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In a well-ordered crystalline solid, insulating behaviour can arise from two mechanisms: electrons can either scatter off a periodic potential, thus forming band gaps that can lead to a band insulator, or they localize due to strong interactions, resulting in a Mott insulator. For an even number of electrons per unit cell, either band- or Mott-insulators can theoretically occur. However, unambiguously identifying an unconventional Mott-insulator with an even number of electrons experimentally has remained a longstanding challenge due to the lack of a momentum-resolved fingerprint. This challenge has recently become pressing for the layer dimerized van der Waals compound Nb$_3$Br$_8$, which exhibits a puzzling magnetic field-free diode effect when used as a weak link in Josephson junctions, but has previously been considered to be a band-insulator. In this work, we present a unique momentum-resolved signature of a Mott-insulating phase in the spectral function of Nb$_3$Br$_8$: the top of the highest occupied band along the out-of-plane dimerization direction $k_z$ has a momentum space separation of $\Delta k_z=2\pi/d$, whereas the valence band maximum of a band insulator would be separated by less than $\Delta k_z=\pi/d$, where $d$ is the average spacing between the layers. As the strong electron correlations inherent in Mott insulators can lead to unconventional superconductivity, identifying Nb$_3$Br$_8$ as an unconventional Mott-insulator is crucial for understanding its apparent time-reversal symmetry breaking Josephson diode effect. Moreover, the momentum-resolved signature employed here could be used to detect quantum phase transition between band- and Mott-insulating phases in van der Waals heterostructures, where interlayer interactions and correlations can be easily tuned to drive such transition.

Integrated photodetectors are crucial for their high speed, sensitivity, and efficient power consumption. In these devices, photocurrent generation is primarily attributed to the photovoltaic (PV) effect, driven by electron hole separations, and the photothermoelectric (PTE) effect, which results from temperature gradients via the Seebeck effect. As devices shrink, the overlap of these mechanisms-both dependent on the Fermi level and band structure-complicates their separate evaluation at the nanoscale. This study introduces a novel 3D photocurrent nano-imaging technique specifically designed to distinctly map these mechanisms in a Schottky barrier photodiode featuring a molybdenum disulfide and gold (MoS2 Au) interface. We uncover a significant PTE-dominated region extending several hundred nanometers from the electrode edge, a characteristic facilitated by the weak electrostatic forces typical in 2D materials. Unexpectedly, we find that incorporating hexagonal boron nitride (hBN), known for its high thermal conductivity, markedly enhances the PTE response. This counterintuitive enhancement stems from an optimal overlap between thermal and Seebeck profiles, presenting a new pathway to boost device performance. Our findings highlight the capability of this imaging technique to not only advance optoelectronic applications but also to deepen our understanding of light matter interactions within low-dimensional systems.

The non-trivial magnetic and electronic phases occurring in topological magnets are often entangled, thus leading to a variety of exotic physical properties. Recently, the BaAl$_4$-type compounds have been extensively investigated to elucidate the topological features appearing in their real- and momentum spaces. In particular, the topological Hall effect and the spin textures, typical of the centrosymmetric Eu(Al,Ga)$_4$ family, have stimulated extensive experimental and theoretical research. In this topical review, we discuss the latest findings regarding the Eu(Al,Ga)$_4$ topological antiferromagnets and related materials, arising from a vast array of experimental techniques. We show that Eu(Al,Ga)$_4$ represents a suitable platform to explore the interplay between lattice-, charge-, and spin degrees of freedom, and associated emergent phenomena. Finally, we address some key questions open to future investigation.

