Neste trabalho estudamos os efeitos polarônicos sobre um gás de elétrons quase bidimensional presente em heteroestruturas semicondutoras (heterojunções e poços quânticos de GaAs-AlGaAs) sob a ação de um campo magnético uniforme aplicado na direção perpendicular a interface, através de teoria de perturbação de segunda ordem. Calculamos a massa ciclotrônica considerando a interação elétron-fonon LO e os efeitos de blindagem e não parabolicidade da banda de condução do GaAs. Os resultados obtidos são comparados com recentes dados experimentais de ressonância ciclotronica e apresentam ótima concordância. Estudamos também a energia de ligação do estado fundamental de uma impureza hidrogenóide localizada no interior de um fio quântico retangular de GaAs envolvido por AlGaAs, como função das dimensões do fio para varias alturas das barreiras de variacional, usando várias formas para a função de onda tentativa do sistema. Consideramos também a contribuição polarônica a energia de ligação. Comparamos nossos resultados com recentes cálculos da energia de ligação, efetuados por outros autores. / In this work we study the polaronic effects on the two dimensional electron gas present in semiconductor heteroestructures (GaAs-AlGaAs heterojunctions and quantum wells) when a uniform magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the interface, using second order perturbation theory. By taking into account the effect of nonparabolicity and screening of the electron-fonon LO interaction the calculated effective mass is compared to the recent experimental date. Good agreement is found with available date. The binding energies of a hydrogenic impurity located in quantum well wires of GaAs surrounded by AlGaAs are calculated as a functions of the size of the wire for several values of the heights of the potential barriers and diferent positions of the impurity inside the wire. We follow a variational approach choosing several trial wave functions for the ground state. The polaronic contribution to the binding energy is considered. We compare our results with those previously obtained by other authors.

Ein limitierender Faktor der Leitfähigkeit ist die Wechselwirkung der Ladungsträger mit polaren Phononenmoden; das resultierende Quasiteilchen wird als Polaron bezeichnet. Die Stärke der Elektron-Phonon (el-ph)-Wechselwirkung bestimmt die Stärke der Lokalisierung des Polarons, die z.B. die Charakteristik der Temperaturabhängigkeit der Mobliltät definiert. Wir fokussieren uns auf Metalloxide mit starker (el-ph)-Kopplung, bei der sich kleine Polaronen bilden. Die Dichtefunktionaltheorie wird häufig für zur Simulation von Polaronen verwendet. Jedoch treten hierbei zwei Schwierigkeiten auf: Die Sensitivität der berechneten Eigenschaften in Abhängigkeit der Fehler im Austausch-Korrelations (XC)-Funktional und der Effekt der endlichen Superzellgröße. Beide Probleme werden in dieser Arbeit untersucht. Die Polaroneneigenschaften werden auf einer modifizierten Potentialoberfläche (PES) berechnet. Durch Variierung des Anteils der exakten Austauschenergie im hybriden HSE-Funktional zeigen wir, dass das modifizierte PES-Modell deutlich die Abhängigkeit der Polaroneneigenschaften vom XC-Funktional reduziert. Basierend auf dem Potential der el-ph-Kopplung von Pekar leiten wir das korrekte elastische langreichweitige Verhalten des Polarons und darauf aufbauend eine Korrektur für den Fehler durch die endliche Superzellgröße her. Diese Erkenntnisse werden durch ausgiebige Tests an MgO und Rutil TiO2 überprüft. Die oben beschriebene Methode wird zur Untersuchung des Einflusses der Kristallstruktur auf die Bildung von Polaronen in Rutil und Anatas TiO2 und in der β- und κ-Phase von Ga2O3 angewendet. Während in Rutil nur kleine Elektronpolaronen stabil sind, finden wir in Anatas nur stabile Lochpolaronen. Hingegen existieren in beiden Phasen von Ga2O3 nur stabile Lochpolaronen, jedoch mit deutlich unterschiedlichen Bindungsenergien. Dadurch kann durch Verwendung unterschiedlicher Kristallstrukturen Eigenschaften wie Leitfähigkeit und Mobilität der Ladungsträger beeinflusst werden. / An important factor limiting the conductivity is the interaction of the charge carrier with polar phonon modes. Such a phonon-dressed charge carrier is called polaron. The strength of the electron-phonon (el-ph) interaction determines the localization of the polaron, which in turn e.g. defines its characteristic temperature dependence for the charge-carrier mobility. We focus on metal oxides with strong el-ph coupling, where small polarons are formed. Density-functional theory is often used for calculating