Atomic dimer shuttling and two-level conductance fluctuations in Nb nanowires

Physical Review Letters

Volumn 98, Issue 4, 2007, Pages

  Marchenkov, Alexei ^a   Dai, Zhenting ^a   Zhang, Chun ^a   Barnett, Robert N ^a   Landman, Uzi ^a  

^a GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

DIMERS; ELECTRIC CONDUCTANCE; ELECTRODES; NIOBIUM COMPOUNDS; PROBABILITY DENSITY FUNCTION;

BISTABILITY; DIMER SHUTTLING; LOW-CONDUCTANCE CONFIGURATIONS;

NANOSTRUCTURED MATERIALS;

EID: 33846546155     PISSN: 00319007     EISSN: 10797114     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.98.046802     Document Type: Article

References (30)

1. N. Agraït, A. Levy Yeyati, and J.M. van Ruitenbeek, Phys. Rep. 377, 81 (2003). PRPLCM 0370-1573 10.1016/S0370-1573(02)00633-6
2. U. Landman, Science 248, 454 (1990). SCIEAS 0036-8075 10.1126/science.248.4954.454
3. J.I. Pascual, Science 267, 1793 (1995). SCIEAS 0036-8075 10.1126/science.267.5205.1793
4. U. Landman, Phys. Rev. Lett. 77, 1362 (1996). PRLTAO 0031-9007 10.1103/PhysRevLett.77.1362
5. G. Rubio, Phys. Rev. Lett. 76, 2302 (1996). PRLTAO 0031-9007 10.1103/PhysRevLett.76.2302
6. E. Scheer, Nature (London) NATUAS 0028-0836 394, 154 (1998). 10.1038/28112
7. R. Landauer, Philos. Mag. PHMAA4 0031-8086 21, 863 (1970).
8. E. Bratus', V. Shumeiko, and G. Wendin, Phys. Rev. Lett. 74, 2110 (1995); PRLTAO 0031-9007 10.1103/PhysRevLett.74.2110
9. A. Ingerman, Phys. Rev. B PRBMDO 0163-1829 64, 144504 (2001). 10.1103/PhysRevB.64.144504
10. B. Ludoph, Phys. Rev. B PRBMDO 0163-1829 61, 8561 (2000). 10.1103/PhysRevB.61.8561
11. Z. Dai and A. Marchenkov, Appl. Phys. Lett. 88, 203120 (2006). APPLAB 0003-6951 10.1063/1.2206697
12. E. Scheer, Phys. Rev. Lett. 78, 3535 (1997). PRLTAO 0031-9007 10.1103/PhysRevLett.78.3535
13. C. Yannouleas, Phys. Rev. B PRBMDO 0163-1829 57, 4872 (1998). 10.1103/PhysRevB.57.4872
14. C.J. Muller, Phys. Rev. Lett. 69, 140 (1992). PRLTAO 0031-9007 10.1103/PhysRevLett.69.140
15. H. van den Brom, Physica (Amsterdam) PHYBE3 0921-4526 252B, 69 (1998). 10.1016/S0921-4526(97)00996-4
16. H. Ohnishi, Nature (London) NATUAS 0028-0836 395, 780 (1998). 10.1038/27399
17. J. Taylor, Phys. Rev. B PRBMDO 0163-1829 63, 245407 (2001). 10.1103/PhysRevB.63.245407
18. M. Brandbyge, Phys. Rev. B PRBMDO 0163-1829 65, 165401 (2002). 10.1103/PhysRevB.65.165401
19. J. Halbritter, J. Appl. Phys. 97, 083904 (2005). JAPIAU 0021-8979 10.1063/1.1874292
20. E. Scheer, Physica (Amsterdam) PHYBE3 0921-4526 280B, 425 (2000). 10.1016/S0921-4526(99)01812-8
21. M.B. Weissman, Rev. Mod. Phys. 60, 537 (1988). RMPHAT 0034-6861 10.1103/RevModPhys.60.537
22. A. Halbritter, Adv. Phys. ADPHAH 0001-8732 53, 939 (2004). 10.1080/00018730412331324981
23. R.N. Barnett and U. Landman, Phys. Rev. B PRBMDO 0163-1829 48, 2081 (1993). 10.1103/PhysRevB.48.2081
24. In the NEGF method we take the Hamiltonians in the two semi-infinite leads as bulklike. Then, the self energies, ΣL and ΣR, which describe the interactions between the left (L) and right (R) leads with the contact region [see Fig. 2] and the Green's functions (retarded and advanced, Gr,a), can be calculated (see Refs.). The transmission (as a function of energy) in the Landauer expression for the conductance can be evaluated as T(ν)=Tr[ΓL(ν)Gr(ν)ΓR(ν)Ga(ν)], where ΓL,R=ΣL,Rr-ΣL,Ra. For further details see C. Zhang (to be published).
25. J.P. Perdew, Phys. Rev. Lett. 77, 3865 (1996). PRLTAO 0031-9007 10.1103/PhysRevLett.77.3865
26. N. Troullier and J.L. Martins, Phys. Rev. B PRBMDO 0163-1829 43, 1993 (1991). 10.1103/PhysRevB.43.1993
27. In the pseudopotential construction we used as a reference configuration [Kr]4s24p64d55s0, i.e., 13 valence electrons per atoms as described in H. Grönbeck, Phys. Rev. A 58, 4630 (1998). In this scheme the electronic configuration of the atom is given correctly to be [Kr]4s24p64d45s1. PLRAAN 1050-2947 10.1103/PhysRevA.58.4630
28. A similar configuration but with one of the electrodes rotated about the z axis has been used in a self-consistent tight-binding NEGF calculation yielding a conductance of ∼2.9G0, see J.C. Cuevas, Phys. Rev. Lett. 80, 1066 (1998). PRLTAO 0031-9007 10.1103/PhysRevLett.80.1066
29. H. Hakkinen, J. Phys. Chem. B JPCBFK 1520-6106 104, 9063 (2000). 10.1021/jp002691r
30. M. Brandbyge, Phys. Rev. B PRBMDO 0163-1829 56, 14956 (1997). 10.1103/PhysRevB.56.14956