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Hopping transport and the Hall effect near the insulator–metal transition in electrochemically gated poly(3-hexylthiophene) transistors
Understanding charge transport and the fundamental limits on conductivity in polymer semiconductors is important for improving device performance. Wanget al. report a transport regime close to band-like conduction and the observation of the Hall effect in an electrochemically-doped polymer semiconductor.
- Shun Wang
- , Mingjing Ha
- & C Leighton
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Broadband electromagnetic cloaking with smart metamaterials
Metamaterial cloaks can manipulate light to effectively hide objects from view, but they mostly rely on rigid structures that are tailored specifically for the chosen object. Shin et al.demonstrate an elastic, smart metamaterial cloak that can adapt to a range of deformations and object sizes.
- Dongheok Shin
- , Yaroslav Urzhumov
- & David R. Smith
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Room temperature self-assembly of mixed nanoparticles into photonic structures
Integration of different compounds with silica is important for developing small-scale optical devices, yet the high temperatures needed to build silica waveguides impose limits. Here, a room-temperature, self-assembly approach is shown, which produces long microwires containing nanodiamonds or organic dyes.
- Masood Naqshbandi
- , John Canning
- & Maxwell J. Crossley
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Symmetry breaking and optical negative index of closed nanorings
Metamaterials using split-ring resonators can display negative refractive index, yet the same effect for closed rings has remained elusive. Kanté et al.overcome this by using closely spaced coupled nanorings that exploit symmetry breaking to show broadband negative refractive index at optical frequencies.
- Boubacar Kanté
- , Yong-Shik Park
- & Xiang Zhang
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Coherent optical wavelength conversion via cavity optomechanics
Coherent conversion of photons from one wavelength to another is promising for future quantum communications technologies. By exploiting coupling between resonances in an optomechanical crystal nanocavity, Hillet al. demonstrate conversion between optical wavelength photons via a mechanical resonance.
- Jeff T. Hill
- , Amir H. Safavi-Naeini
- & Oskar Painter
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Non-equilibrium dynamics of an unstable quantum pendulum explored in a spin-1 Bose–Einstein condensate
Theoretical models usually fail in describing the behaviour of a many-body quantum system at a hyperbolic fixed point—a point of unstable equilibrium analogous to a motionless inverted pendulum. Gerving et al.show that such behaviour can be explored in the non-equilibrium dynamics of a Bose condensate.
- C.S. Gerving
- , T.M. Hoang
- & M.S. Chapman
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Unique fingering instabilities and soliton-like wave propagation in thin acoustowetting films
The study of dynamic fingering in liquid films has a long and storied history dating back to the discovery of wine tears. Rezket al.report novel fingering patterns driven by sound waves, above which peculiar wave pulses akin to solitary waves are formed.
- Amgad R. Rezk
- , Ofer Manor
- & Leslie Y. Yeo
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High-efficiency Cooper pair splitting demonstrated by two-particle conductance resonance and positive noise cross-correlation
The Cooper pairs that losslessly conduct current in a superconductor can be split into two spatially separated but quantum mechanically entangled electrons. In this paper, non-local cross-correlation measurements of pairs split within a superconducting wire indicate the efficiency of this process can approach 100%.
- Anindya Das
- , Yuval Ronen
- & Hadas Shtrikman
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Bright e-Paper by transport of ink through a white electrofluidic imaging film
Electronic paper technology is used in displays of portable electronic devices for its low-power consumption; however, it suffers from a sub-optimal reflectance. Hagedon et al.fabricate an electrofluidic film that allows video-rate switching and magazine-quality reflectance in electronic paper.
- M. Hagedon
- , S. Yang
- & J. Heikenfeld
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| Open AccessExperimental demonstration of quantum digital signatures using phase-encoded coherent states of light
Quantum digital signatures exploit quantum mechanics to provide verification of messages at the limits of information theory. Clarkeet al.demonstrate a photonic system that provides quantum digital signatures for messages sent to two receivers and is secure against forgery and repudiation.