Recent reports on the signatures of high-temperature superconductivity with a critical temperature Tc close to 80 K have triggered great research interest and extensive follow-up studies. Although zero-resistance state has been successfully achieved under improved hydrostatic pressure conditions, there is no clear evidence of superconducting diamagnetism in pressurized $\mathrm{La_{3}Ni_{2}O_{7-\delta}}$ due to the low superconducting volume fraction and limited magnetic measurement techniques under high pressure conditions. Here, using shallow nitrogen-vacancy centers implanted on the culet of diamond anvils as in-situ quantum sensors, we observe convincing evidence for the Meissner effect in polycrystalline samples $\mathrm{La_{3}Ni_{2}O_{7-\delta}}$ and $\mathrm{La_{2}PrNi_{2}O_{7}}$: the magnetic field expulsion during both field cooling and field warming processes. The correlated measurements of Raman spectra and NV-based magnetic imaging indicate an incomplete structural transformation related to the displacement of oxygen ions emerging in the non-superconducting region. Furthermore, comparative experiments on different pressure transmitting media (silicone oil and KBr) and nickelates ($\mathrm{La_{3}Ni_{2}O_{7-\delta}}$ and $\mathrm{La_{2}PrNi_{2}O_{7}}$) reveal that an improved hydrostatic pressure conditions and the substitution of La by Pr in $\mathrm{La_{3}Ni_{2}O_{7-\delta}}$ can dramatically increase the superconductivity. Our work clarifies the controversy about the Meissner effect of bilayer nickelate and contributes to a deeper understanding of the mechanism of nickelate high-temperature superconductors.

The Aharonov-Bohm (AB) effect on the thermoelectric properties of three-terminal quantum devices is investigated. Thermodynamic relations among the linear-response coefficients of these devices are derived and interpreted. General expressions are derived using nonequilibrium Green's functions, and applied to calculate the thermoelectric response of a model quantum thermocouple. It is shown that the AB effect can generate a large thermoelectric response in a device with particle-hole symmetry, which nominally has zero Seebeck and Peltier coefficients. In addition to modifying the external electric and thermal currents of the device, the AB effect also induces persistent electric and thermal currents. One might expect that a persistent electric current in a quantum thermocouple, through the Peltier effect, could lead to persistent Peltier cooling, violating the 1st and 2nd Laws of Thermodynamics. However, this apparent paradox is resolved by elucidating the distinction between persistent and dissipative currents in quantum thermoelectrics.

It has recently been theoretically predicted and experimentally observed that a soliton resulting from nonlinearity can be pumped across an integer or fractional number of unit cells as a system parameter is slowly varied over a pump period. Nonlinear Thouless pumping is now understood as the flow of instantaneous Wannier functions, ruling out the possibility of pumping a soliton across a nonzero number of unit cells over one cycle when a corresponding Wannier function does not exhibit any flow, i.e., when the corresponding Bloch band that the soliton bifurcates from is topologically trivial. Here we surprisingly find an anomalous nonlinear Thouless pump where the displacement of a soliton over one cycle is twice the Chern number of the Bloch band from which the soliton bifurcates. We show that the breakdown of the correspondence between the displacement of a soliton and the Chern number arises from the emergence of a new branch of stable soliton solutions mainly consisting of two neighboring instantaneous Wannier functions. Furthermore, we find a nonlinearity-induced integer quantized Thouless pump, allowing a soliton to travel across one unit cell during a pump period, even when the corresponding band is topologically trivial. Our results open the door to studying nonlinearity-induced Thouless pumping of solitons.

The fractional quantum Hall effect is a well-known demonstration of strongly correlated topological phases in two dimensions. However, the extension of this phenomenon into a three-dimensional context has yet to be achieved. Recently, the three-dimensional integer quantum Hall effect based on Weyl orbits has been experimentally observed in a topological semimetallic material under a magnetic field. This motivates us to ask whether the Weyl orbits can give rise to the fractional quantum Hall effect when their Landau level is partially filled in the presence of interactions. Here we theoretically demonstrate that the fractional quantum Hall states based on Weyl orbits can emerge in a Weyl semimetal when a Landau level is one-third filled. Using concrete models for Weyl semimetals in magnetic fields, we project the Coulomb interaction onto a single Landau level from the Weyl orbit and find that the ground state of the many-body Hamiltoian is triply degenerate. We further show that the ground states exhibit the many-body Chern number of $1/3$ and the uniform occupation of electrons in both momentum and real space, implying that they are the fractional quantum Hall states. In contrast to the two-dimensional case, the states are spatially localized on two surfaces hosting Fermi arcs. Additionally, our findings suggest that the excitation properties of these states resemble those of the Laughlin state in two dimensions, as inferred from the particle entanglement spectrum of the ground states.