properties of polarons. However, there are two challenges: sensitivity of the calculated properties to the errors in exchange-correlation (XC) treatment and finite-size effects in supercell calculations. In this work, we develop an approach that addresses both challenges. The polaron properties are obtained using a modified neutral potential-energy surface (PES). By changing the fraction of exact exchange in the hybrid HSE functional we show that the modified PES model significantly reduces the dependence of the polaron properties on the XC functional. Based on Pekar's potential for the long-range el-ph coupling, we derive the proper elastic long-range behavior of the polaron and a finite-size correction for the polaron properties. These findings are proofed by an extensively test for rock salt MgO and rutile TiO2. Finally, the approach is used to investigate the influence of the crystal structure on the polaron properties for rutile and anatase TiO2, as well as for the monoclinic β- and orthorhombic κ-phase of Ga2O3. While in rutile TiO2 only small electron polarons are stable, only small hole polarons are found in anatase. Further, small hole polarons exist in both Ga2O3 polymorphs but have significantly different binding energies. Thus, we conclude that growing crystals of the same material but with different structure can be used to manipulate conductivity and charge-carrier mobility.

Diese Arbeit behandelt mögliche Ursachen der reversiblen Änderung des elektrischen Widerstandes von Praseodym-Kalzium-Manganat (PCMO) durch elektrische Spannungspulse. Für diesen Widerstandsschalteffekt werden entweder chemische oder rein strukturelle Änderungen im PCMO angenommen. In den Experimenten liegt das PCMO als gesputterter Dünnfilm in einem Sandwichkontakt zwischen zwei Edelmetallelektroden vor, wobei die Kontaktflächen durch Strukturierung nur wenige µm² betragen. Um insbesondere die elektrischen Transporteigenschaften der Kontakte und den Einfluss der Grenzflächen zwischen Oxid und Elektroden zu untersuchen, wurden elektrische Charakterisierungen der Sandwichkontakte bei verschiedenen elektrischen Feldstärken, Temperaturen und Magnetfeldern für verschiedene Herstellungsparameter des PCMOs und der Elektroden durchgeführt. Entgegen der üblichen Annahme von Raumladungszonen als bestimmender Faktor des Grenzflächenwiderstandes wurde sowohl in den Grenzflächenwiderständen als auch im Volumenanteil des Films ein elektrischer Transport durch kleine Polaronen beobachtet, wie er von PCMO-Volumenproben bekannt ist. Die damit verbundene Spannungsabhängigkeit der polaronischen Leitfähigkeit, die Änderungen durch elektrisch bzw. magnetisch induzierte kolossale Widerstandseffekte (CER bzw. CMR) sowie negativ-differentielle Effekte in Widerstand bzw. Leitfähigkeit durch Joulesche Erwärmung konnten in den komplexen, stark nicht-linearen Kennlinien zugeordnet werden. Die Befunde legen ein heterogenes Modell für den Grenzflächenwiderstand nahe: Präparationsbedingte, erhöhte Defektdichten, wie z.B. durch Sauerstoffleerstellen, führen lokal zu einem defektinduzierten Metall-Isolator-Übergang und damit zu elektrisch isolierenden Bereichen. Die verbleibenden Bereiche zeigen hingegen noch die Transporteigenschaften von nahezu defektfreien, gut leitfähigem PCMO und bestimmen über ihren effektiven Querschnitt den Grenzflächenwiderstand. Die bei hohen elektrischen Spannungen auftretenden remanenten Schalteffekte konnten einem einzigen Schaltmechanismus mit klar definierter Schaltpolarität zugeordnet werden, obwohl er an beiden Grenzflächen auch gleichzeitig auftreten und sich damit zusammen mit Relaxation- bzw. Akkumulationseffekten in komplexen Widerstandsänderungen überlagern kann. Weder die Wahl der Herstellungsparameter für die PCMO-Schicht noch der Oberelektrode verändern den generellen Schaltmechanismus, wodurch ein struktureller Mechanismus z.B. auf Basis einer empfindlichen langreichweitigen Ladungsordnung im Vergleich zu einer chemischen Änderung sehr unwahrscheinlich wird. Die gemachten Beobachtungen, insbesondere Schaltpolarität und Zeitabhängigkeiten, sind prinzipiell kompatibel mit einer feldgetriebenen Sauerstoff(leerstellen)migration. Hierzu könnte auch die experimentell beobachtete, im Einklang mit Simulationsergebnissen stehende, starke Joulesche Erwärmung während des Schaltens beitragen. Durch eine Änderung der Sauerstoffleerstellenverteilung könnten lokal an den Grenzflächen defektinduzierte Metall-Isolator-Übergänge auftreten, so dass der Widerstandhub als eine Änderung des effektiven Querschnitts der leitfähigen Bereiche an den Grenzflächen zu interpretieren wäre.

