No Arabic abstract
Transparent conductors-nearly an oxymoron-are in pressing demand, as ultra-thin-film technologies become ubiquitous commodities. As current solutions rely on non-abundant elements, perovskites such as SrVO3 and SrNbO3 have been suggested as next generation transparent conductors. Our ab-initio calculations and analytical insights show, however, that reducing the plasma frequency below the visible spectrum by strong electronic correlations-a recently proposed strategy-unavoidably comes at a price: an enhanced scattering and thus a substantial optical absorption above the plasma edge. As a way out of this dilemma we identify several perovskite transparent conductors, relying on hole doping, somewhat larger bandwidths and separations to other bands.
The quest to improve transparent conductors balances two key goals: increasing electrical conductivity and increasing optical transparency. To improve both simultaneously is hindered by the physical limitation that good metals with high electrical conductivity have large carrier densities that push the plasma edge into the ultra-violet range. Transparent conductors are compromises between electrical conductivity, requiring mobile electrons, and optical transparency based on immobile charges to avoid screening of visible light. Technological solutions reflect this trade-off, achieving the desired transparencies by reducing the conductor thickness or carrier density at the expense of a lower conductance. Here we demonstrate that highly anisotropic crystalline conductors offer an alternative solution, avoiding this compromise by separating the directions of conduction and transmission. Materials with a quasi-two-dimensional electronic structure have a plasma edge well below the range of visible light while maintaining excellent in-plane conductivity. We demonstrate that slabs of the layered oxides Sr$_2$RuO$_4$ and Tl$_2$Ba$_2$CuO$_{6+delta}$ are optically transparent even at macroscopic thicknesses >2$mu$m for c-axis polarized light. Underlying this observation is the fabrication of out-of-plane slabs by focused ion beam milling. This work provides a glimpse into future technologies, such as highly polarized and addressable optical screens, that advancements in a-axis thin film growth will enable.
We review the physics of magnetic quantum oscillations in quasi-one dimensional conductors with an open Fermi surface, in the presence of modulated order. We emphasize the difference between situations where a modulation couples states on the same side of the Fermi surface and a modulation couples states on opposite sides of the Fermi surface. We also consider cases where several modulations coexist, which may lead to a complex reorganization of the Fermi surface. The interplay between nesting effects and magnetic breakdown is discussed. The experimental situation is reviewed.
Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) and transparent oxide semiconductors (TOSs) have become necessary materials for a variety of applications in the information and energy technologies, ranging from transparent electrodes to active electronics components. Perovskite barium stannate (BaSnO3), a new TCO or TOS system, is a potential platform for realizing optoelectronic devices and observing novel electronic quantum states due to its high electron mobility, excellent thermal stability, high transparency, structural versatility, and flexible doping controllability at room temperature. This article reviews recent progress in the doped BaSnO3 system, discussing the wide physical properties, electron-scattering mechanism, and demonstration of key semiconducting devices such as pn diodes and field-effect transistors. Moreover, we discuss the pathways to achieving two-dimensional electron gases at the interface between BaSnO3 and other perovskite oxides and describe remaining challenges for observing novel quantum phenomena at the heterointerface.
We performed a first-principles study of the structural, vibrational, electronic and magnetic properties of NaMnF3 under applied isotropic pressure. We found that NaMnF3 undergoes a reconstructive phase transition at 8 GPa from the Pnma distorted perovskite structure toward the Cmcm post-perovskite structure. This is confirmed by a sudden change of the Mn-F-Mn bondings where the crystal goes from corner shared octahedra in the Pnma phase to edge shared octahedra in the Cmcm phase. The magnetic ordering also changes from a G-type antiferromagnetic ordering in the Pnma phase to a C-type antiferromagnetic ordering in the Cmcm phase. Interestingly, we found that the high-spin d-orbital filling is kept at the phase transition which has never been observed in the known magnetic post-perovskite structures. We also found a highly non-collinear magnetic ordering in the Cmcm post-perovskite phase that drives a large ferromagnetic canting of the spins. We discuss the validity of these results with respect to the U and J parameter of the GGA+U exchange correlation functional used in our study and conclude that large spin canting is a promising property of the post-perovskite fluoride compounds.
Many multiferroic materials, with various chemical compositions and crystal structures, have been discovered in the past years. Among these multiferroics, some perovskite manganites with ferroelectricity driven by magnetic orders are of particular interest. In these multiferroic perovskite manganites, not only their multiferroic properties are quite prominent, but also the involved physical mechanisms are very plenty and representative. In this Brief Review, we will introduce some recent theoretical and experimental progress on multiferroic manganites.