- Patrick J. Clarke
- , Robert J. Collins
- & Gerald S. Buller
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Magnetic and electric coherence in forward- and back-scattered electromagnetic waves by a single dielectric subwavelength sphere
The absence of forward or backward scattered radiation by magnetodielectric spheres was predicted decades ago, yet direct measurements have remained elusive. Geffrin et al. present unambiguous evidence of such scattering effects in the gigahertz range for a sub-wavelength dielectric sphere.
- J.M. Geffrin
- , B. García-Cámara
- & F. Moreno
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Ripple-modulated electronic structure of a 3D topological insulator
The formation of structural ripples has been shown to control the local electronic properties in graphene. Okadaet al. use scanning tunnelling microscopy to study the effects of ripples in Bi2Te3topological insulators, and find that buckling modulates the Dirac surface-state dispersion.
- Yoshinori Okada
- , Wenwen Zhou
- & V. Madhavan
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Bursting drops in solid dielectrics caused by high voltages
Bursting of electrified drops is a fundamental physical process and important for diverse technical applications. Wanget al. find that bursting of electrified drops in polymers is sensitive to the shape of the drops, which in turn is determined by the polymer's elasticity
- Qiming Wang
- , Zhigang Suo
- & Xuanhe Zhao
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Active control of electromagnetically induced transparency analogue in terahertz metamaterials
Metamaterial analogues of electromagnetically-induced transparency provide interesting optical components and applications. By actively tuning the dark mode of a metamaterial, Guet al. optically control its electromagnetically-induced transparency, showing tunable group delay of terahertz light.
- Jianqiang Gu
- , Ranjan Singh
- & Weili Zhang
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A universal critical density underlying the physics of electrons at the LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interface
When lanthanum aluminate and strontium titanate are brought together, a 2D electron gas with many interesting properties forms at the interface. Magnetotransport results obtained by Joshuaet al. suggest that the behaviour of this interface is governed by a small but fundamental set of electronic bands.
- Arjun Joshua
- , S. Pecker
- & S. Ilani
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Level statistics of disordered spin-1/2 systems and materials with localized Cooper pairs
Quantum phase transitions are most commonly found to occur at zero temperature. Cuevaset al.present numerical evidence confirming that a quantum phase transition can also occur at finite temperature, provided strong disorder is present.
- Emilio Cuevas
- , Mikhail Feigel'man
- & Marc Mezard
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Quantum oscillations of nitrogen atoms in uranium nitride
Crystals containing atoms with widely disparate masses can exhibit unusual lattice dynamics. Using time-of-flight neutron scattering, Aczelet al. show that at high frequencies individual nitrogen atoms in uranium nitride behave as independent quantum harmonic oscillators.
- A.A. Aczel
- , G.E. Granroth
- & S.E. Nagler
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Single-shot ultrafast tomographic imaging by spectral multiplexing
Computed tomography relies on scanning to measure an object from many angles, which fails for shot-to-shot changes and ultrafast phenomena. Matliset al. demonstrate an approach based on spectral multiplexing for single-shot tomographic imaging and use it to measure femtosecond plasma filaments.
- N.H. Matlis
- , A. Axley
- & W.P. Leemans
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Probing the tunnelling site of electrons in strong field enhanced ionization of molecules
Molecules in intense laser fields have enhanced multiple ionization rates, caused by the ionic core and laser fields acting on the part of the molecule in the up-field. Here, direct proof of this model is presented by studying the instantaneous effect of the field direction during double ionization in ArXe.
- J. Wu
- , M. Meckel
- & R. Dörner
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Cooling and stabilization by collisions in a mixed ion–atom system
Trapped ions and atoms coexist at different temperatures in mixed systems, and cooling of ions through collisions with atoms is required for the mixture to stabilize. Raviet al. study these effects using rubidium atoms and ions, and find a collisional cooling mechanism leading to stability of the mixture.