Cette thèse est consacrée à l'étude mathématique de deux systèmes quantiques décrits par des modèles non linéaires : le polaron anisotrope et les électrons d'un cristal périodique. Après avoir prouvé l'existence de minimiseurs, nous nous intéressons à la question de l'unicité pour chacun des deux modèles. Dans une première partie, nous montrons l'unicité du minimiseur et sa non-dégénérescence pour le polaron décrit par l'équation de Choquard--Pekar anisotrope, sous la condition que la matrice diélectrique du milieu est presque isotrope. Dans le cas d'une forte anisotropie, nous laissons la question de l'unicité en suspens mais caractérisons précisément les symétries pouvant être dégénérées. Dans une seconde partie, nous étudions les électrons d'un cristal dans le modèle de Thomas--Fermi--Dirac--Von~Weizsäcker périodique, en faisant varier le paramètre devant le terme de Dirac. Nous montrons l'unicité et la non-dégénérescence du minimiseur lorsque ce paramètre est suffisamment petit et mettons en évidence une brisure de symétrie lorsque celui-ci est grand. / This thesis is devoted to the mathematical study of two quantum systems described by nonlinear models: the anisotropic polaron and the electrons in a periodic crystal. We first prove the existence of minimizers, and then discuss the question of uniqueness for both problems. In the first part, we show the uniqueness and nondegeneracy of the minimizer for the polaron, described by the Choquard--Pekar anisotropic equation, assuming that the dielectric matrix of the medium is almost isotropic. In the strong anisotropic setting, we leave the question of uniqueness open but identify the symmetry that can possibly be degenerate. In the second part, we study the electrons of a crystal in the periodic Thomas--Fermi--Dirac--Von~Weizsäcker model, varying the parameter in front of the Dirac term. We show uniqueness and nondegeneracy of the minimizer when this parameter is small enough et prove the occurrence of symmetry breaking when it is large.

Neste trabalho estudamos os efeitos polarônicos sobre um gás de elétrons quase bidimensional presente em heteroestruturas semicondutoras (heterojunções e poços quânticos de GaAs-AlGaAs) sob a ação de um campo magnético uniforme aplicado na direção perpendicular a interface, através de teoria de perturbação de segunda ordem. Calculamos a massa ciclotrônica considerando a interação elétron-fonon LO e os efeitos de blindagem e não parabolicidade da banda de condução do GaAs. Os resultados obtidos são comparados com recentes dados experimentais de ressonância ciclotronica e apresentam ótima concordância. Estudamos também a energia de ligação do estado fundamental de uma impureza hidrogenóide localizada no interior de um fio quântico retangular de GaAs envolvido por AlGaAs, como função das dimensões do fio para varias alturas das barreiras de variacional, usando várias formas para a função de onda tentativa do sistema. Consideramos também a contribuição polarônica a energia de ligação. Comparamos nossos resultados com recentes cálculos da energia de ligação, efetuados por outros autores. / In this work we study the polaronic effects on the two dimensional electron gas present in semiconductor heteroestructures (GaAs-AlGaAs heterojunctions and quantum wells) when a uniform magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the interface, using second order perturbation theory. By taking into account the effect of nonparabolicity and screening of the electron-fonon LO interaction the calculated effective mass is compared to the recent experimental date. Good agreement is found with available date. The binding energies of a hydrogenic impurity located in quantum well wires of GaAs surrounded by AlGaAs are calculated as a functions of the size of the wire for several values of the heights of the potential barriers and diferent positions of the impurity inside the wire. We follow a variational approach choosing several trial wave functions for the ground state. The polaronic contribution to the binding energy is considered. We compare our results with those previously obtained by other authors.

