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Ku, Wei

Publications and source records attributed to Ku, Wei.

15 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2023

Variation of carrier density in semimetals via short-range correlation: A case study with nickelate NdNiO 2

Carrier density is one of the key controlling factors of material properties, particularly in controlling the essential correlations in strongly correlated materials. Typically, carrier density is externally tuned by doping or gating and remains fixed below room temperature. Strangely, the carrier density in correlated semimetals is often found to vary sensitively against weak external controls such as temperature, magnetic field, and pressure. Here, we develop a realistic simulation scheme that incorporates interatomic noncollinear magnetic correlation without a long-range order. Using the recently discovered nickelate superconductor as an example, we demonstrate a rather generic low-energy mechanism that in semimetals short-range correlation can reversely modulate the carrier density as well. Such a mutual influence between correlation and carrier density provides an extra ingredient for sensitive bifurcating behavior. This special feature of correlated semimetals explains their versatile carrier density at low energy and opens up new possibilities of functionalizing these materials.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2019

Entropic elasticity and negative thermal expansion in a simple cubic crystal

While most solids expand when heated, some materials show the opposite behavior: negative thermal expansion (NTE). In polymers and biomolecules, NTE originates from the entropic elasticity of an ideal, freely jointed chain. The origin of NTE in solids has been widely believed to be different. Our neutron scattering study of a simple cubic NTE material, ScF 3 , overturns this consensus. We observe that the correlation in the positions of the neighboring fluorine atoms rapidly fades on warming, indicating an uncorrelated thermal motion con-strained by the rigid Sc-F bonds. This leads us to a quantitative theory of NTE in terms of entropic elasticity of a floppy network crystal, which is in remarkable agreement with experimental results. We thus reveal the formidable universality of the NTE phenomenon in soft and hard matter.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2019

Doping dependence of the magnitude of fluctuating spin moments in the normal state of the pnictide superconductor Sr ( F e 1 - x C o x ) 2 A s 2 inferred from photoemission spectroscopy

We report systematic temperature- and doping-dependent measurements of the Fe3s core-level photoemission spectra in the normal state of superconducting Sr(Fe 1- x Co x ) 2 As 2 . The analysis of the Fe3s spectrum provides an element-specific determination of the mean value of the magnitude of the Fe spin moment measured on the fast (10 -16 -10 -15 s) timescale of the photoemission process. The data reveal the ubiquitous presence in the normal state of Fe spin moments with magnitude fluctuating on short timescales. The data reveal a significant reduction of the magnitude of the effective Fe spin moment on going from the parent to the optimal doped compound. The doping dependence of the magnitude of the spin moment at higher doping level is less clear, being either constant, or even nonmonotonic, depending on temperature. This phenomenology indicates the importance of the interaction between spin and itinerant degrees of freedom in shaping the properties of the normal state. These findings reaffirm the complexity of the normal state of 122 Fe-pnictides, which are typically viewed as the least correlated of the high-temperature unconventional superconductors.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Origin of localization in Ti-doped Si

Intermediate band semiconductors hold the promise to significantly improve the efficiency of solar cells but only if the intermediate impurity band is metallic. In this work, we apply a recently developed first principles method to investigate the origin of electron localization in Ti doped Si, a promising candidate for intermediate band solar cells. We compute the critical Ti concentration and compare it against the available experimental data. Although Anderson localization is often overlooked in the context of intermediate band solar cells, our results show that in Ti doped Si it plays a more important role in the metal insulator transition than Mott localization. To this end we have devised a way to gauge the relative strengths of these two localization mechanisms that can be applied to study localization in doped semiconductors in general. Our findings have important implications for the theory of intermediate band solar cells.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Electron and hole contributions to normal-state transport in the superconducting system Sn 1 - x In x Te

