We investigate the dynamics of coherent optical phonons in tellurium after high-density excitation with femtosecond laser pulses. The data show a continuous redshift of the phonon frequency with increasing excitation density. Experiments with double-pulse excitation prove that the observed frequency shift is of purely electronic origin. We demonstrate that coherent phonons allow monitoring the ...

We report on the first observation of the emission of electromagnetic radiation from coherent lattice vibrations in a semiconductor. Coherent optical phonons are excited by ultrashort laser pulses in singlecrystal tellurium. THz frequency radiation emitted by the Dember-field-driven phonons is detected by time-resolved THz-emission spectroscopy. The measurements are complemented by optical pump...

We present atomistic valence force field calculations of thermal transport in Si nanowires of diameters from 12 nm down to 1 nm. We show that as the diameter is reduced, the phonon density-of-states and transmission function acquire a finite value at low frequency, in contrast to approaching zero as in the bulk material. It turns out that this effect results in what Ziman described as the “prob...

Two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) nanosheets exhibit remarkable electronic and optical properties. The 2D features, sizable bandgaps and recent advances in the synthesis, characterization and device fabrication of the representative MoS2, WS2, WSe2 and MoSe2 TMDs make TMDs very attractive in nanoelectronics and optoelectronics. Similar to graphite and graphene, the atom...

The propagation of a heat pulse in a single crystal and across grain boundaries (GBs) is simulated using a concurrent atomistic-continuum method furnished with a coherent phonon pulse model. With a heat pulse constructed based on a Bose-Einstein distribution of phonons, this work has reproduced the phenomenon of phonon focusing in single and polycrystalline materials. Simulation results provide...

Time dynamics of photoexcited electron-hole pairs is important for a number of technologies, in particular solar cells. We combined ultrafast pump-probe Raman scattering and photoemission to directly follow electron-hole excitations as well as the G-phonon in graphite after an excitation by an intense laser pulse. This phonon is known to couple relatively strongly to electrons. Cross-correlatin...

While the vibrational thermodynamics of materials with small anharmonicity at low temperatures has been understood well based on the harmonic phonons approximation, at high temperatures, this understandingmust accommodate how phonons interact with other phonons or with other excitations. To date the anharmonic lattice dynamics is poorly understood despite its great importance, and most studies ...

The interaction of electrons with anharmonic lattice vibrations is a long-standing problem that is not yet fully understood. What is surprising about this problem is that nearly all real materials are anharmonic ~as can be seen by the fact that they expand or contract upon heating!, but quasiharmonic models ~which replace the anharmonic phonons by harmonic phonons with temperature-dependent pho...

Thermal conductivity in non-metallic crystalline materials results from cumulative contributions of phonons that have a broad range of mean free paths. Here we use high frequency surface temperature modulation that generates non-diffusive phonon transport to probe the phonon mean free path spectra of GaAs, GaN, AlN, and 4H-SiC at temperatures near 80 K, 150 K, 300 K, and 400 K. We find that pho...

Owing to their influence on electrons and phonons, defects can significantly alter electrical conductance, and optical, mechanical and thermal properties of a material. Thus, understanding and control of defects, including dopants in low-dimensional systems, hold great promise for engineered materials and nanoscale devices. Here, we characterize experimentally the effects of a single defect on ...