Recent theoretical studies have suggested that the observed suppression of superconductivity in superconductor/ferromagnet (S/F) heterostructures could be modulated by controlling the ferromagnetic exchange interaction in the superconductor. The exchange interaction in the superconductor is the sum of the exchange interaction from the ferromagnetic regions, which has a phase and magnitude that depends upon the direction that the ferromagnet is magnetised and the distance. As the exchange interaction has a phase it is possible that the contribution from two regions will cancel out. The exchange interaction, which can be viewed as an imbalance in the spin populations, suppresses superconductivity so any reduction in the exchange interaction will increase the superconducting transition temperature (Tc) of the heterostructure. Thus by changing the magnetisation of the ferromagnetic regions it is possible to control the exchange interaction in the superconductor and so the superconducting properties of the heterostructure. I have measured the superconducting properties of niobium/cobalt bilayers as a function of the applied magnetic field. I have observed that one component of the superconducting properties is controlled by the net magnetisation rather than the magnitude of the applied field. I have been able to show that this component of the observed change in the superconducting properties is not simply due to stray magnetic field but that the superconductivity is being actively controlled by means of the exchange interaction. This is the first experimental evidence that the superconducting properties of a S/F heterostructure can be controlled in this way, which opens up the possibilities for the construction of future devices.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento CientÃfico e TecnolÃgico / Todo dia novas invenÃÃes tecnolÃgicas surgem no mundo, melhorando a vida da sociedade como um todo. Para que os novos dispositivos estejam cada vez mais evoluindo, a ciÃncia tambÃm precisa estar evoluindo. Dentro da ciÃncia, um assunto que ganha destaque sÃo as propriedades magnÃticas dos materiais, tais quais materiais ferromagnÃticos. A partir do estudo de materiais magnÃticos foi possÃvel a fabricaÃÃo de dispositivos como o HD de computadores. Nos sistemas ferromagnÃticos os spins vizinhos estÃo acoplados uns aos outros por meio da interaÃÃo de troca, possuindo modos coletivos chamados de ondas de spin. Para entender as propriedades de ondas de spin utiliza-se o modelo de Heisenberg, que considera o termo de troca, juntamente com o efeito Zeeman. Nesta dissertaÃÃo utilizamos o modelo de Heisenberg para ondas de spins para algumas redes. O estudo para uma rede de duas camadas onde uma à deslocada em relaÃÃo à outra foi realizado, observando que o comportamento para uma rede deslocada para a esquerda e uma rede igualmente deslocada para a direita à o mesmo. Motivados pelo formato helicoidal da molÃcula de RNA, estudamos uma rede ao redor de um cilindro. O caso onde a rede à disposta simetricamente à encontrado degenerescÃncia, que pode ser desfeita alterando a configuraÃÃo da rede de modo que nÃo haja mais simetria. / Everyday new technological inventions arrives in the world, improving the life of the society as one. For new devices to have improvements, science needs to be improved too. Within science, a subject that stands out is the magnetism properties of the materials, like ferromagnetic materials. Due to the studies about the magnetism properties of the materials become possible the criation of computer hard drive. In this dissertation, we use the Heisenberg model to better understand the spin waves, which commonly appear in magnetic materials. This model considers the exchange interation of spins, together with the Zeeman effect. In this dissertation we use the eisenberg model for spin waves applied to some networks. The study for a two layer network where one of them is displaced in relation to the other was done. The behavior for a network displaced to the left and a network equally dislocated to the right is the same. Due to the helical structure of an RNA molecule we study the Heisenberg model in a network around a cylinder. For this network, we found that case where the network is symmetrically displaced is degenerate, which can be broke by changing the network configuration, so there is no symmetry in the system.