This thesis concerns with 4 basic aspects of the charge carrier transport: (1) depth of the potential well formed around the charge carrier when localized on a polymer chain; i.e. so called polaron binding energy. (2) Extent of the charge carrier delocalization over the polymer chain and influence of steric effects on this value. (3) Intrachain mobility of the charge carrier. (4) Effect of charge carrier transfer on the chain stability. Polysilanes, which are well known for their semi-conducting properties, were chosen as model material for investigation. Outlined properties were studied by means of quantum chemistry and molecular dynamics, which allowed us to investigate the process of the charge carrier transfer in great detail. Theoretical results were then compared to the experiments with very good agreement.

No description available.

Electron-lattice interactions are often considered not to play a major role in material's properties as they are assumed to be small, the second-order effects. However, this study shows the importance of taking these effects into account in the simulations. My results demonstrate the impact of the electron-lattice interaction on the physics of the material and our understanding from it. One way to study these effects is to add them as perturbations to the unperturbed Hamiltonians in numerical simulations. The main objective of this thesis is to study electron-lattice interactions in molecular and magnetic crystals. It is devoted to developing numerical techniques considering model Hamiltonians and first-principles calculations to include the effect of lattice vibrations in the simulations of the above mentioned classes of materials. In particular, I study the effect of adding the non-local electron-phonon coupling on top of the Holstein Hamiltonian to study the polaron stability and polaron dynamics in molecular crystals. The numerical calculations are based on the semi-empirical Holstein-Peierls model in which both intra (Holstein) and inter (Peierls) molecular electron-phonon interactions are taken into account. I study the effect of different parameters including intra and intermolecular electron-phonon coupling strengths and their vibrational frequencies, the transfer integral and the electric field on polaron stability. I found that in an ordered two dimensional molecular lattice the polaron is stable for only a limited range of parameter sets with the polaron formation energies lying in the range between 50 to 100 meV. Using the stable polaron solutions, I applied an electric field to the system and I observed that the polaron is dynamically stable and mobile for only a limited set of parameters. Adding disorder to the system will result in even more restricted parameter set space for which the polaron is stable and moves adiabatically with a constant velocity. In order to study the effect of temperature on polaron dynamics, I include a random force in Newtonian equations of motion in a one dimensional molecular lattice. I found that there is a critical temperature above which the polaron destabilizes and becomes delocalized. Moreover, I study the role of lattice vibrations coupled to magnetic degrees of freedom in finite temperature paramagnetic state of magnetic materials. Calculating the properties of paramagnetic materials at elevated temperatures is a cumbersome task. In this thesis, I present a new method which allows us to couple lattice vibrations and magnetic disorder above the magnetic transition temperature and treat them on the same footing. The method is based on the combination of disordered local moments model and ab initio molecular dynamics (DLM-MD). I employ the method to study different physical properties of some model systems such as CrN and NiO in which the interaction between the magnetic and lattice degrees of freedom is very strong making them very good candidates for such a study. I calculate the formation energies and study the effect of nitrogen defects on the electronic structure of paramagnetic CrN at high temperatures. Using this method I also study the temperature dependent elastic properties of paramagnetic CrN. The results highlight the importance of taking into account the magnetic excitations and lattice vibrations in the studies of magnetic materials at finite temperatures. A combination of DLM-MD with another numerical technique namely temperature dependent effective potential (TDEP) method is used to study the vibrational free energy and phase stability of CrN. We found that the combination of magnetic and vibrational contributions to the free energy shifts down the phase boundary between the cubic paramagnetic and orthorhombic antiferromagnetic phases of CrN towards the experimental value. I used the stress-strain relation to study the temperature-dependent elastic properties of paramagnetic materials within DLM-MD with CrN as my model system. The results from a combinimation of DLM-MD with another newly developed method, symmetry imposed force constants (SIFC) in conjunction with TDEP is also presented as comparison to DLM-MD results.I also apply DLM-MD method to study the electronic structure of NiO in its paramagnetic state at finite temperatures. I found that lattice vibrations have a prominent impact on the electronic structure of paramagnetic NiO at high temperatures and should be included for the proper description of the density of states. In summary, I believe that the proposed techniques give reliable results and allow us to include the effects from electron-lattice interaction in simulations of materials.

