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Visualizing nonlinear resonance in nanomechanical systems via single-electron tunneling

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Abstract

Numerous reports have elucidated the importance of mechanical resonators comprising quantum-dot-embedded carbon nanotubes (CNTs) for studying the effects of single-electron transport. However, there is a need to investigate the single-electron transport that drives a large amplitude into a nonlinear regime. Herein, a CNT hybrid device has been investigated, which comprises a gate-defined quantum dot that is embedded into a mechanical resonator under strong actuation conditions. The Coulomb peak positions synchronously oscillate with the mechanical vibrations, enabling a single-electron “chopper” mode. Conversely, the vibration amplitude of the CNT versus its frequency can be directly visualized via detecting the time-averaged single-electron tunneling current. To understand this phenomenon, a general formula is derived for this time-averaged single-electron tunneling current, which agrees well with the experimental results. By using this visualization method, a variety of nonlinear motions of a CNT mechanical oscillator have been directly recorded, such as Duffing nonlinearity, parametric resonance, and double-, fractional-, mixed- frequency excitations. This approach opens up burgeoning opportunities for investigating and understanding the nonlinear motion of a nanomechanical system and its interactions with electron transport in quantum regimes.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Nos. 2018YFA0208400 and 2018YFA0306102), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 11904014, 51727805, 91836102 and 61704164), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Nos. 2018M641152 and BX20180022), the Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Future Chips (ICFC), and the Beijing Advanced Innovation Centre for Big Data and Brain Computing (BDBC).

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Author notes

  1. Xinhe Wang and Lin Cong contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fert Beijing Research Institute, School of Microelectronics & Beijing Advanced Innovation Centre for Big Data and Brain Computing (BDBC), Beihang University, Beijing, 100191, China

    Xinhe Wang, Xiaoyang Lin & Weisheng Zhao

  2. State Key Laboratory of Low-Dimensional Quantum Physics, Department of Physics and Tsinghua-Foxconn Nanotechnology Research Center, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Xinhe Wang, Lin Cong, Zi Yuan & Kaili Jiang

  3. Key Laboratory of Quantum Information, CAS, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China

    Dong Zhu & Guang-Wei Deng

  4. Department of Physics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China

    Zaiqiao Bai

  5. Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100080, China

    Wenjie Liang

  6. Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Nuclear Energy Technology, Key Laboratory of Advanced Reactor Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Ximing Sun

  7. Institute of Fundamental and Frontier Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 610054, China

    Guang-Wei Deng

Authors
  1. Xinhe Wang
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  2. Lin Cong
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  3. Dong Zhu
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  10. Guang-Wei Deng
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Guang-Wei Deng or Kaili Jiang.

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Wang, X., Cong, L., Zhu, D. et al. Visualizing nonlinear resonance in nanomechanical systems via single-electron tunneling. Nano Res. 14, 1156–1161 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-020-3165-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-020-3165-2

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