Orientadores: Eduardo Granado Monteiro da Silva, Gaston Eduardo Barberis / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Física Gleb Wataghin / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-31T00:28:16Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Silva_DaniloRigitanoGomes_M.pdf: 3482148 bytes, checksum: b0e5e19407a3aa53a6a788e88a435a94 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016 / Resumo: LiNiPO4 é um isolante antiferromagnético com spins (S=1) de íons Ni 2+ localizados e um alto acoplamento magnetoelétrico abaixo de T N =20,8K. Medidas de espalhamento Raman polarizado em monocristais dessa estrutura ortorrômbica mostram, além do espectro de fônons, um sinal característico a valores baixos de número de onda (<100cm -1 ), que são independentes de campo magnético aplicado ao longo da direção do eixo a. Em polarização X(ZZ)-X, este sinal pode ser bem modelado pela teoria de Fleury-Loudon de espalhamento Raman por dois mágnons e usando um Hamiltoniano de Heisenberg com parâmetros de troca dos cinco primeiros íons vizinhos e dois de anisotropia. Essas constantes foram refinadas usando nossos dados de espalhamento Raman com dados previamente publicados de espalhamento inelástico de nêutron (INS, Jensen et al., Phys. Rev. B 79, 092413 (2009)) por um procedimento de fitting de simulated annealing, sendo consistentes com os parâmetros extraídos exclusivamente das medidas de INS. Em polarização X(ZY)-X, dois outros picos foram observados na fase de estado magneticamente ordenado, não atribuíveis a espalhamento por dois mágnons. Medidas similares de espectroscopia Raman foram realizadas para LiCoPO 4 mas o sinal obtido foi insuficiente para identificar a contribuição advinda das excitações magnéticas / Abstract: LiNiPO4 is an antiferromagnetic insulator with localized Ni 2+ spins (S=1) and large magnetoelectric coupling below T N =20.8K. Polarized Raman scattering experiments in a single crystal with ortorhombic structure show, besides the phonon spectra, extra features at low wavenumbers (<100cm -1 ) below T N , which are independent of applied magnetic fields along a-direction. In X(ZZ)-X polarization, this signal could be well modeled by the Fleury-Loudon theory of two-magnon Raman scattering, using a Heisenberg Hamiltonian with five nearest-neighbor exchange and two anisotropy parameters. These constants were refined using our Raman-scattering data and previously published inelastic neutron scattering data (INS, Jensen et al., Phys. Rev. B 79, 092413 (2009)) through a simulated annealing fitting procedure, being consistent to parameters extracted using INS data alone. In X(YZ)-X polarization, two extra peaks are observed in the magnetically ordered state, not attributable to two-magnon scattering. Similar measurements were taken for LiCoPO 4 , however the observed signal was insufficient to identify the contribution from magnetic excitations / Mestrado / Física / Mestre em Física / 1372841/2014 / CAPES

Semiconductor quantum dot systems offer a promising platform for quantum computation. And these quantum computation candidates are normally based on spin or charge properties of electrons. In these systems, we focus on quantum computation based on electron spins since these systems has good scalability, long coherence times, and rapid gate operations. And this thesis focuses on building a theoretical description of quantum dot systems and the link between theory and experiments. In many quantum dot systems, exchange interactions are the primary mechanism used to control spins and generate entanglement. And exchange energies are normally positive, which limits control flexibility. However, recent experiments show that negative exchange interactions can arise in a linear three-dot system when a two-electron double quantum dot is exchange coupled to a larger quantum dot containing on the order of one hundred electrons. The origin of this negative exchange can be traced to the larger quantum dot exhibiting a spin triplet-like rather than singlet-like ground state. Here we show using a microscopic model based on the configuration interaction (CI) method that both triplet-like and singlet-like ground states are realized depending on the number of electrons. In the case of only four electrons, a full CI calculation reveals that triplet-like ground states occur for sufficiently large dots. These results hold for symmetric and asymmetric quantum dots in both Si and GaAs, showing that negative exchange interactions are robust in few-electron double quantum dots and do not require large numbers of electrons. Recent experiments also show the potential to utilize large quantum dots to mediate superexchange interaction and generate entanglement between distant spins. This opens up a possible mechanism for selectively coupling pairs of remote spins in a larger network of quantum dots. Taking advantage of this opportunity requires a deeper understanding of how to control superexchange interactions in these systems. Here, we consider a triple-dot system arranged in linear and triangular geometries. We use CI calculations to investigate the interplay of superexchange and nearest-neighbor exchange interactions as the location, detuning, and electron number of the mediating dot are varied. We show that superexchange processes strongly enhance and increase the range of the net spin-spin exchange as the dots approach a linear configuration. Furthermore, we show that the strength of the exchange interaction depends sensitively on the number of electrons in the mediator. Our results can be used as a guide to assist further experimental efforts towards scaling up to larger, two-dimensional quantum dot arrays. / Doctor of Philosophy / Semiconductor quantum dot systems offer a promising platform for quantum computation. And these quantum computation candidates are normally based on spin or charge properties of electrons. In these systems, we focus on quantum computation based on electron spins since these systems has good scalability, long coherence times, and rapid gate operations. And this thesis focuses on building a theoretical description of quantum dot systems and the link between theory and experiments. A key requirement for quantum computation is the ability to control individual qubits and couple them together to create entanglement. In quantum dot spin qubit systems, the exchange interaction is the primary mechanism used to accomplish these tasks. This thesis is about attaining a better understanding of exchange interactions in quantum dot spin qubit systems and how they can be manipulated by changing the configuration of the system and the number of electrons. In this thesis, we show negative exchange energy can arise in large size quantum dots. This result holds for symmetric and asymmetric shape of the large dots. And we also provide a quantitative analysis of how large quantum dots can be used to create long-distance spin-spin interactions. This capability would greatly increase the flexibility in designing quantum processors built by quantum dot spins. The interplay of these systems with different geometry can serve as a guide to assist further experiments and may hopefully be the basis to build two-dimensional quantum dot arrays.

