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Abstract Using a density functional theory‐based thermal transport model, which includes the effects of temperature (T)‐dependent potential energy surface, lattice thermal expansion, force constant renormalization, and higher‐order quartic phonon scattering processes, it is found that the recently synthesized nitride perovskite LaWN3 displays strong anharmonic lattice dynamics manifested into a low lattice thermal conductivity (κL) and a non‐standard κL∝T−0.491 dependence. At high T, the departure from the standard κL∝T−1 law originates in the dual particle‐wave behavior of the heat carrying phonons, which includes vibrations tied to the N atoms. While the room temperature κL=2.98 W mK‐1 arises mainly from the conventional particle‐like propagation of phonons, there is also a significant atypical wave‐like phonon tunneling effect, leading to a 20% glass‐like heat transport contribution. The phonon broadening effect lowers the particle‐like contribution but increases the glass‐like one. Upon T increase, the glass‐like contribution increases and dominates above T = 850 K. Overall, the low κL with a weak T‐dependence points to a new utility for LaWN3 in energy technology applications, and motivates synthesis and exploration of nitride perovskites.

Abstract Carrier multiplication (CM), multiexciton generation by absorbing a single photon, enables disruptive improvements in photovoltaic conversion efficiency. However, energy conservation constrains the threshold energy to at least twice bandgap (2Eg$ E_ ext{g}$). Here, a below threshold limit CM in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs) is reported. Surprisingly, CM is observed with excitation energy of only 1.75 Eg$E_ ext{g}$ due to lattice vibrations. Electron–phonon coupling (EPC) results in significant changes in electronic structures, which favors CM. Indeed, the strongest EPC in monolayer MoS2 leads to the most efficient CM among the studied TMDCs. For practical applications, chalcogen vacancies can further lower the threshold by introducing defect states within bandgap. In particular, for monolayer WS2, CM occurs with excitation energy as low as 1.51 Eg$E_ ext{g}$. The results identify TMDCs as attractive candidate materials for efficient optoelectronic devices with the advantages of high photoconductivity and efficient CM.

Abstract While graphene grain boundaries (GBs) are well characterized experimentally, their influence on transport properties is less understood. As revealed here, phononic thermal transport is vulnerable to GBs even when they are ultra‐narrow and aligned along the temperature gradient direction. Non‐equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations uncover large reductions in the phononic thermal conductivity (κp) along linear GBs comprising periodically repeating pentagon‐heptagon dislocations. Green's function calculations and spectral energy density analysis indicate that the origin of the κp reduction is hidden in the periodic GB strain field, which behaves as a reflective diffraction grating with either diffuse or specular phonon reflections, and represents a source of anharmonic phonon–phonon scattering. The non‐monotonic dependence with dislocation density of κp uncovered here is unaccounted for by the classical Klemens theory. It can help identify GB structures that can best preserve the integrity of the phononic transport.

