctions de Green du système fini par la méthode des liaisons fortes. Ce calcul des fonctions de Green a été encodé dans un programme Fortran 90, BEEM v3, afin de calculer le courant BEEM ainsi que la densité d'états de surface. En parallèle, nous avons développé une autre méthode, plus simple, qui permet de s'affranchir du formalisme hors équilibre de Keldysh. En dépit de sa naïveté, nous avons montré que cette approche permettait l'interprétation et la prédiction de certains résultats expérimentaux de manière intuitive. Cependant, pour une étude plus fine, le recours à l'approche “hors équilibre” reste inévitable, notamment pour la mise en évidence d'effets d'épaisseur, lés aux interfaces inter-plans. Nous espérons que ces deux outils puissent se révéler utiles aux expérimentateurs, et notamment pour l'équipe Surfaces et Interfaces de notre département. / After the discovery of Giant Magneto-Resistance (GMR) by Albert Fert and Peter Grünberg, electronics had a breakthrough with the birth of a new branch called spintronics. This discipline, while still young, exploit the spin of electrons, for instance to store digital information. Most quantum devices exploiting this property of electrons consist of alternating magnetic and nonmagnetic thin layers on a semiconductor substrate. One of the best tools used for characterizing these structures, invented in 1988 by Kaiser and Bell, is the so-called Ballistic Electron Emission Microscope (BEEM). Originally, this microscope, derived from the scanning tunneling microscope (STM), was dedicated to the imaging of buried (nanometer-scale) objects and to the study of the potential barrier (Schottky barrier) formed at the interface of a metal and a semiconductor when placed in contact. With the development of spintronics, the BEEM became an essential spectroscopy technique but still fundamentally misunderstood. It was in 1996 that the first realistic model, based on the non-equilibrium Keldysh formalism, was proposed to describe the transport of electrons during BEEM experiments. In particular, this model allowed to explain some experimental results previously misunderstood. However, despite its success, its use was limited to the study of semi-infinite structures through a calculation method called decimation of Green functions. In this context, we have extended this model to the case of thin films and hetero-structures like spin valves: starting from the same postulate that electrons follow the band structure of materials in which they propagate, we have established an iterative formula allowing calculation of the Green functions of the finite system by tight-binding method. This calculation of Green’s functions has been encoded in a FORTRAN 90 program, BEEM v3, in order to calculate the BEEM current and the surface density of states. In parallel, we have developed a simpler method which allows to avoid passing through the non-equilibrium Keldysh formalism. Despite its simplicity, we have shown that this intuitive approach gives some physical interpretation qualitatively similar to the non-equilibrium approach. However, for a more detailed study, the use of “non-equilibrium approach” is inevitable, especially for the detection of thickness effects linked to layer interfaces. We hope these both tools should be useful to experimentalists, especially for the Surfaces and Interfaces team of our department.

Dans cette thèse, nous nous intéressons à un point quantique<br />connecté à trois réservoirs. Le nuage Kondo se développe<br />essentiellement dans le troisième réservoir, fortement couplé au point<br />quantique, alors que les deux autres réservoirs, faiblement couplés au<br />point quantique, servent à sonder le système par des mesures de<br />transport.<br />Après avoir modélisé une telle géométrie triterminale, nous<br />avons calculé la matrice de conductance à température nulle par la<br />théorie des liquides de Fermi.<br />Dans le reste de la thèse, nous nous sommes intéressés au cas<br />où le troisième réservoir est de taille finie, ce qui confère à sa densité d'état une structure en pics.<br />Dans un premier temps, nous avons étudié le système par le<br />groupe de renormalisation perturbatif et nous avons calculé la<br />température Kondo, principale échelle d'énergie du problème.<br />Ensuite, nous avons calculé la matrice de conductance du<br />système dans différents régimes de température. Pour des températures<br />très grandes devant la température Kondo, nous avons utilisé une<br />approche perturbative. Pour des températures très petites devant la<br />température Kondo, nous avons utilisé une théorie de type liquides de<br />Fermi. Et dans le régime intermédiaire, nous avons utilisé une méthode<br />numérique appelée théorie des bosons esclaves en champ moyen. Dans ce<br />dernier régime a également été menée à terme une analyse<br />spectroscopique de la densité d'état du point quantique.

L'objectif de ce travail fut de modéliser et caractériser un composant à semiconducteur capable de générer des impulsions électriques subpicosecondes par photocommutation. Ce composant est réalisé avec un peigne interdigité situé au milieu du ruban central d'un guide coplanaire en or déposé sur du GaAs basse température dopé au béryllium. En éclairant avec un laser femtoseconde ce détecteur polarisé, il est possible de générer des impulsions électriques dont la durée est approximativement celle du temps des vie des électrons. Une étude comparative de plusieurs méthodes de caractérisation (échantillonnages photoconductif, électro-optique, électroabsorption) fut réalisée et met en évidence avantages et inconvénients de chaque technique. Les différentes mesures montrent l'influence du matériau et du circuit hyperfréquence sur la réponse du dispositif. On observe en particulier l'augmentation du temps de vie des électrons due à la saturation du niveau de piège. De même, on observe l'influence de la valeur de la capacité du détecteur sur la durée de la réponse et la limitation de l'amplitude des impulsions due à l'impédance des lignes. Un modèle simple, basé sur un circuit électrique équivalent, prenant en compte les aspects matériau et hyperfréquence, permet de bien décrire ces phénomènes. De plus, ce modèle illustre en détail la dynamique des différents paramètres physiques et électriques lors de l'éclairement du détecteur par deux impulsions optiques consécutives. Cette mesure pompe-sonde photoconductive montre le temps de relaxation du photocommutateur et la saturation des pièges. Enfin, le modèle permet de calculer la bande passante du dispositif en photomélange.

It is known that electroreflectance (ER) of surface-intrinsic-n+ type doped GaAs has exhibited many Franz-Keldysh oscillations to enable the application of fast Fourier transform to separate the heavy and light-hole transitions. However each peak still contains two components, which belong to F+ F/2 and F- F/2 respectively, where F is the built-in field and F is the modulating field of applied voltage (Vac). In this work, we have used a larger Vac to modulate the field, and hence the peaks can be further separated. The peak belonging to heavy hole-transition and F- F/2 can be singled out to compare with Airy function-theory.