QUANTUM MIRAGE

Presented by Guided by
Prof. OmPrakash Sapra
G.Bhargava
1CE07EC030 HOD, Dept. of E & C
 QUANTUM -MIRAGE

The quantum mirage was discovered by three physicists

at IBM's Almaden Research Center: Hari C. Manoharan,
Christopher P. Lutz and Eigler.

We call it ‘quantum’ since we are using the quantum

mechanic theory

We call it a ‘mirage’ because we project information about

one atom to another spot where there is no atom.
INTRODUCTION
Transfer data without conventional electrical wiring.

Electron wave phenomena are made to produce effective currents.

As computer circuit features shrink toward atomic dimensions they

have for decades in accordance with Moore's Law.

It is of interest to researchers in nanotechnology, who are looking for

ways to deliver electric currents through circuits too small for
conventional wiring.
 WHAT IS IT?
A quantum mirage is a spot where electron waves are focused so
they reinforce each other.

The result is an energy hot zone, similar to the acoustical hot zones
observed in concrete enclosures, or the electromagnetic wave focus
of a dish antenna.

In the case of electron waves, the enclosure is called a quantum

corral.

An elliptical corral produces mirages at the foci of the ellipse. A

typical quantum corral measures approximately 20 nm long by 10
nm wide.
WHAT CAUSED IT BIRTH?
Biggest obstacles to the continued shrinkage of electronic
elements within integrated circuits is the connection
between them.

Nanotechnology and atomic-scale computers are to

become a reality, an alternative means of sending
information between circuit elements must be developed.

Beat the physical limitations imposed on microprocessor

as chip circuits reduces to support an electric current.
 CREATION

The ring atoms

When a single
acted as a
cobalt atom is
Scientists moved "quantum corral“
placed at one of the The size and shape
several dozen reflecting the
two focus its of the ellipse
cobalt atoms on a copper's surface
properties determines where
copper surface into electrons within
suddenly appear at information moves
an ellipse-shaped the ring into a wave
the other focus within the ring.
ring. pattern predicted
where no atom
by quantum
exists.
mechanics.
 QUANTUM CORRALS
Two dimensional structures built atom by atom on atomically
smooth metallic surfaces using STM.

The first quantum corrals from iron atoms on the Cu surface

and imaged standing wave patterns inside them.

In early experiments the “stadium” shaped corrals were used

IBM Scientists used a STM to assemble 36 cobalt atoms into an

ellipse measuring a few nanometers (billionths of a meter)
across.
They constructed the ellipse on the surface of a single
copper crystal that was cooled to 4 degrees Kelvin (that is,
4 degrees above absolute zero) within an ultrahigh
vacuum.

The elliptical structure, called a quantum corral, confines

a portion of the two-dimensional "sea" of electrons that
exists on the crystal's surface.

The size and shape of the elliptical corral determine its

“quantum states”

The intensity of the mirage is about one-third of the

intensity around the cobalt atom
KONDO EFFECT
When a cobalt atom is deposited on a metallic, nonmagnetic
surface, the electron sea produces what is called the Kondo
effect.

The Cobalt atoms exhibit a property called a magnetic moment.

The electrons near the atom align themselves to offset its

magnetic moment, effectively canceling it out.

A single cobalt atom within the quantum corral, the Kondo

effect at the atom's location. 
The Kondo effect
Cobalt

Conduction electrons
screen the magnetic
moment of the impurity

Collective many body state:

Enhancement of DOS at EF
IBM scientist chose the colours for the image, which is actually
constructed from two data sets.

The first set contains topographic data and the second the magnetic
information.

“Both data sets share the same x–y co-ordinates,” he says, “so the
challenge was to illustrate a 4D data set in a 3D surface.”

The topographic data as height and the magnetic information (i.e. the
Kondo effect) as colour, so the peaks in the image show where the
atoms are located.

Colours represent the magnetic data, with purple corresponding to

the strongest Kondo effect and green to the weakest.
Elliptical Quantum Corral QUANTUM MIRAGE

Kondo dip Phantom dip

 Quantum Mirage

Extra adatom at focus: Extra adatom away from focus:

Quantum mirage No quantum mirage

Kondo effect in a quantum corral in a metallic surface

Cobalt

Cu(111)
Quantum Mirage
EXPERIMENTAL AMAZE!