Indium-doped SnTe has been of interest because the system can exhibit both topological sur- face states and bulk superconductivity. While the enhancement of the superconducting transition temperature is established, the character of the electronic states induced by indium doping remains poorly understood. We report a study of magneto-transport in a series of Sn 1-x In x Te single crystals with 0:1 ≤ x ≤ 0:45. From measurements of the Hall effect, we find that the dominant carrier type changes from hole-like to electron-like at x ~ 0:25; one would expect electron-like carriers if the In ions have a valence of +3. For single crystals with x = 0:45, corresponding to the highest super- conducting transition temperature, pronounced Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations are observed in the normal state. In measurements of magnetoresistance, we nd evidence for weak anti-localization (WAL). We attribute both the quantum oscillations and the WAL to bulk Dirac-like hole pockets, previously observed in photoemission studies, which coexist with the dominant electron-like carriers.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2018

Existence of electron and hole pockets and partial gap opening in the correlated semimetal Ca 3 Ru 2 O 7

The electronic band structure of correlated Ca 3 Ru 2 O 7 featuring an antiferromagnetic (AFM) as well as a structural transition has been determined theoretically at high temperatures, which has led to the understanding of the remarkable properties of Ca 3 Ru 2 O 7 , such as the bulk spin-valve effects. However, its band structure and Fermi surface (FS) below the structural transition have not been resolved, even though a FS consisting of electron pockets was found experimentally. Here we report magnetoelectrical transport and thermoelectric measurements with the electric current and temperature gradient directed along the a and b axes, respectively, of an untwined single crystal of Ca 3 Ru 2 O 7 . The thermopowers obtained along the two crystal axes were found to show opposite signs at low temperatures, demonstrating the presence of both electron and hole pockets on the FS. In addition, how the FS evolves across T* = 30K at which a distinct transition from coherent to incoherent behavior occurs was also inferred: the Hall and Nernst coefficient results suggest a temperature- and momentum-dependent partial gap opening in Ca 3 Ru 2 O 7 below the structural transition with a possible Lifshitz transition occurring at T*. In conclusion, the experimental demonstration of a correlated semimetal ground state in Ca 3 Ru 2 O 7 calls for further theoretical studies of this remarkable material.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2017

Indium Substitution Effect on the Topological Crystalline Insulator Family (Pb 1$-$x Sn x )1 $-$y InyTe: Topological and Superconducting Properties

Topological crystalline insulators (TCIs) have been of great interest in the area of condensed matter physics. We investigated the effect of indium substitution on the crystal structure and transport properties in the TCI system (Pb 1-x Sn x ) 1-y In y Te. For samples with a tin concentration x ≤ 50% , the low-temperature resisitivities show a dramatic variation as a function of indium concentration: with up to ~2% indium doping, the samples show weak-metallic behavior similar to their parent compounds; with `6% indium doping, samples have true bulk-insulating resistivity and present evidence for nontrivial topological surface states; with higher indium doping levels, superconductivity was observed, with a transition temperature, T c , positively correlated to the indium concentration and reaching as high as 4.7 K. We address this issue from the view of bulk electronic structure modified by the indium-induced impurity level that pins the Fermi level. The current work summarizes the indium substitution effect on (Pb,Sn)Te, and discusses the topological and superconducting aspects, which can be provide guidance for future studies on this and related systems.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2017

G -type magnetic order in ferropnictide Cu x Fe 1–y As induced by hole doping on As sites

Strong antiferromagnetic (AFM) correlation has long been postulated to be closely related to the occurrence of unconventional high-temperature superconductivity observed in the cuprates, heavy fermions, and organic superconductors. Here, the recently discovered Fe-based superconductors add another interesting member to the list. However, insufficient attention has been paid to the versatile nature of the magnetic correlation in these materials: some showing stripe (C-type) order, others double stripe (E-type) or block AFM order instead, implying potentially richer structures of the superconducting order. Here we report the observation of yet another AFM correlation in the family: a G-type AFM order as seen in the high-T c cuprates, in Cu x Fe 1–y As compounds isostructural to the LiFeAs superconductor. This study not only sheds light on the underlying mechanism of the rich magnetic correlations in the Fe-based superconductors, but also suggests the possibility of realizing a distinct pairing symmetry upon chemical doping or applying pressure.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2016

Nonrigid band shift and nonmonotonic electronic structure changes upon doping in the normal state of the pnictide high-temperature superconductor Ba ( F e 1 - x C o x ) 2 A s 2

