Adam M. Burke

We investigate heat conduction and energy relaxation in an InAs semiconductor nanowire using a hybrid semiconductor-superconductor architecture. Local electronic temperatures are measured with an in grown quantum dot thermometer, while controlled Joule heating is applied at different locations along the wire to probe the heat flow along the nanowire at subkelvin temperatures. With a one-dimensional heat transport model, we calculate an electron-phonon heat flow that scales as Q e-ph ∝ T 2.6 , which is in close agreement with the T 3 dependence predicted for clean one-dimensional phonons coupled to the electron gas. We further estimate a characteristic length l eq = 370 nm ; beyond this length scale, phonon-mediated heat transport dominates over heat conduction in our nanowire. Our results provide a quantitative measure of energy relaxation mechanisms in a one-dimensional semiconductor and provide a framework for studying heat flow in low-dimensional nanostructures.

Nanochains made up from one‐dimensional assemblies of magnetic nanoparticles are highly promising for a wide range of applications. Reliable control over their aspect ratio and spatial distribution on substrates is essential for developing functional materials with tailored properties. This study demonstrates that the responses of electrostatically charged aerosol magnetic nanoparticles to electric and magnetic fields enable template‐free self‐assembly of nanochains with tunable average length and spatial distribution directly onto substrates. These results establish charged aerosol magnetic nanoparticle self‐assembly as a versatile approach for fabricating advanced functional materials through a continuous, scalable direct integration of tunable nanochains into devices and substrates relevant to applications.

We realize strongly confined quantum dots (QDs) in InAs nanowires (NWs) by combining epitaxial crystal-phase control with chemical wet etching. A strong axial confinement is first introduced by growing closely spaced wurtzite (WZ) tunnel barriers in NWs to enclose a zinc blende (ZB) QD. The NW cross-section is then reduced by isotropic etching to obtain very small QDs, with a maximum observed charging energy > 30 meV. Using low-temperature electrical characterization and finite-element method simulations, we study how charging energies and the onset of electron filling scale with QD diameter. For extremely small diameters, we identify a regime where stray capacitances become non-negligible, limiting further increase in charging energy by diameter reduction alone. This approach to increasing confinement is particularly relevant for understanding the strong spin–orbit interaction observed in crystal-phase QDs, possibly linked to polarization charges at the WZ/ZB interfaces. Small diameter QDs allow considerably weaker interfering electric fields when studied, but the QDs cannot be realized with epitaxial growth alone due to a loss of crystal phase control.

Nanochains (NCs) made up of a one-dimensional arrangement of magnetic nanoparticles (NPs) exhibit anisotropic properties with potential for various applications. Herein, using a novel self-assembly method we directly integrate single NCs onto desired substrates including devices. We present a nanoscopic analysis of magnetization reversal in 1D linear NP arrays by combining x-ray microscopy, magnetoresistance (MR), and micromagnetic simulations. Imaging the local magnetization along individual NCs by scanning transmission x-ray microscopy and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism under varying in situ magnetic fields shows that each structure undergoes distinct non-homogeneous magnetization reversal processes. The experimental observations are complemented by micromagnetic simulations, revealing that morphological inhomogeneities critically influence the reversal process where regions with parallel chains or larger multi-domain particles act as nucleation centers for the magnetization switching and smaller particles provide pinning sites for the domain propagation. Magnetotransport through single NCs reveals distinct MR behavior that is correlated with the unique magnetization reversal processes dictated by the morphology of the structures. This study provides new insights into the complex magnetization reversal mechanism inherent to one-dimensional particle assemblies and the effective parameters that govern the process.

Magneto-responsive soft films constitute a fascinating class of smart materials and devices capable of performing various tasks, such as micromanipulation or transport, noninvasive surgery, and sensing. These components are fabricated by incorporating magnetic materials into flexible substrates. In this context, arranging magnetic particles into elongated chains exhibiting shape anisotropy has shown great potential. Here, we introduce a novel technique for fabricating magnetically responsive films using continuous single-step production and self-assembly of magnetic nanoparticles from a carrier gas at atmospheric pressure into anisotropic magnetic structures directly onto flexible polymer layers. We show that the resulting magnetic soft films exhibit significant residual magnetization and a large response to external magnetic fields. Furthermore, we investigate the magnetic properties of the nanoparticle assemblies and show that interparticle interactions play a critical role in determining the final magnetic properties of the nanostructures. Moreover, we provide experimental evidence that fusing the nanoparticles via post-annealing results in a transition from magnetostatic to exchange interactions with an ≈50% increase in the coercivity.