The
The "phantom"
"phantom" atom
atom isis
called a quantum mirage;
called a quantum mirage;
Moving
Moving this
this atom
atom to
to one
one of
of
A
A single
single cobalt
cobalt atom
atom within
within information
information about
about the
the real
real
the ellipse's foci, the Kondo
the ellipse's foci, the Kondo
the
the quantum corral, the
quantum corral, the atom
atom is transmitted to the
is transmitted to the
effect
effect also
also appeared
appeared atat the
the
Kondo effect at the atom's
Kondo effect at the atom's other
other focus of the ellipse via
focus of the ellipse via
other
other focus,
focus, even
even though
though nono
location
location the
the wavelike
wavelike medium
medium of of the
the
atom was there.
atom was there. electron
electron sea
sea without
without using
using
any wires. 
any wires. 
STM Theory: Topographic Images and
Spectroscopic Measurement

The STM tip usually sits a few °A above the surface. The STM data can be
taken in two ways:

(i) A feedback loop used to control the height of the tip above the surface
so that the total tunneling current is kept constant as the tip is scanned
over the surface. This is called a “topographic” image and, at each point it
is a measure of the energy-integrated local density of surface states.

(ii) In second type of measurement the feedback loop is opened so that

the tip height is kept roughly constant with respect to the surface and the
voltage is swept to measure the local spectroscopy at the tip position.
Tunneling measurements of quantum corrals are typically done at small
voltage biases, V < 0.3 Volts, and low temperatures, T < 70 K.
 TUNNELING DIAGRAM

STM Tip
ψt

d
Surface ψv

EFt
Energy

eV

ψt EFv
ψv

d
CORRESPONDING ENERGY DIAGRAM
 STM BASICS

1) READ: measure I(V,x,y,z)

2) WRITE
 The Importance of Surface States
The beautiful standing wave patterns observed in STM corral experiments
result from the presence of Shockley surface states on the metallic
substrate.

Surface states are the result of a particular crystallographic cut of the

material, usually a noble metal, which places the Fermi energy in a band gap
for electrons propagating normal to the surface.

The surface states of Cu, Au and Ag are commonly used in STM experiments.

Although the quantum corrals are two dimensional systems in many

respects, there are some important ways in which the underlying bulk
material makes its presence felt.

This is especially true with the quantum mirage experiments where the bulk
electrons play an important role in the formation of the Kondo resonance
 Scattering Theory For Surface State
Electron Density
A circularly symmetric electron amplitude emanating from the STM tip into the surface states
of the substrate. This amplitude spreads radially outward from the tip until it encounters a
defect (such as an impurity) on the surface or a step edge, at which time it scatters.

Part of this amplitude is reflected back to the STM tip (possibly scattering several more times
along the way from different impurities) and interferes with the outgoing amplitude .

leading to fluctuations in the LDOS (local density of states), and hence the tunneling current,
as a function of position.

fluctuations are a result of the coherent part of the back-scattered amplitude.

There will be particles which (i) does not scatter at all from the potential, (ii) scatters once
and leaves, (iii) scatters once, propagates, scatters again and then leaves, (iv...) and so on to
infinite order.
 APPLICATION
Replacing conventional wire in nano-scale electronic circuits.

Used to represent one bit of data in a smaller region.

Remotely probing atoms and molecules.

Studying the origins of magnetism at the atomic level and

ultimately manipulating individual electron or nuclear spins.

Yield computers that are many orders of magnitude smaller, faster,

and less power-hungry than anything we can conceive today.  
CONCLUSION

Improvements in
quantum mirage Making each
are still needed ellipse with the
before this STM is currently
method becomes impractically
useful in actual slow.
circuits.

Overcoming the
A rapid and
above
power-efficient
barriers,the
way to modulate
quantum mirage
the available
could enable the
quantum states
miniaturization
would need to be
of electronic
developed.
circuits.
Recap of the main experimental findings:
1. There is a quantum mirage when a Co atom is placed at one of the
foci.

2. No mirage when the Co atom is placed away from the foci.

3. The quantum mirage oscillates with 4kFa.

4. The magnitude of the mirage depends only weakly on the ellipse

eccentricity.
THANK YOU
 The Kondo Effect
Impurity moment in a metal

High temperatures: Low temperatures:

Free moment Local singlet

The impurity spin is progressively screened below a

nonperturbative temperature TK

For T<TK, a sharp Kondo resonance develops in the

Impurity DOS at the Fermi level

Resonance never observed for an isolated impurity

 The Anderson model - continued

Many-body Kondo resonance

ed EF ed+U