Fluorite-type $\mathrm{HfO_2}$-based ferroelectric (FE) oxides have rekindled interest in FE memories due to their compatibility with silicon processing and potential for high-density integration. The polarization characteristics of FE devices are governed by the dynamics of metastable domain structure evolution. Insightful design of FE devices for encoding and storage necessitates a comprehensive understanding of the internal structural evolution. Here, we demonstrate the evolution of domain structures through a transient polar orthorhombic (O)-$Pmn2_1$-like configuration via $in$-$situ$ biasing on $\mathrm{TiN/Hf_{0.5}Zr_{0.5}O_2/TiN}$ capacitors within spherical aberration-corrected transmission electron microscope, combined with theoretical calculations. Furthermore, it is directly evidenced that the non-FE O-$Pbca$ transforms into the FE O-$Pca2_1$ phase under electric field, with the polar axis of the FE-phase aligning towards the bias direction through ferroelastic transformation, thereby enhancing FE polarization. As cycling progresses further, however, the polar axis collapses, leading to FE degradation. These novel insights into the intricate structural evolution path under electrical field cycling facilitate optimization and design strategies for $\mathrm{HfO_2}$-based FE memory devices.

We demonstrate the use of [2-($\textit{9H}$-carbazol-9-yl)ethyl]phosphonic acid (2PACz) and [2-(3,6-di-$\textit{tert}$-butyl-$\textit{9H}$-carbazol-9-yl)ethyl]phosphonic acid (t-Bu-2PACz) as anode modification layers in metal-halide perovskite quantum dot light-emitting diodes (QLEDs). Compared to conventional QLED structures with PEDOT:PSS (poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate)/PVK (poly(9-vinylcarbazole)) hole-transport layers, QLEDs made with phosphonic acid (PA)-modified indium tin oxide (ITO) anodes show an over 7-fold increase in brightness, achieving a brightness of 373,000 cd m$^{-2}$, one of the highest brightnesses reported to date for colloidal perovskite QLEDs. Importantly, the onset of efficiency roll-off, or efficiency droop, occurs at ~1000-fold higher current density for QLEDs made with PA-modified anodes compared to control QLEDs made with conventional PEDOT:PSS/PVK hole transport layers, allowing the devices to sustain significantly higher levels of external quantum efficiency at a brightness of >10$^{5}$ cd m$^{-2}$. Steady-state and time-resolved photoluminescence measurements indicate these improvements are due to a combination of multiple factors, including reducing quenching of photoluminescence at the PEDOT:PSS interface and reducing photoluminescence efficiency loss at high levels of current density.

The orthorhombic molybdenum carbide superconductor with $T_c$ = 3.2 K was investigated by muon-spin rotation and relaxation ($\mu$SR) measurements and by first-principle calculations. The low-temperature superfluid density, determined by transverse-field $\mu$SR, suggests a fully-gapped superconducting state in Mo$_2$C, with a zero-temperature gap $\Delta_0$ = 0.44 meV and a magnetic penetration depth $\lambda_0$ = 291 nm. The time-reversal symmetry is preserved in the superconducting state, as confirmed by the absence of an additional muon-spin relaxation in the zero-field $\mu$SR spectra. Band-structure calculations indicate that the density of states at the Fermi level is dominated by the Mo $4d$-orbitals, which are marginally hybridized with the C $2p$-orbitals over a wide energy range. The symmetry analysis confirms that, in the absence of spin-orbit coupling (SOC), Mo$_2$C hosts twofold-degenerate nodal surfaces and fourfold-degenerate nodal lines. When considering SOC, the fourfold-degenerate nodal lines cross the Fermi level and contribute to the electronic properties. Our results suggest that, similarly to other phases of carbides, also the orthorhombic transition-metal carbides host topological nodal states and may be potential candidates for future studies of topological superconductivity.