- K. Ravi
- , Seunghyun Lee
- & S.A. Rangwala
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Measuring the size of individual particles from three-dimensional imaging experiments
The degree of polydispersity of colloidal suspensions is known to have consequences for their physical properties. Kuritaet al. present a general method for determining the sizes of individual particles, and thus the polydispersity, using only the coordinates of the centre positions of spherical particles.
- Rei Kurita
- , David B. Ruffner
- & Eric R. Weeks
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| Open AccessLinear magnetoresistance due to multiple-electron scattering by low-mobility islands in an inhomogeneous conductor
Linear magnetoresistance is a phenomenon observed in many material systems and could be used in magnetic field sensors. This paper uncovers its microscopic origin showing how it arises from multiple scattering of electrons by low-mobility islands within an inhomogeneous high-mobility semiconductor.
- N.V. Kozlova
- , N. Mori
- & A. Patanè
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| Open AccessUltrafast optical demagnetization manipulates nanoscale spin structure in domain walls
Ultrafast demagnetization occurs when magnetically ordered solids are exposed to femtosecond light pulses, yet the exact spin-transfer mechanism is still debated. Combining ultrashort X-rays and infrared laser pulses, Pfauet al. show the importance of spin transport between domains in thin magnetic films.
- B. Pfau
- , S. Schaffert
- & S. Eisebitt
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| Open AccessQuantum correlations with no causal order
Causal order is a concept that is engrained in the standard understanding of time, both in classical and quantum mechanics. Oreshkovet al.generalize the standard formalism of quantum theory to a framework with no pre-existing causal order, and find a new class of correlations that have no analogue in the classical world.
- Ognyan Oreshkov
- , Fabio Costa
- & Časlav Brukner
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Continuous variable quantum key distribution with modulated entangled states
Continuous variable quantum key distribution allows secure communication that is more robust against channel losses than discrete approaches, yet is strongly affected by noise. Madsenet al.devise a continuous scheme for modulated entangled states that is more tolerant to noise and loss than other protocols.
- Lars S. Madsen
- , Vladyslav C. Usenko
- & Ulrik L. Andersen
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Novel Pauli-paramagnetic quantum phase in a Mott insulator
Spin liquids are states of matter in which the constituent spins of a magnet are highly correlated yet fluctuate strongly down to millikelvin temperatures. Here the authors report torque magnetometry measurements of the Mott insulator EtMe3Sb[Pd(dmit)2]2and find it displays an ungapped quantum spin liquid state.
- D. Watanabe
- , M. Yamashita
- & Y. Matsuda
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| Open AccessSpin–orbit induced electronic spin separation in semiconductor nanostructures
Achieving spin separation of charged particles in non-uniform magnetic fields is hindered by the Lorentz force. Kohdaet al. demonstrate spin separation in a semiconductor nanostructure by exploiting the effective magnetic field arising from the spin–orbit interaction and achieve highly polarized spin currents.
- Makoto Kohda
- , Shuji Nakamura
- & Junsaku Nitta
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| Open AccessObservation of Landau levels in potassium-intercalated graphite under a zero magnetic field
A signature of the Dirac-like physics of charge carriers in graphene is the occurrence of an anomalous Hall effect, resulting in a quantization of the Landau levels. Guoet al. observe Landau levels of Dirac fermions in potassium-intercalated graphite arising in the absence of an applied magnetic field.
- Donghui Guo
- , Takahiro Kondo
- & Junji Nakamura
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Tunable ferroelectricity in artificial tri-layer superlattices comprised of non-ferroic components
Ferroelectric materials are appealing for use in a range of technological applications. This study demonstrates the onset of ferroelectric behaviour in a superlattice structure that consists of three non-ferroelectric layers, suggesting ferroelectricity can also be induced by interface effects.
