The semiconductor ZnO has gained substantial interest in the research community in part because of its large exciton binding energy (60meV) which could lead to lasing action based on exciton recombination even above room temperature. Even though research focusing on ZnO goes back many decades, the renewed interest is fueled by availability of high-quality substrates and reports of p-type conduction and ferromagnetic behavior when doped with transitions metals, both of which remain controversial. It is this renewed interest in ZnO which forms the basis of this review. As mentioned already, ZnO is not new to the semiconductor field, with studies of its lattice parameter dating back to 1935 by Bunn [Proc. Phys. Soc. London 47, 836 (1935)], studies of its vibrational properties with Raman scattering in 1966 by Damen et al. [Phys. Rev. 142, 570 (1966)], detailed optical studies in 1954 by Mollwo [Z. Angew. Phys. 6, 257 (1954)], and its growth by chemical-vapor transport in 1970 by Galli and Coker [Appl. Phys. ...

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A comprehensive review of zno materials and devices

Every few years, a new material with unique properties emerges and fascinates the scientific community, typical recent examples being high-temperature superconductors and carbon nanotubes. Graphene is the latest sensation with unusual properties, such as half-integer quantum Hall effect and ballistic electron transport. This two-dimensional material which is the parent of all graphitic carbon forms is strictly expected to comprise a single layer, but there is considerable interest in investigating two-layer and few-layer graphenes as well. Synthesis and characterization of graphenes pose challenges, but there has been considerable progress in the last year or so. Herein, we present the status of graphene research which includes aspects related to synthesis, characterization, structure, and properties.

Graphene: The New Two-Dimensional Nanomaterial

Topological insulators are materials with a bulk excitation gap generated by the spin-orbit interaction that are different from conventional insulators. This distinction is characterized by ${Z}_{2}$ topological invariants, which characterize the ground state. In two dimensions, there is a single ${Z}_{2}$ invariant that distinguishes the ordinary insulator from the quantum spin-Hall phase. In three dimensions, there are four ${Z}_{2}$ invariants that distinguish the ordinary insulator from ``weak'' and ``strong'' topological insulators. These phases are characterized by the presence of gapless surface (or edge) states. In the two-dimensional quantum spin-Hall phase and the three-dimensional strong topological insulator, these states are robust and are insensitive to weak disorder and interactions. In this paper, we show that the presence of inversion symmetry greatly simplifies the problem of evaluating the ${Z}_{2}$ invariants. We show that the invariants can be determined from the knowledge of the parity of the occupied Bloch wave functions at the time-reversal invariant points in the Brillouin zone. Using this approach, we predict a number of specific materials that are strong topological insulators, including the semiconducting alloy ${\mathrm{Bi}}_{1\ensuremath{-}x}{\mathrm{Sb}}_{x}$ as well as $\ensuremath{\alpha}\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{Sn}$ and HgTe under uniaxial strain. This paper also includes an expanded discussion of our formulation of the topological insulators in both two and three dimensions, as well as implications for experiments.

/pdf/topological-insulators-with-inversion-symmetry-1vaykhe1u1.pdf

Topological insulators with inversion symmetry

We have used the pH-induced self-assembly of a peptide-amphiphile to make a nanostructured fibrous scaffold reminiscent of extracellular matrix. The design of this peptide-amphiphile allows the nanofibers to be reversibly cross-linked to enhance or decrease their structural integrity. After cross-linking, the fibers are able to direct mineralization of hydroxyapatite to form a composite material in which the crystallographic c axes of hydroxyapatite are aligned with the long axes of the fibers. This alignment is the same as that observed between collagen fibrils and hydroxyapatite crystals in bone.

http://science.sciencemag.org/content/sci/294/5547/1684.full.pdf

Self-assembly and mineralization of peptide-amphiphile nanofibers

Nano-optics of surface plasmon polaritons

Equations governing the collective mode frequencies of the axi-planar phase of a uniform spin triplet p-wave superfluid are obtained using a time dependent Ginzburg-Landau model.

Collective modes of the axi-planar phase

We report artificially atomic-scale ordered superlattice alloy systems, new scheme to pursue high-ZT materials. We have fabricated Bi/Sb superlattice alloys that are artificially ordered on the atomic scale using MBE, confirmed by the presence of XRD superlattice satellites. We have observed that the electronic structure can be modified from semimetal, through zero-gap, to semiconductor by changing the superlattice period and sublayer thicknesses using electrical resistivity, thermopower, and magneto-transport measurements. InSb/Bi superlattice alloys have also been prepared and studied using XRD and thermopower measurements, which shows that their thermoelectric transport properties can be modified in accordance with structural modification. This superlattice alloy scheme gives us one more tool to control and tune the electronic structure and consequently the thermoelectric properties.

https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S1946427400122389

Artificially Atomic-scale Ordered Superlattice Alloys for Thermoelectric Applications

Nonreciprocal spin-wave propagation in YIG/GGG: a limit on the DMI parameter

Summary form only given. We report the experimental measurement of the second-order nonlinear optical susceptibility of a thin KTiOPO/sub 4/ film deposited on a sapphire (100) substrate. The film was deposited on a sapphire (100) substrate by laser ablating a target made by polycrystalline KTP ceramic powder.

Nonlinear optical properties of potassium titanyl phosphate thin film deposited by UV laser ablation

Robust second-order optical nonlinearities comparable to those in common nonlinear optical materials have been reported in metal nitrides. In this paper we present experimental studies of gallium nitride and aluminum nitride thin films, including fabrication and optical characterization. The ease of thin film deposition techniques employed for these materials indicate that they may have potential for cost effective development of nonlinear optical waveguide devices.

John B Ketterson

Papers

Collective modes of the axi-planar phase

Artificially Atomic-scale Ordered Superlattice Alloys for Thermoelectric Applications

Nonreciprocal spin-wave propagation in YIG/GGG: a limit on the DMI parameter

Nonlinear optical properties of potassium titanyl phosphate thin film deposited by UV laser ablation

Nonlinear optical properties of metal nitride thin films