Les gaz ultrafroids permettent d'étudier sous un angle nouveau des hamiltoniens complexes issus de la matière condensée, tels le modèle de Fermi-Hubbard. Cette thèse présente une nouvelle méthode de mesure de l'équation d'état d'un gaz ultrafroid, autorisant une comparaison directe avec la théorie. Elle repose sur une mesure de la pression à l'intérieur d'un gaz à partir de son image in situ. Nous appliquons cette méthode à l'étude d'un gaz de fermions en interaction résonnante, un gaz de 7Li en interaction faible servant de thermomètre. De manière surprenante, aucune des théories à N corps du gaz unitaire ne rend compte intégralement de l'équation déduite de cette analyse. Le développement du viriel extrait des données à haute température est en accord avec la résolution du problème à trois corps. A basse température nous montrons, contrairement à un certain nombre d'études antérieures, que la phase normale se comporte comme un liquide de Fermi. Enfin, nous obtenons la température critique de superfluidité grâce à une signature claire sur l'équation d'état. Nous avons aussi mesuré la pression de l'état fondamental en fonction du déséquilibre de spin et de la force des interactions - mesure directement utile à la description de la croûte des étoiles à neutrons. Nos données valident les simulations Monte-Carlo et sont en accord avec les corrections Lee-Huang-Yang au champ moyen pour un superfluide fermionique ou bosonique. Nous observons que, dans presque tous les cas, la phase partiellement polarisée peut être décrite comme un liquide de Fermi de polarons. La masse effective du polaron déduite de l'équation d'état est en accord avec une étude de modes collectifs.

The work presented in this thesis concerns the dynamics in π-conjugated hydrocarbon systems. Due to the molecular bonding structure of these systems there exists a coupling between the electronic system and the phonons of the lattice. If this interaction, which is referred to as the electron-phonon (e-ph) coupling, is sufficiently strong it may cause externally introduced charge carriers to self-localize in a polarization cloud of lattice distortions. These quasi-particles are, if singly charged, termed polarons, the localization length of which, aside from the e-ph coupling strength, also depend upon the structural and energetic disorder of the system. In disordered systems localization is strong and transport is facilitated by nonadiabatic hopping of charge carriers from one localized state to the next, whereas in well-ordered systems, where extended states are formed, adiabatic transport models apply.Despite great academic efforts a unified model for charge transport in π-conjugated systems is still lacking and further investigations are necessary to uncover the basic physics at hand in these systems. The call for such efforts has been the main guidelines for the work presented in this thesis and are related to the topics of papers I-IV. In order to capture the coupled electron-lattice dynamics, we use a methodological approach where we obtain the time-dependence of the electronic degrees of freedom from the solutions to the time-dependent Schrödinger equation and determine the ionic motion in the evolving charge density distribution by simultaneously solving the lattice equation of motion within the potential field of the ions. The Hamiltonian used to describe the system is derived from an extension of the famous Su-Schrieffer-Heeger (SSH) model extended to three-dimensional systems.In papers I-III we explore the impact of phenylene ring torsion on delocalization and transport properties in poly(para-phenylene vinylene) (PPV). The physics that we are particularly interested in relates to the reduced electron transfer integral strength across the interconnection between the phenylene rings and the vinylene groups upon ring torsion. Keeping this in mind, we demonstrate in paper I the impact of static ring torsion on intrachain mobility and provide a detailed analysis of the influence of the potential barriers (due to consecutive ring torsion) on the nature of charge carrier propagation. In paper II we extend our initial approach to include also the dynamics of ring torsion. We show that without any externally applied electric