Nonlinear optical (NLO) effects in materials with band crossings have attracted significant research interests due to the divergent band geometric quantities around these crossings. Most current research has focused on band crossings between the valence and conduction bands. However, such crossings are absent in insulators, which are more relevant for NLO applications. In this work, we demonstrate that NLO effects can be significantly enhanced by band crossings within the valence or conduction bands, which we designate as "deep band crossings" (DBCs). As an example, in two dimensions, we show that shift conductivity can be substantially enhanced or even divergent due to a mirror-protected "deep Dirac nodal point". In three dimensions, we propose GeTe as an ideal material where shift conductivity is enhanced by "deep Dirac nodal lines". The ubiquity of this enhancement is further confirmed by high-throughput calculations. Other types of DBCs and NLO effects are also discussed. By manipulating band crossings between arbitrary bands, our work offers a simple, practical, and universal way to greatly enhance NLO effects.

We conducted a high-throughput search for topological magnetic materials on 522 new, experimentally reported commensurate magnetic structures from MAGNDATA, doubling the number of available materials on the Topological Magnetic Materials database. This brings up to date the previous studies which had become incomplete due to the discovery of new materials. For each material, we performed first-principle electronic calculations and diagnosed the topology as a function of the Hubbard U parameter. Our high-throughput calculation led us to the prediction of 250 experimentally relevant topologically non-trivial materials, which represent 47.89% of the newly analyzed materials. We present five remarkable examples of these materials, each showcasing a different topological phase: Mn${}_2$AlB${}_2$ (BCSID 1.508), which exhibits a nodal line semimetal to topological insulator transition as a function of SOC, CaMnSi (BCSID 0.599), a narrow gap axion insulator, UAsS (BCSID 0.594) a 5f-orbital Weyl semimetal, CsMnF${}_4$ (BCSID 0.327), a material presenting a new type of quasi-symmetry protected closed nodal surface and FeCr${}_2$S${}_4$ (BCSID 0.613), a symmetry-enforced semimetal with double Weyls and spin-polarised surface states.

The melting point of a material constitutes a pivotal property with profound implications across various disciplines of science, engineering, and technology. Recent advancements in machine learning potentials have revolutionized the field, enabling ab initio predictions of materials' melting points through atomic-scale simulations. However, a universal simulation methodology that can be universally applied to any material remains elusive. In this paper, we present a generic, fully automated workflow designed to predict the melting points of materials utilizing molecular dynamics simulations. This workflow incorporates two tailored simulation modalities, each addressing scenarios with and without elemental partitioning between solid and liquid phases. When the compositions of both phases remain unchanged upon melting or solidification, signifying the absence of partitioning, the melting point is identified as the temperature at which these phases coexist in equilibrium. Conversely, in cases where elemental partitioning occurs, our workflow estimates both the nominal melting point, marking the initial transition from solid to liquid, and the nominal solidification point, indicating the reverse process. To ensure precision in determining these critical temperatures, we employ an innovative temperature-volume data fitting technique, suitable for a diverse range of materials exhibiting notable volume disparities between their solid and liquid states. This comprehensive approach offers a robust and versatile solution for predicting melting points, fostering advancements in materials science and technology.