Here, we report systematic angle-resolved photoemission (ARPES) experiments using different photon polarizations and experimental geometries and find that the doping evolution of the normal state of Ba(Fe 1–x Co x ) 2 As 2 deviates significantly from the predictions of a rigid band model. The data reveal a nonmonotonic dependence upon doping of key quantities such as band filling, bandwidth of the electron pocket, and quasiparticle coherence. Our analysis suggests that the observed phenomenology and the inapplicability of the rigid band model in Co-doped Ba122 are due to electronic correlations, and not to the either the strength of the impurity potential, or self-energy effects due to impurity scattering. Our findings indicate that the effects of doping in pnictides are much more complicated than currently believed. More generally, they indicate that a deep understanding of the evolution of the electronic properties of the normal state, which requires an understanding of the doping process, remains elusive even for the 122 iron-pnictides, which are viewed as the least correlated of the high-T C unconventional superconductors.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2016

Forbidden phonon: Dynamical signature of bond symmetry breaking in the iron chalcogenides

Investigation of the inelastic neutron scattering spectra in Fe 1+y Te 1₋x Se x near a signature wave vector Q=(1,0,0) for the bond-order wave (BOW) formation of parent compound Fe 1+y Te reveals an acoustic-phonon-like dispersion present in all structural phases. While a structural Bragg peak accompanies the mode in the low-temperature phase of Fe 1+y Te, it is absent in the high-temperature tetragonal phase, where Bragg scattering at this Q is forbidden by symmetry. Notably, this mode is also observed in superconducting FeTe 0.55 Se 0.45 , where structural and magnetic transitions are suppressed, and no BOW has been observed. Lastly, the presence of this “forbidden” phonon indicates that the lattice symmetry is dynamically or locally broken by magneto-orbital BOW fluctuations, which are strongly coupled to lattice in these materials.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Study of multiband disordered systems using the typical medium dynamical cluster approximation

We generalize the typical medium dynamical cluster approximation to multiband disordered systems. Using our extended formalism, we perform a systematic study of the nonlocal correlation effects induced by disorder on the density of states and the mobility edge of the three-dimensional two-band Anderson model. We include interband and intraband hopping and an intraband disorder potential. Our results are consistent with those obtained by the transfer matrix and the kernel polynomial methods. We also apply the method to K x Fe 2-y Se 2 with Fe vacancies. Despite the strong vacancy disorder and anisotropy, we find the material is not an Anderson insulator. Moreover our results demonstrate the application of the typical medium dynamical cluster approximation method to study Anderson localization in real materials.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

What is the valence of Mn in Ga 1-x Mn x N?

Motivated by the potential high Curie temperature of Ga 1-x Mn x N, we investigate the controversial Mn valence in this diluted magnetic semiconductor. From a first-principles Wannier-function analysis of the high energy Hilbert space, we find unambiguously the Mn valence to be close to 2+(d 5 ), but in a mixed spin configuration with average magnetic moments of 4µ B . By integrating out high-energy degrees of freedom differently, we further demonstrate the feasibility of both effective d 4 and d 5 descriptions. These two descriptions offer simple pictures for local and extended properties of the system, and highlight the dual nature of its doped hole. Specifically, in the effective d 5 description, we demonstrate novel physical effects absent in previous studies. Thus, our derivation highlights the richness of low-energy sectors in interacting many-body systems and the generic need for multiple effective descriptions.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Weak phase stiffness and nature of the quantum critical point in underdoped cuprates

We demonstrate that the zero-temperature superconducting phase diagram of underdoped cuprates can be quantitatively understood in the strong binding limit, using only the experimental spectral function of the “normal” pseudogap phase without any free parameter. In the prototypical (La 1–x Sr x ) 2 CuO 4 , a kinetics-driven d-wave superconductivity is obtained above the critical doping δ c ~ 5.2%, below which complete loss of superfluidity results from local quantum fluctuation involving local p-wave pairs. Near the critical doping, an enormous mass enhancement of the local pairs is found responsible for the observed rapid decrease of phase stiffness. Lastly, a striking mass divergence is predicted at δ c that dictates the occurrence of the observed quantum critical point and the abrupt suppression of the Nernst effects in the nearby region.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