A time-dependent inelastic electron transport theory for strong electron-phonon interaction is established via the equations of motion method combined with the small polaron transformation. In this work, the dissipation via electron-phonon coupling is taken into account in the strong coupling regime, which validates the small polaron transformation. The corresponding equations of motion are developed, which are used to study the quantum interference effect and phonon-induced decoherence dynamics in molecular junctions. Numerical studies show clearly quantum interference effect of the transport electrons through two quasi-degenerate states with different couplings to the leads. We also found that the quantum interference can be suppressed by the electron-phonon interaction where the phase coherence is destroyed by phonon scattering. This indicates the importance of electron-phonon interaction in systems with prominent quantum interference effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding electronic dynamics on material surfaces is fundamentally important for applications including nanoelectronics, inhomogeneous catalysis, and photovoltaics. Practical approaches based on time-dependent density functional theory for open systems have been developed to characterize the dissipative dynamics of electrons in bulk materials. The accuracy and reliability of such approaches depend critically on how the electronic structure and memory effects of surrounding material environment are accounted for. In this work, we develop a novel squared-Lorentzian decomposition scheme, which preserves the positive semi-definiteness of the environment spectral matrix. The resulting electronic dynamics is guaranteed to be both accurate and convergent even in the long-time limit. The long-time stability of electronic dynamics simulation is thus greatly improved within the current decomposition scheme. The validity and usefulness of our new approach are exemplified via two prototypical model systems: quasi-one-dimensional atomic chains and two-dimensional bilayer graphene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on our earlier works [X. Zheng et al., Phys. Rev. B 75, 195127 (2007); J. S. Jin et al., J. Chem. Phys. 128, 234703 (2008)], we propose a rigorous and numerically convenient approach to simulate time-dependent quantum transport from first-principles. The proposed approach combines time-dependent density functional theory with quantum dissipation theory, and results in a useful tool for studying transient dynamics of electronic systems. Within the proposed exact theoretical framework, we construct a number of practical schemes for simulating realistic systems such as nanoscopic electronic devices. Computational cost of each scheme is analyzed, with the expected level of accuracy discussed. As a demonstration, a simulation based on the adiabatic wide-band limit approximation scheme is carried out to characterize the transient current response of a carbon nanotube based electronic device under time-dependent external voltages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An efficient quantum mechanical approach is formulated to model electron-photon interactions in nanoscale devices. Based on nonequilibrium Green's function formalism, electron-photon interactions and open boundaries in the nanoscale systems are taken into account in terms of self-energies. By separating different components in the electron-photon interactions, optical absorption and emission processes in the devices can be analyzed, and the method allows studies of different optoelectronic devices. In conjunction with density-functional tight-binding method, photo-induced current and other optical properties of nanoscale devices can be simulated without relying on empirical parameters. To demonstrate our approach, numerical studies of gallium nitride nanowire solar cells of realistic sizes are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, potassium iodide was inserted into single-walled carbon nanotubes. We present here a first-principles density-functional theory calculation of the electronic and optical properties of a potassium iodide intercalated (10,10) nanotube. Band structure, density of states, and charge distribution of the intercalated nanotube are determined. Significant changes in the electronic structure of carbon nanotube are found upon the intercalation. In particular, the electron distribution on the tube becomes more diffusive, and one out of every four K 4s electrons transfers to the tube wall, while the other three go to I 5p orbitals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We use first-principles quantum mechanics to simulate the transient electrical response through carbon nanotube-based conductors under time-dependent bias voltages. The dynamic admittance and time-dependent charge distribution are reported and analyzed. We find that the electrical response of these two-terminal molecular devices can be mapped onto an equivalent classical electric circuit and that the switching time of these end-on carbon nanotube devices is only a few femtoseconds. This result is confirmed by studying the electric response of a simple two-site model device and is thus generalized to other two-terminal molecular electronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Improving the efficiency of charge separation (CS) and charge transport (CT) is essential for almost all optoelectronic applications, yet its maximization remains a big challenge. Here we propose a conceptual strategy to achieve CS efficiency close to unity and simultaneously avoid charge recombination (CR) during CT in a ferroelectric polar-discontinuity (PD) superlattice structure, as demonstrated in (BaTiO3)m/(BiFeO3)n, which is fundamentally different from the existing mechanisms. The competition of interfacial dipole and ferroelectric PD induces opposite band bending in BiFeO3 and BaTiO3 sublattices. Consequently, the photoexcited electrons (e) and holes (h) in individual sublattices move forward to the opposite interfaces forming electrically isolated e and h channels, leading to a CS efficiency close to unity. Importantly, the spatial isolation of conduction channels in (BaTiO3)m/(BiFeO3)n enable suppression of CR during CT, thus realizing a unique band diagram for spatially orthogonal CS and CT. Remarkably, (BaTiO3)m/(BiFeO3)n can maintain a high photocurrent and large band gap simultaneously. Our results provide a fascinating illumination for designing artificial heterostructures toward ideal CS and CT in optoelectronic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]