- K. Rogdakis
- , J.W. Seo
- & C. Panagopoulos
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| Open AccessThe elusive Heisenberg limit in quantum-enhanced metrology
Quantum metrology employs the properties of quantum states to further enhance the accuracy of some of the most precise measurement schemes to date. Here, a method for estimating the upper bounds to achievable precision in quantum-enhanced metrology protocols in the presence of decoherence is presented.
- Rafał Demkowicz-Dobrzański
- , Jan Kołodyński
- & Mădălin Guţă
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Time-domain classification of charge-density-wave insulators
Insulators can be classified according to the kind of electronic interactions they are dominated by. Hellmannet al. used time- and angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy to determine the dominant interactions in a series of transition metal dichalcogenides.
- S. Hellmann
- , T. Rohwer
- & K. Rossnagel
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First-order coil-globule transition driven by vibrational entropy
The coil-globule transition undergone by polymers in solution delineates a transition from expanded coils to collapsed globules, depending on the polarity of the solvent. This study examines the influence of vibrational entropy on the transition, and finds it can induce a crossover from a second-order to a first-order transition.
- Carlo Maffi
- , Marco Baiesi
- & Paolo De Los Rios
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The spin Hall effect as a probe of nonlinear spin fluctuations
The spin Hall effect and its inverse allow conversion between charge and spin currents in both magnetic and nonmagnetic materials. Weiet al.observe an anomaly in the temperature dependence of the inverse spin Hall effect, which suggests that it can also be used as a sensor for very small magnetic moments.
- D.H. Wei
- , Y. Niimi
- & Y. Otani
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Phase-locking to a free-space terahertz comb for metrological-grade terahertz lasers
Frequency comb synthesizers are important for metrology, but they have been difficult to use as frequency rulers in the terahertz region due to their low power. Consolinoet al. phase-lock a quantum cascade laser to a free-space-propagating terahertz comb, demonstrating that they can overcome this limitation.
- L. Consolino
- , A. Taschin
- & P. De Natale
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| Open AccessBlind topological measurement-based quantum computation
Blind quantum computation is a protocol that permits an algorithm, its input and output to be kept secret from the owner of the computational resource doing the calculation. Morimae and Fujii propose a strategy for topologically protected fault-tolerant blind quantum computation that is robust to environmental noise.
- Tomoyuki Morimae
- & Keisuke Fujii
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Ultrafast magnetization enhancement in metallic multilayers driven by superdiffusive spin current
Spin dynamics in magnetic materials can be driven by ultrafast light pulses, resulting in transient magnetization changes on femtosecond timescales. Rudolphet al. find that in magnetic trilayers the magnetization of one layer can be enhanced by superdiffusive spin currents from adjacent layers.
- Dennis Rudolf
- , Chan La-O-Vorakiat
- & Peter M. Oppeneer
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Spin-enhanced organic bulk heterojunction photovoltaic solar cells
One of the obstacles to improving the efficiency of organic photovoltaic solar cells is the recombination of polaron pairs at the interface between donor and acceptor molecules. By doping cells with galvinoxyl radicals, Zhanget al. demonstrate a mechanism that overcomes this problem via a spin-flip process.
- Ye Zhang
- , Tek P. Basel
- & Z. Valy Vardeny
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| Open AccessProgrammable multimode quantum networks
Multi-partite entanglement is essential not only to understand large quantum ensembles but also to build useful quantum technologies. Armstronget al. demonstrate multimode entanglement of up to eight modes using programmable virtual networks based on linear optics that can be switched in real time.
- Seiji Armstrong
- , Jean-François Morizur
- & Hans-A. Bachor
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Flexible and transparent all-graphene circuits for quaternary digital modulations
Signal modulation is a mechanism which embeds an information-carrying signal into a carrier wave to broadcast information and is essential for high-speed communication. Zhonget al. report a flexible, transparent all-graphene modulator circuit performing quaternary modulation schemes with only two transistors.