Diverse implicit structures of fluids are discovered lately, providing opportunities to study the physics of fluids applying network analysis. Although considerable works devote to identifying informative network structures of fluids, we have limited understanding about the information these networks convey about fluids. To analyze how fluid mechanics is embodied in network topology or vice versa, we reveal a set of fluid-network relations that quantify the interactions between fundamental fluid properties (e.g., kinetic energy and enstrophy decay laws) and defining network characteristics (e.g., spatial self-similarity, scale-invariance, and control scaling). By analyzing spatial self-similarity in classic and generalized contexts, we first assess the self-similarity of vortical interactions in fluid flows. Deviations from self-similarity in networks exhibit power-law scaling behaviors with respect to fluid properties, suggesting the diversity among vortex as essential to self-similar fluid flows. Then, the same paradigm is adopted to investigate scale-invariance using renormalization groups, which reveals that the breaking extents of scale-invariance in networks, similar to those of spatial self-similarity, also scale with fluid properties in power-law manners. Furthermore, we define a control problem on networks to study the propagation of perturbations through vortical interactions over different ranges. The minimum cost of controlling vortical networks exponentially scales with range diameters (i.e., control distances), whose growth rates experiences temporal decays. We show that this temporal decay speed is fully determined by fluid properties in power-law scaling behaviours. In summary, these fluid-network relations enable a deeper understanding of implicit fluid structures and their interactions with fluid dynamics.

In purely normal elastic rough surface contact problems, Persson's theory of contact shows that the evolution of the probability density function (PDF) of contact pressure with the magnification is governed by a diffusion equation. However, there is no partial differential equation describing the evolution of the PDF of the interfacial gap. In this study, we derive a convection--diffusion equation in terms of the PDF of the interfacial gap based on stochastic process theory, as well as the initial and boundary conditions. A finite difference method is developed to numerically solve the partial differential equation. The predicted PDF of the interfacial gap agrees well with that by Green's Function Molecular Dynamics (GFMD) and other variants of Persson's theory of contact at high load ranges. At low load ranges, the obvious deviation between the present work and GFMD is attributed to the overestimated mean interfacial gap and oversimplified magnification-dependent diffusion coefficient used in the present model. As one of its direct application, we show that the present work can effectively solve the adhesive contact problem under the DMT limit. The current study provides an alternative methodology for determining the PDF of the interfacial gap and a unified framework for solving the complementary problem of random contact pressure and random interfacial gap based on stochastic process theory.

We propose that flat bands and van Hove singularities near the magic angle can be stabilized against angle disorder in the twisted Kane-Mele model. With continuum model and maximally localized Wannier function approaches, we identify a quadratic dispersion relationship between the bandwidth, interaction parameters versus the twist angle, in contrast to twisted bilayer graphene (TBG). Introducing Kane-Mele spin-orbit coupling to TBG greatly reduces the fractional Chern insulator indicator and enhances the stability of fractional Chern states near the magic angle, as confirmed by exact diagonalization calculations. Moreover, in twisted bilayer Pt$_2$HgSe$_3$ with intrinsic Kane-Mele spin-orbit coupling, we identify a topological flat band at a large twist angle around 4 degrees.

Recent discoveries of zero-field fractional Chern insulators in moiré materials have attracted intensive research interests. However, most current theoretical and experimental attempts focus on systems with low Chern number bands, in analogy to the Landau levels. Here we propose candidate material systems for realizing fractional Chern insulators with higher Chern numbers. The material setup involves $\Gamma$-valley twisted homobilayer transition metal dichalcogenides in proximity to a skyrmion lattice. The skyrmion exchange potential induces a flat band with a high Chern number $C = -2$. Using the momentum-space projected exact diagonalization method, we perform a comprehensive study at various filling factors, confirming the generalized Jain series. Our research provides theoretical guidance on realizing unconventional fractional Chern insulators beyond the Landau level picture.

The non-Bloch topology leads to the emergence of various counter-intuitive phenomena in non-Hermitian systems under the open boundary condition (OBC), which can not find a counterpart in Hermitian systems. However, in the non-Hermitian system without chiral symmetry, being ubiquitous in nature, exploring its non-Bloch topology has so far eluded experimental effort. Here by introducing the concept of non-chiral non-Bloch invariants, we theoretically predict and experimentally identify the non-Bloch topological phase diagram of a one-dimensional (1D) non-Hermitian system without chiral symmetry in discrete-time non-unitary quantum walks of single photons. Interestingly, we find that such topological invariants not only can distinguish topologically distinct gapped phases, but also faithfully capture the corresponding gap closing in open-boundary spectrum at the phase boundary. Different topological regions are experimentally identified by measuring the featured discontinuities of the higher moments of the walker's displacement, which amazingly match excellently with our defined non-Bloch invariants. Our work provides a useful platform to study the interplay among topology, symmetries and the non-Hermiticity.