Direct thermal-to-electric energy converters typically operate in the linear regime, where the ratio of actual maximum power relative to the ideal maximum power, the so-called fill factor (FF), is 0.25. Here, we show, based on fundamental symmetry considerations, that the leading order nonlinear terms that can increase the FF require devices with broken spatial symmetry. Studying nonlinear, thermoelectric transport across an asymmetric energy barrier defined in a single semiconductor nanowire, we find in both experiment and theory that we can increase the FF as well as maximum power. Geometric symmetry breaking combined with the design of nonlinear behavior thus represents a strategy for increasing the performance of thermoelectric or hot-carrier devices. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

Magnetic one-dimensional structures are attractive nanomaterials due to the variety of potential applications they can provide. The fabrication of bimetallic 1D structures further expands the capabilities of such structures by tailoring the magnetic properties. Here, a single-step template-free method is presented for the fabrication of 1D FeCo alloy nanochains. In this approach, charged single-crystalline FeCo nanoparticles are first generated by the co-ablation of pure Fe and Co electrodes under a carrier gas at ambient pressures and attracted to a substrate using an electric field. When reaching the surface, the particles are self-assembled into parallel nanochains along the direction of an applied magnetic field. The approach allows for monitoring the self-assembly particle by particle as they are arranged into linear 1D chains with an average length controlled by the deposited particle concentration. Magnetometry measurements revealed that arranging nanoparticles into nanochains results in a 100% increase in the remanent magnetization, indicating significant shape anisotropy. Furthermore, by combining x-ray microscopy and micromagnetic simulations, we have studied the local magnetization configuration along the nanochains. Our findings show that variations in magnetocrystalline anisotropy along the structure play a crucial role in the formation of magnetic domains.

Using the excess energy of charge carriers excited above the band edge (hot carriers) could pave the way for optoelectronic devices, such as photovoltaics exceeding the Shockley-Queisser limit or ultrafast photodetectors. Semiconducting nanowires show promise as a platform for hot-carrier extraction. Proof of principle photovoltaic devices have already been realized based on InAs nanowires, using epitaxially defined InP segments as energy filters that selectively transmit hot electrons. However, it is not yet fully understood how charge-carrier separation, relaxation, and recombination depend on device design and on the location of optical excitation. Here, we introduce the use of an optical-beam-induced current (OBIC) characterization method, employing a laser beam focused close to the diffraction limit and a high precision piezo stage, to study the optoelectric performance of the nanowire device as a function of the position of excitation. The photocurrent response agrees well with modeling based on hot-electron extraction across the InP segment via diffusion. We demonstrate that the device is capable of producing power and estimate the spatial region within which significant hot-electron extraction can take place to be on the order of 300 nm away from the barrier. When comparing to other experiments on similar nanowires, we find good qualitative agreement, confirming the interpretation of the device function, while the extracted diffusion length of hot electrons varies. Careful control of the excitation and device parameters will be important to reach the potentially high device performance theoretically available in these systems.

Conversion of temperature gradients to charge currents in quantum dot systems enables probing various concepts from highly efficient energy harvesting and fundamental thermodynamics to spectroscopic possibilities complementary to conventional bias device characterization. In this work, we present a proof-of-concept study of a device architecture where bottom-gates are capacitively coupled to an InAs nanowire and double function as local joule heaters. The device design combines the ability to heat locally at different locations on the device with the electrostatic definition of various quantum dot and barrier configurations. We demonstrate the versatility of this combined gating- and heating approach by studying, as a function of the heater location and bias, the Seebeck effect across the barrier-free nanowire, fit thermocurrents through quantum dots for thermometry and detect the phonon energy using a serial double quantum dot. The results indicate symmetric heating effects when the device is heated with different gates and we present detection schemes for the electronic and phononic heat transfer contribution across the nanowire. Based on this proof-of-principle work, we propose a variety of future experiments.