Measurements of variable capacitance using single port radio frequency reflectometry.

A radio frequency (RF) reflectometry technique is presented to measure device capacitances using a probe station. This technique is used to characterize micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) variable capacitor devices that can be connected to create pull-up and pull-down networks used in digital gates for reversible computing. Adiabatic reversible computing is a promising approach to energy-efficient computing that can dramatically reduce heat dissipation by switching circuits at speeds below their RC time constants, introducing a trade-off between energy and speed. The variable capacitors in this study will be measured using single port RF reflectometry achieved with a custom-made RF probe. The RF probe consists of a micromanipulator with an on-board matching network and is calibrated by measuring a capacitive bank that shows a clearly visible frequency shift with the increase in capacitance. The RF probe worked well when measuring static capacitors with no parasitic resistance; however, the frequency shift is masked when measuring the MEMS variable capacitors due to their high in-series parasitic resistance (around 80 kΩ). Therefore, RF reflectometry has the potential to measure MEMS variable capacitors in the range of 0-30 fF when not masked by a high in-series parasitic resistance, creating a fast and versatile method for characterizing variable capacitors that can be used in energy-efficient computing.

Gate reflectometry of single-electron box arrays using calibrated low temperature matching networks.

Sensitive dispersive readouts of single-electron devices ("gate reflectometry") rely on one-port radio-frequency (RF) reflectometry to read out the state of the sensor. A standard practice in reflectometry measurements is to design an impedance transformer to match the impedance of the load to the characteristic impedance of the transmission line and thus obtain the best sensitivity and signal-to-noise ratio. This is particularly important for measuring large impedances, typical for dispersive readouts of single-electron devices because even a small mismatch will cause a strong signal degradation. When performing RF measurements, a calibration and error correction of the measurement apparatus must be performed in order to remove errors caused by unavoidable non-idealities of the measurement system. Lack of calibration makes optimizing a matching network difficult and ambiguous, and it also prevents a direct quantitative comparison between measurements taken of different devices or on different systems. We propose and demonstrate a simple straightforward method to design and optimize a pi matching network for readouts of devices with large impedance, [Formula: see text]. It is based on a single low temperature calibrated measurement of an unadjusted network composed of a single L-section followed by a simple calculation to determine a value of the "balancing" capacitor needed to achieve matching conditions for a pi network. We demonstrate that the proposed calibration/error correction technique can be directly applied at low temperature using inexpensive calibration standards. Using proper modeling of the matching networks adjusted for low temperature operation the measurement system can be easily optimized to achieve the best conditions for energy transfer and targeted bandwidth, and can be used for quantitative measurements of the device impedance. In this work we use gate reflectometry to readout the signal generated by arrays of parallel-connected Al-AlOx single-electron boxes. Such arrays can be used as a fast nanoscale voltage sensor for scanning probe applications. We perform measurements of sensitivity and bandwidth for various settings of the matching network connected to arrays and obtain strong agreement with the simulations.

Nano-photoluminescence of natural anyon molecules and topological quantum computation.

The proposal of fault-tolerant quantum computations, which promise to dramatically improve the operation of quantum computers and to accelerate the development of the compact hardware for them, is based on topological quantum field theories, which rely on the existence in Nature of physical systems described by a Lagrangian containing a non-Abelian (NA) topological term. These are solid-state systems having two-dimensional electrons, which are coupled to magnetic-flux-quanta vortexes, forming complex particles, known as anyons. Topological quantum computing (TQC) operations thus represent a physical realization of the mathematical operations involving NA representations of a braid group Bn, generated by a set of n localized anyons, which can be braided and fused using a "tweezer" and controlled by a detector. For most of the potential TQC material systems known so far, which are 2D-electron-gas semiconductor structure at high magnetic field and a variety of hybrid superconductor/topological-material heterostructures, the realization of anyon localization versus tweezing and detecting meets serious obstacles, chief among which are the necessity of using current control, i.e., mobile particles, of the TQC operations and high density electron puddles (containing thousands of electrons) to generate a single vortex. Here we demonstrate a novel system, in which these obstacles can be overcome, and in which vortexes are generated by a single electron. This is a ~ 150 nm size many electron InP/GaInP2 self-organized quantum dot, in which molecules, consisting of a few localized anyons, are naturally formed and exist at zero external magnetic field. We used high-spatial-resolution scanning magneto-photoluminescence spectroscopy measurements of a set of the dots having five and six electrons, together with many-body quantum mechanical calculations to demonstrate spontaneous formation of the anyon magneto-electron particles (eν) having fractional charge ν = n/k, where n = 1-4 and k = 3-15 are the number of electrons and vortexes, respectively, arranged in molecular structures having a built-in (internal) magnetic field of 6-12 T. Using direct imaging of the molecular configurations we observed fusion and braiding of eν-anyons under photo-excitation and revealed the possibility of using charge sensing for their control. Our investigations show that InP/GaInP2 anyon-molecule QDs, which have intrinsic transformations of localized eν-anyons compatible with TQC operations and capable of being probed by charge sensing, are very promising for the realization of TQC.

Nanoantenna-based ultrafast thermoelectric long-wave infrared detectors.