field, this type of dynamics is the dominant property controlling intrachain propagation, but that when an external electric field is applied, charge carriers may traverse the potential barriers through a process that involves nonadiabatic effects and a temporary delocalization of the polaron state. Finally, in paper III we study the impact of the lattice dynamics on the electron localization properties in PPV and show that the phenylene ring torsion modes couples strongly to the electronic wave function which gives rise to electron localization at room temperature.In papers IV and V we focus on the dynamics of molecular crystals using a stack of pentacene molecules in the single crystal configuration as a model system, but study, in paper IV, the transport as a function of the intermolecular interaction strength, J. We observe a smooth transition from a nonadiabatic to an adiabatic polaron drift process over the regime 20<J<120 meV. For intermolecular interaction strengths above J≈120 meV the polaron is no longer stable and transport becomes band-like. In paper V, finally, we study the internal conversion processes in these systems, which is the dominant relaxation channel from higher lying states. This process involves the transfer of energy from the electronic system to the lattice. Our results show that this process is strongly nonadiabatic and that the relaxation time associated with large energy excitations is limited by transitions made between states of different bands. / I dagens samhälle är elektroniken ett allt viktigare och större inslag i vår vardag. Vi ser på TV, talar i mobiltelefoner, och arbetar på datorer. I hjärtat av denna teknologi finner vi diskreta komponenter och integrerade kretsar utformade främst för att styra strömmen av elektroner genom halvledande material. Traditionellt sett har kisel eller olika former av legeringar använts som det aktiva materialet i dessa komponenter och kretsar, men under de senaste 20 åren har såväl transistorer som solceller och lysdioder realiserats där det aktiva materialet är organiskt, d.v.s., kolbaserat.Vi befinner oss för tillfället mitt uppe i det kommersiella genombrottet för organisk elektronik. Redan idag säljs många MP3-spelare och mobiltelefoner med små skärmar där varje pixelelementen utgörs av organiska ljusemitterande dioder (OLEDs), men teknologin håller redan på att introduceras i mer storskaliga produkter som datorskärmar och TV-apparater som därigenom skulle kunna göras energieffektivare, tunnare, flexiblare och på sikt också billigare. Andra tekniska tillämpningsområden för organisk elektronik som förutspås en lysande framtid är RFID-märkning, organiska solceller, och elektronik tryckt på papper, men även smarta textiler och bioelektronik har stor utvecklingspotential.Den kanske största utmaningen kvarstår dock, att skapa elektroniska kretsar och komponenter uppbyggda kring enskilda molekyler, s.k. molekylär elektronik. Mycket snart närmar vi oss den fysikaliska gränsen för hur små komponenter som vi kan realisera med traditionella icke-organiska material som kisel och en stor drivkraft bakom forskningen på halvledande organiska material har varit just visionen om molekylär elektronik som inte är mer än några miljondelars milimeter stora. För detta ändamål krävs en mycket nogrann kontroll av tillverkningsprocesserna liksom en detaljförståelse för hur molekylerna leder ström och hur denna förmåga kan manipuleras för att realisera såväl traditionella som nya komponenter.I denna avhandling presenteras en översikt av den fysik som möjliggör ledningsförmåga hos särskilda klasser av organiska material, s.k. π-konjugerade system, samt de forskningsresultat som utgör mitt bidrag till denna disciplin. En av utmaningarna på området är den komplexitet som de organiska materialen erbjuder: laddningsprocesserna påverkas nämligen av en rad olika faktorer såsom laddningstäthet, temperatur, pålagd spänning, samt molekylernas former och inbördes struktur. I detta arbete har jag utifrån en vidareutveckling av existerande modeller genom numeriska datasimuleringar undersökt effekten av de senare tre faktorerna på elektronstrukturen, laddnigstransporten och energidissipation i denna klass av material. / Center of Organic Electronics (COE)