Graphene is foreseen to be the basis of future electronics owing to its ultra thin structure, extremely high charge carrier mobility,  high thermal conductivity etc., which are expected to overcome the size limitation and heat dissipation problem in silicon based transistors. But these great prospects are hindered by the metallic nature of pristine graphene even at charge neutrality point, which allows to flow current even when a transistor is switched off. A part  of the thesis is dedicated to invoke electronic band gaps in graphene to overcome this problem. The concept of quantum confinement has been employed to tune the band gaps in graphene by  dimensional confinement along with the functionalization of the edges of these confined nanostructures. Thermodynamic stability of the functionalized zigzag edges with hydrogen, fluorine and reconstructed edges has been presented in the thesis. Keeping an eye towards the same goal of band gap opening,  a different route has been considered by admixing insulating hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) with semimetal graphene. The idea has been implemented in two  dimensional h-BN-graphene composites and three dimensional stacked heterostructures. The study reveals the possibility of tuning band gaps by controlling the admixture. Occurrence of defects in graphene has significant effect on its electronic properties. By random insertion of defects, amorphous graphene is studied, revealing a semi-metal to a metal transition. The field of molecular electronics and spintronics aims towards device realization at the molecular scale. In this thesis, different aspects of magnetic bistability in organometallic molecules have been explored in order to design  practical spintronics devices. Manipulation of spin states in organometallic molecules, specifically metal porphyrin molecules, is achieved by controlling surface–molecule interaction. It has been shown that by strain engineering in defected graphene, the magnetic state of adsorbed molecules can be changed. The spin crossover between different spin states can also be achieved by chemisorption on magnetic surfaces. A significant part of the thesis demonstrates that the surface-molecule interaction not only changes the spin state of the molecule, but allows to manipulate magnetic anisotropies and spin dipole moments via modified ligand fields. Finally, in collaboration with experimentalists, a practical realization of switching surface–molecule magnetic interactions by external magnetic fields is demonstrated.

La Théorie de la Fonctionnelle de la Densité (DFT) combinée avec la méthode de la Symétrie Brisée (BS) est aujourd'hui très utilisée dans le domaine du magnétisme moléculaire pour le calcul des constantes d'échange. Cette méthode (DFT-BS) reste cependant semi-quantitative et elle souffre de défauts déjà discutés dans la littérature. Dans le but de mieux en comprendre l'origine, nous avons réexaminé les contributions physiques qui participent au mécanisme d'échange. Nous proposons alors plusieurs formules analytiques construites suivant deux approches complémentaires (orbitales moléculaires et liaison de valence). Au cours de notre analyse, nous avons soulevé un problème inédit relatif à l'état de symétrie brisée tel que livré par le calcul DFT. Nos modèles seront appliqués au cas des dimères de cuivre(II) et nous verrons comment quantifier les différents paramètres afin de reconstruire les constantes d'échange. Qui plus est, notre travail permet d'établir une correspondance quantitative originale entre les deux approches pré-citées. / Density Functional Theory (DFT) combined with the Broken Symmetry (BS) method is today widely used in the field of molecular magnetism for the computation of exchange coupling constants. But this method (DFT-BS) remains semi-quantitative as it suffers from a series of drawbacks already discussed in the literature. In order to better understand the origin of such problems, we reexamined the physical contributions acting in the exchange phenomenon. We then propose alternative analytical expressions built along two complementary approaches (molecular orbitals and valence bond). During our analysis, we found a new problem linked to the broken symmetry state as it comes out of a DFT calculation. Our models will be applied to copper(II) dimers and we will show how to quantify the different parameters involved in order to reconstruct the coupling constants. Moreover, our work allows for an original quantitative correspondence between the two above-mentioned approaches.