We investigate the generation of electrical signals by suspended thermoelectrically coupled nanoantennas (TECNAs) above a quasi-spherical reflector cavity in response to rapidly changing long-wave infrared radiation. These sensors use a resonant nanoantenna to couple the IR energy to a nanoscale thermocouple. They are positioned over a cavity, etched into the Si substrate, that provides thermal isolation and is designed as an optical element to focus the IR radiation to the antenna. We study the frequency-dependent response of such TECNAs to amplitude-modulated 10.6 µm IR signals. We experimentally demonstrate response times on the order of 3 µs, and a signal bandwidth of about 300 kHz. The observed electrical response is in excellent correlation with finite element method simulations based on the thermal properties of nanostructures. Both experiments and simulations show a key trade-off between sensitivity and response time for such structures and provide solutions for specific target applications.

Cavity-Backed Antenna-Coupled Nanothermocouples.

This paper reports a two-orders-of-magnitude improvement in the sensitivity of antenna-coupled nanothermocouple (ACNTC) infrared detectors. The electrical signal generated by on-chip ACNTCs results from the temperature difference between a resonant antenna locally heated by infrared radiation and the substrate. A cavity etched under the antenna provides two benefits. It eliminates the undesirable cooling of the hot junction by thermally isolating the antenna from the substrate. More importantly, careful cavity design results in constructive interference of the incident radiation reflected back to the antenna, which significantly increases the detector sensitivity. We present the cavity-depth-dependent response of ACNTCs with cavity depths between 1 µm and 22 µm. When constructive interference is maximized, the thermal response increases by 100-fold compared to devices without the cavity.

Single electron transistors with hydrogen treatment of ALD SiO2 in nanoscale metal-insulator-metal tunnel junctions.

Over the past five years, fabrication of metal-insulator-metal (MIM) single electron transistors (SET) featuring atomic layer deposition (ALD) of ultrathin tunnel barrier dielectrics (SiO2, Al2O3) has been reported. However, the performance of fabricated devices was significantly compromised by the presence of native metal oxide and problems associated with the nucleation of ALD dielectrics on metal substrates. To overcome the difficulty of dielectric ALD nucleation on metal substrates, we recently developed a fabrication technique in which the native metal oxide naturally forming in the presence of the ALD oxidant precursor is first used to promote the nucleation of ALD dielectrics, and then is chemically reduced by forming gas anneal (FGA) at temperatures near 400 °C. However, despite the elimination of native oxide, low temperature characterization of the devices fabricated using FGA reveals excess 'switching' noise of a very large magnitude resulting from charged defects within the junctions. It has been previously reported that remote hydrogen plasma (RHP) treatment of SiO2 thin films effectively eradicates fabrication defects. This work reports a comparative study of Ni-based MIM SET treated with FGA and/or RHP. We show that, using a combination of FGA and RHP treatments, it is possible to obtain MIM junctions free of switching noise and without a detectable contribution of native oxide.

Level Spectrum and Charge Relaxation in a Silicon Double Quantum Dot Probed by Dual-Gate Reflectometry.

We report on dual-gate reflectometry in a metal-oxide-semiconductor double-gate silicon transistor operating at low temperature as a double quantum dot device. The reflectometry setup consists of two radio frequency resonators respectively connected to the two gate electrodes. By simultaneously measuring their dispersive responses, we obtain the complete charge stability diagram of the device. Electron transitions between the two quantum dots and between each quantum dot and either the source or the drain contact are detected through phase shifts in the reflected radio frequency signals. At finite bias, reflectometry allows probing charge transitions to excited quantum-dot states, thereby enabling direct access to the energy level spectra of the quantum dots. Interestingly, we find that in the presence of electron transport across the two dots the reflectometry signatures of interdot transitions display a dip-peak structure containing quantitative information on the charge relaxation rates in the double quantum dot.

Molecular quantum cellular automata cells. Electric field driven switching of a silicon surface bound array of vertically oriented two-dot molecular quantum cellular automata.

The amine functionality of the linker on the dinuclear complex [trans-Ru(dppm)(2)(Ctbd1;CFc)(NCCH(2)CH(2)NH(2))][PF(6)] reacts with Si-Cl bonds of a chlorinated, highly B doped Si (111) surface to yield Si-N surface-complex bonds. The surface bound complex is constrained to a near vertical orientation by the chain length of the linker as confirmed by variable angle XPS. Oxidation of the dinuclear complex with ferrocenium ion or electrochemically generates a stable, biased Fe(III)-Ru(II) mixed-valence complex on the surface. Characterization of the array of surface bound complexes with spectroscopic as well as electrochemical techniques confirms the presence of strongly bound, chemically robust, mixed-valence complexes. Capping the flat array of complexes with a minimally perturbing mercury electrode permits the equalization of the Fe and Ru energy wells by an applied electric field. The differential capacitance of oxidized and unoxidized bound complexes is compared as a function of voltage applied between the Hg gate and the Si. The results show that electron exchange between the Fe and Ru sites of the array of dinuclear mixed-valence complexes at energy equalization generates a fluctuating dipole that produces a maximum in the capacitance versus voltage curve for each complex-counterion combination present. Passage through the capacitance maximum corresponds to switching of the molecular quantum cellular automata (QCA) cell array by the electric field from the Fe(III)-Ru(II) configuration to the Fe(II)-Ru(III) configuration, thereby confirming that molecules possess an essential property necessary for their use as elements of a QCA device.

A two-stage shift register for clocked Quantum-Dot Cellular Automata.

Quantum-Dot Cellular Automata (QCA) is a computational scheme utilizing the position of interacting single electrons within arrays of quantum dots ("cells") to encode and process binary information. Clocked QCA architectures can provide power gain, logic level restoration, and memory features. Using arrays of micron-sized metal dots, we experimentally demonstrate operation of a QCA latch-inverter and a two-stage shift register.