Related papers: Observation of shell effects in superconducting na…
Generally, there are two distinct effects in modifying the properties of low-dimensional nanostructures: surface effect (SS) due to increased surface-volume ratio and quantum size effect (QSE) due to quantum confinement in reduced…
Motivated by the recent observation of the shell effect in a nanoscale pure superconductor by Bose {\em et al} [Nat. Mat. {\bf 9}, 550 (2010)], we explore the possible shell-like effect in a strongly disordered superconductor as it is known…
Motivated by recent experiments on Al nanoparticles, we have studied the effects of fixed electron number and small size in nanoscale superconductors, by applying the canonical BCS theory for the attractive Hubbard model in two and three…
We combine the BCS self-consistency condition, a semiclassical expansion for the spectral density and interaction matrix elements to describe analytically how the superconducting gap depends on the size and shape of a 2d and 3d…
We study the proximity effect in a one-dimensional nanowire strongly coupled to a finite superconductor with a characteristic size which is much shorter than its coherence length. Such geometries have become increasingly relevant in recent…
We review some recent developments in the field of quasi-one-dimensional superconductivity. We demonstrate that low temperature properties of superconducting nanowires are essentially determined by quantum fluctuations. Smooth (Gaussian)…
The emergence of quantization at the nanoscale, the quantum size effect (QSE), allows flexible control of matter and is a rich source of advanced functionalities. A QSE-induced transition into an insulating phase in semimetallic nanofilms…
We develop a theoretical framework to investigate the interplay between quantum size effect (QSE) and strain effect on the stability of metal nanofilms. The QSE and strain effect are shown to be coupled through the concept of "quantum…
The Tomasch effect (TE) is due to quasiparticle interference (QPI) as induced by a nonuniform superconducting order parameter, which results in oscillations in the density of states (DOS) at energies above the superconducting gap. Quantum…
We report high-resolution scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) study of nano-sized Pb islands grown on SrTiO3, where three distinct types of gaps with different energy scales are revealed. At low temperature, an enlarged superconducting gap…
Superconductivity in one-atom-layer iron selenide (FeSe) on a strontium titanate (STO) substrate is enhanced by almost an order of magnitude with respect to bulk FeSe. There is recent experimental evidence suggesting that this enhancement…
We report on unique electronic properties in Fe-SiO2 nanocomposite thin films in the vicinity of the percolation threshold. The electronic transport is dominated by quantum corrections to the metallic conduction of the Infinite Cluster…
An important question in the physics of superconducting nanostructures is the role of thermal fluctuations on superconductivity in the zero-dimensional limit. Here, we probe the evolution of superconductivity as a function of temperature…
Network structures by semiconductor nanowires hold great promise for advanced quantum devices, especially for applications in topological quantum computing. In this study, we created networks of PbTe nanowires arranged in loop…
A new type of quantum size effect (QSE) oscillations is predicted for films with a relatively large correlation radius of surface inhomogeneities. The effect replaces usual QSE for random inhomogeneities with Gaussian and exponential power…
Hybrid superconductor-semiconductor materials are fueling research in mesoscopic physics and quantum technology. Recently demonstrated smooth $\beta$-Sn superconductor shells, due to the increased induced gap, are expanding the available…
The quantum states of a system of particles in a finite spatial domain in general consist of a set of discrete energy eigenvalues; these are usually grouped into bunches of degenerate or close-lying levels, called shells. In fermionic…
Quantum shape effect appears under the size-invariant shape transformations of strongly confined structures. Such a transformation distinctively influences the thermodynamic properties of confined particles. Due to their characteristic…
Superconducting properties of metallic nanowires can be entirely different from those of bulk superconductors because of the dominating role played by thermal and quantum fluctuations of the order parameter. For superconducting wires with…
The structure of the electron quantum size levels in spherical nanocrystals is studied in the framework of an eight--band effective mass model at zero and weak magnetic fields. The effect of the nanocrystal surface is modeled through the…