<p>The study of ultrathin magnetic films offers novel magnetic phenomena due to the reduced symmetry of these 2D systems. The magnetic anisotropy differentiates behaviour in ultrathin films from the bulk environment, as additional anisotropies emerge from the ultrathin film thickness and the inherent strain of ultrathin films. In this work, the in-plane magnetic anisotropy of strained ferromagnetic (FM) ultrathin Co(0001) films grown on a W(110) substrate is measured over a range of temperatures (150-320 K). Low energy electron diffraction (LEED) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) were used to determine the film structure and thickness. The anisotropy is derived from the quotient of the saturation magnetization and the transverse susceptibility, which are measured using the surface magneto-optic Kerr effect (SMOKE).</p> <p>This work’s second objective is to study the Néel transition in antiferromagnetic (AFM) ultrathin films. The zero net magnetization of AFM materials and the minute sample size of ultrathin films make magnetic measurements impossible with conventional methods. An alternative approach is to study a single AFM ultrathin film that is coupled by the interfacial exchange interaction to a FM ultrathin film. The upper layers of ultrathin Co/W(110) films were oxidized to produce ultrathin CoO/Co/W(110) films, creating an AFM/FM bilayer system. SMOKE measurement of the transverse magnetic susceptibility of the FM Co layer reveal the Néel transition of the AFM layer indirectly through the interfacial exchange interaction.</p> / Master of Science (MSc)

Halbleiter-Quantenpunkte sind Objekte in der Größenordnung von Nanometern, in denen wenige Ladungsträger in alle drei Raumrichtungen durch eine Potentialbarriere eingesperrt sind. Dies führt zu einer reduzierten Wechselwirkung mit dem Halbleiter-Gitter und zu einer diskreten Zustandsdichte. Die große Polarität der Bindung dazu, dass viele Wechselwirkungen direkt durch Spektroskopie der Photolumineszenz zu beobachten sind, was sie für die Grundlagenforschung attraktiv macht. Die ungleiche Anzahl von Elektronen und Löchern erlaubt die Untersuchung einzelner, ungepaarter Ladungsträger. Mit Hilfe der polarisationsaufgelösten Mikro-PL Spektroskopie werden Spinzustände einzelner QP reproduzierbar untersucht. Im Mittelpunkt stehen dabei Wechselwirkungen der Teilchen untereinander. Über die Anregungsspektroskopie werden höherangeregte Zustände identifiziert und charakterisiert. Die hier auftretenden Austauschwechselwirkungen führen zur Mischung zu Feinstrukturen im Spektrum. Kopplungen im angeregten Lochzustand zeigen die Möglichkeit zur optischen Orientierung des residenten Elektrons auf. Die Spinkonfiguration der Elektronen im Triplettzustand erlaubt es, die Elektron-Loch Austauschwechselwirkungen des Trions zu untersuchen. Der zweite Teil dieser Arbeit befasst sich mit semimagnetischen QP. Hier sorgt die Wechselwirkung mit einer paramagnetischen Umgebung von Manganspins für neue magneto-optische Eigenschaften. Diese zeigen sich auf der Ebene einzelner QP in Form von Linienverbreiterungen durch Spinfluktuationen als auch durch den Riesen-Zeeman-Effekt am QP-Ensemble. Besonderes Augenmerk liegt hier auf dem Einfluss der reduzierten Dimensionalität und der größeren Oberflächen der QP auf die Austauschmechanismen. Die starke Temperaturabhängigkeit der Spinumgebung wird ausgenutzt, um das Spinaufheizen als auch die Spin-Gitter-Relaxationsystematisch zu studieren. Dabei wird die PL der QP als Monitor benutzt. / Semiconductor quantum dots are objects on the nanometer scale, where charge carriers are confined in all three dimensions. This leads to a reduced interaction with the semiconductor lattice and to a discrete density of states. In the examined QD in II-VI seminconductor systems the large polar character of the bindings enables to observe particle interactions by spectroscopy of the photo-luminescence, making QD attractive for basic research. An odd number of carriers allows to study the latter in an unpaired state. By using polarization-resolved micro-PL spectroscopy, the spin-states of single, isolated QD can be studied reproducibly. Of special interest are exchange interactions in this few-particle system named trion. By excitation spectroscopy energetically higher states can be identified and characterized. The exchange interactions