- Seunghyun Lee
- , Kyunghoon Lee
- & Zhaohui Zhong
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Antenna electrodes for controlling electroluminescence
Metallic nanoantennas can be used to enhance and tailor the photoluminescence effects in small-scale devices. Huanget al.design combined nanoantenna electrodes for quantum well nanoscale light-emitting diodes, to both inject charge and control the electroluminescence properties.
- Kevin C.Y. Huang
- , Min-Kyo Seo
- & Mark L. Brongersma
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Composite pulses for robust universal control of singlet–triplet qubits
Precise qubit manipulation is essential in quantum computation; however errors can occur from fluctuations in the magnetic field. Wanget al. propose a robust scheme for universal control of qubits in a semiconductor double quantum dot, cancelling leading orders of error in field gradient variation.
- Xin Wang
- , Lev S. Bishop
- & S. Das Sarma
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| Open AccessAmbient fabrication of flexible and large-area organic light-emitting devices using slot-die coating
Light-emitting electrochromic cells are a promising alternative to organic light-emitting diodes, as their performance is less sensitive to fabrication conditions. Here, a roll-to-roll compatible fabrication of such devices is presented, demonstrating large-area continuous production in ambient conditions.
- Andreas Sandström
- , Henrik F. Dam
- & Ludvig Edman
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Laser-induced ultrafast demagnetization in the presence of a nanoscale magnetic domain network
Understanding ultrafast demagnetisation is key to manipulating magnetic structures on fast timescales, yet laser sources limit the attainable spatial resolution. Here, a soft X-ray high harmonic source enables a high temporal and spatial resolution study of domain demagnetisation in [Co/Pt]30multilayer films.
- Boris Vodungbo
- , Julien Gautier
- & Jan Lüning
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| Open AccessMultimode circuit optomechanics near the quantum limit
Optomechanical systems allow for the exploration of macroscopic behaviour at or near the quantum limit. Masselet al. use micromechanical resonators to study the hybridisation of one photonic and two phononic modes with phonon numbers down to 1.8, showing a coupling between all three degrees of freedom.
- Francesco Massel
- , Sung Un Cho
- & Mika A. Sillanpää
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| Open AccessObservation of resistively detected hole spin resonance and zero-field pseudo-spin splitting in epitaxial graphene
Along with its electronic characteristics, the spin properties of graphene have recently received increasing attention in the context of spintronic applications. Using microwave radiation, Maniet al. identify resistively detected spin resonance in monolayer and trilayer graphene sheets and extract the value for the Landé g-factor.
- Ramesh G. Mani
- , John Hankinson
- & Walter A. de Heer
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| Open AccessImaging high-dimensional spatial entanglement with a camera
Measuring the entanglement between down-converted photons is central to many quantum optical experiments, and is normally performed by scanning detectors stepwise across a plane. Edgaret al. use a CCD camera to measure the entire entangled light field, finding strong correlations in position and momentum.
- M.P. Edgar
- , D.S. Tasca
- & M.J. Padgett
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Symmetry breaking in the formation of magnetic vortex states in a permalloy nanodisk
Vortex states in magnetic nanoislands are characterized by a curling of the magnetization in the plane of the disk. This study demonstrates experimentally that vortices tend to form with a preferred handedness that is dictated by the Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction.
- Mi-Young Im
- , Peter Fischer
- & Teruo Ono
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| Open AccessQuantifying the magnetic nature of light emission
Light-matter interactions are generally dominated by electric fields and electric-dipole transitions. This study, however, quantifies magnetic contributions to light emission and so exploits the strong natural magnetic-dipole transitions in lanthanide ions to measure optical-frequency magnetic fields.
- Tim H. Taminiau
- , Sinan Karaveli
- & Rashid Zia
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Topological crystalline insulators in the SnTe material class
Topologically protected states of matter are receiving widespread attention owing to their unusual electronic properties. Using numerical simulations, this study predicts that tin telluride is a physical realization of a new class of materials termed topological crystalline insulators.
- Timothy H. Hsieh
- , Hsin Lin
- & Liang Fu
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