Theoretical study of structural,electronic and optical properties of novel ternary alloys $$\hbox {MgO}_{1-{x}}{\hbox {Se}}_{{x}}$$ ($$x =$$x= 0.25, 0.50 and 0.75)

We report on the investigation of the structural, electronic, and optical properties of binary compounds (MgO and MgSe) and their ternary \(\hbox {MgO}_{1-{x}}\hbox {Se}_{{x}}\) (\(x=0.25, 0.5, 0.75\)) alloys within the density functional theory based on the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave method as implemented in the WIEN2k code. We have used the revised Perdew–Burke–Ernzerhof generalized gradient approximation (GGA-PBEsol) to calculate the structural properties and analyze the effect of the Se composition on the lattice constant and the bulk modulus of \(\hbox {MgO}_{1-{x}}\hbox {Se}_{{x}}\). The calculated electronic properties by employing the GGA-PBEsol and TB-mBJ approaches show that \(\hbox {MgO}_{1-{x}}\hbox {Se}_{{x}}\) alloys have a direct band gap \(\Gamma \)–\(\Gamma \) for \(x = 0, 0.25, 0.5\) and 0.75, suggesting the possibility of their use in the long wavelength optoelectronic applications. The optical properties such as the real and imaginary parts of the dielectric function, the refractive index, and the reflectivity of \(\hbox {MgO}_{1-{x}}\hbox {Se}_{{x}}\) are computed by using the accurate TB-mBJ potential. The wide band gaps larger than 3.1 eV mean that \(\hbox {MgO}_{1-{x}}\hbox {Se}_{{x}}\) alloys can be used in the applications of the ultraviolet region of the spectrum. Our data for all studied bowing parameters of \(\hbox {MgO}_{1-{x}}\hbox {Se}_{x}\) may serve as references for future experimental studies.     

Computational study of transport properties of graphene upon adsorption of an amino acid: importance of including –$$\hbox {NH}_{2}$$ and –COOH groups

The effects of histidine and its imidazole ring adsorption on the electronic transport properties of graphene were investigated by first-principles calculations within a combination of density functional theory and non-equilibrium Greens functions. Firstly, we report adsorption energies, adsorption distances, and equilibrium geometrical configurations with no bias voltage applied. Secondly, we model a device for the transport properties study: a central scattering region consisting of a finite graphene sheet with the adsorbed molecule sandwiched between semi-infinite source (left) and drain (right) graphene electrode regions. The electronic density, electrical current, and electronic transmission were calculated as a function of an applied bias voltage. Studying the adsorption of the two systems, i.e., the histidine and its imidazole ring, allowed us to evaluate the importance of including the carboxyl (–COOH) and amine (–\(\hbox {NH}_{2}\)) groups. We found that the histidine and the imidazole ring affects differently the electronic transport through the graphene sheet, posing the possibility of graphene-based sensors with an interesting sensibility and specificity.     

Series and parallel resistance effects on the C–V and G–V characteristics of $$\mathrm{Al}/\mathrm{SiO}_{2}$$/Si structure

This paper investigates the electrical behavior of the C–V and G–V characteristics of \(\mathrm{Al}/\mathrm{SiO}_{2}/\mathrm{Si}\) structure. The modeling of capacitance and conductance has been developed from complex admittance treatment applied to the proposed equivalent circuit. Poisson transport equations have been used to determine the charge density, surface potential, total capacitance, and flatband and threshold voltages as a function of the gate voltage, frequency (\(\omega )\), and series \(({R}_{\mathrm{s}})\) and parallel \(({R}_{\mathrm{p}})\) resistances. Results showed a frequency dispersion of C–V and G–V curves in both accumulation and inversion regimes. With increasing frequency, the accumulation capacitance is decreased, whereas the conductance is strongly increased. The shape, dispersion, and degradation of C–V and G–V characteristics are more influenced when parallel and series resistances \((\mathrm{R}_{\mathrm{s}}\), \(\mathrm{R}_{\mathrm{p}})\) are dependent to substrate doping density. The variation of \(\mathrm{R}_{\mathrm{s}}\) and \(\mathrm{R}_{\mathrm{p}}\) values led to a reduction of flatband voltage from ?1.40 to ?1.26 V and increase of the threshold voltage negatively from ?0.28 to ?0.74 V. A good agreement has been observed between simulated and measured C–V and G–V curves obtained at high frequency.