appearing here lead to state mixing and fine structure patterns in the spectra. Couplings in excited hole states show the way to the optical orientation of the resident electron spin. The spin configuration of the trion triplet state can be used to optically control the resident electron spin. Semimagnetic QD are focused in the second part of this work. The interaction with a paramagnetic environment of manganese spins leads to new magneto-optical properties of the QD. They reveal on a single dot level by line broadening due to spin fluctuations and by the giant Zeeman effect of the dot ensemble. Of special interest in this context is the influence of the reduced system dimension and the relatively larger surface of the system on the exchange mechanisms. The strong temperature dependence of the spin environment is used to systematically study the spin-lattice relaxation. Here, the PL of the QD ensemble monitors the spin temperature. The time constants in the mu range define the range for the incoherent switching of the Mn magnetization.

Since the last few decades frustrated spin systems have attracted much interest. These studies are motivated by the rich variety of their unusual magnetic properties and potential applications. In this thesis, excitation spectra of the weakly coupled dimer system Ba3Cr2O8, the spin-1/2 chain material with distorted diamond structure Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2 (natural mineral azurite), and the quasi-twodimensional antiferromagnet with triangle spin structure Cs2CuBr4 have been studied by means of high-field electron spin resonance. Two pairs of gapped modes corresponding to transitions from a spin-singlet ground state to the first excited triplet state with zero-field energy gaps, of 19.1 and 27 K were observed in Ba3Cr2O8. The observation of ground-state excitations clearly indicates the presence of a non-secular term allowing these transitions. Our findings are of crucial importance for the interpretation of the field-induced transitions in this material (with critical fields Hc1 = 12.5 T and Hc2 = 23.6 T) in terms of the magnon Bose-Einstein condensation. The natural mineral azurite, Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2, has been studied in magnetic fields up to 50 T, revealing several modes not observed previously. Based on the obtained data, all three critical fields were identified. A substantial zero-field energy gap, Δ = 9.6 K, has been observed in Cs2CuBr4 above the ordering temperature. It is argued that contrary to the case for the isostructural Cs2CuCl4, the size of the gap can not be explained solely by the uniform Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, but it is rather the result of the geometrical frustration stabilizing the spin-disordered state in Cs2CuBr4 in the close vicinity of the quantum phase transition between a spiral magnetically ordered state and a 2D quantum spin liquid.

A simplified model of a double quantum dot is presented and analyzed, with applications to spin-qubit quantum computation. The ability to trap single electrons in semiconductor nanostructures has led to the proposal of quantum computers with spin-based qubits coupled by the exchange interaction. Current theory predicts an exchange interaction with a -1 power-law dependence on the detuning ϵ, the energy offset between the two dots. However, experiment has shown a -3/2 power-law dependence on ϵ. Using WKB analysis, this thesis explores one possible source of the modified dependence, namely an ϵ-dependent tunnel coupling between the two wells. WKB quantization is used to find expressions for the tunnel coupling of a one-dimensional double-well, and these results are compared to the exact, numerical solutions, as determined by the finite difference method and the transfer matrix method. Small ϵ-dependent corrections to the tunnel coupling are observed. In typical cases, WKB correctly predicts a constant tunnel coupling at leading-order. WKB also predicts small ϵ-dependent corrections for typical cases and strongly ϵ-dependent tunnel couplings for certain exceptional cases. However, numerical simulations suggest that WKB is not accurate enough to analyze the small corrections, and is not valid in the exceptional cases. Deviations from the conventional form of the low-energy Hamiltonian for a double-well are also observed and discussed.