Finding and designing ferromagnets that operate above room temperature is crucial in advancing high-performance spintronic devices. The pioneering van der Waals (vdW) ferromagnet Fe$_3$GaTe$_2$ has extended the way for spintronic applications by achieving a record-high Curie temperature among its analogues. However, the physical mechanism of increasing Cuire temperature still needs to be explored. Here, we propose a practical approach to discovering high-temperature ferromagnetic materials for spintronic applications through flat band engineering. We simulate the magnetic transition directly from strongly correlated calculations, reconciling the dual nature of $d$-electrons with both localization and itinerant characters. Significantly, our systematic studies unveil the emergence of quasi-particle flat bands arising from collective many-body excitations preceding the ferromagnetic phase transition, reinforcing magnetic stability through a positive feedback mechanism. This research provides a promising pathway for exploring next-generation spintronic devices utilizing low-dimensional vdW flat band systems.

Deep learning electronic structures from ab initio calculations holds great potential to revolutionize computational materials studies. While existing methods proved success in deep-learning density functional theory (DFT) Hamiltonian matrices, they are limited to DFT programs using localized atomic-like bases and heavily depend on the form of the bases. Here, we propose the DeepH-r method for deep-learning DFT Hamiltonians in real space, facilitating the prediction of DFT Hamiltonian in a basis-independent manner. An equivariant neural network architecture for modeling the real-space DFT potential is developed, targeting a more fundamental quantity in DFT. The real-space potential exhibits simplified principles of equivariance and enhanced nearsightedness, further boosting the performance of deep learning. When applied to evaluate the Hamiltonian matrix, this method significantly improved in accuracy, as exemplified in multiple case studies. Given the abundance of data in the real-space potential, this work may pave a novel pathway for establishing a ``large materials model" with increased accuracy.

Developing a comprehensive magnetic theory of correlated itinerant magnets is a challenging task due to the difficulty in reconciling both local moments and itinerant electrons. In this work, we investigate the microscopic process of magnetic phase transition in ferromagnet metal Fe$_{3-\delta}$GeTe$_2$. A new paradigm is proposed to describe the magnetic phase transition in correlated metallic ferromagnets, where Hund's coupling dominates the spectral weight transfer between different spin channels, rather than spin-splitting as described by the Stoner model. We recognize that our theory should be universal for itinerant magnets. Additionally, we reveal an efficient way to achieve novel quantum states from various competing orders in multi-site crystal structures. Our research shows that Fe1 are proximate to Mott physics, while Fe2 exhibit Hund physics due to their distinct atomic environments. These competing orders work together to produce heavy fermion behavior within ferromagnetic long-range order through well-defined quasiparticle bands, which are promoted by Hund's coupling and further hybridized with relative itinerant bands. The complex interactions of competing orders drive correlated magnetic metal to a new frontier for discovering outstanding quantum states and exotic phenomena in condensed matter physics.

Thermoelectric materials convert a temperature gradient into a voltage. This phenomenon is relatively well understood for inorganic materials, but much less so for organic semiconductors (OSs). These materials present a challenge because the strong thermal fluctuations of electronic coupling between the molecules result in partially delocalized charge carriers that cannot be treated with traditional theories for thermoelectricity. Here we develop a novel quantum dynamical simulation approach revealing in atomistic detail how the charge carrier wavefunction moves along a temperature gradient in an organic molecular crystal. We find that the wavefunction propagates from hot to cold in agreement with experiment and we obtain a Seebeck coefficient in good agreement with values obtained from experimental measurements that are also reported in this work. Detailed analysis of the dynamics reveals that the directional charge carrier motion is due to the gradient in thermal electronic disorder, more specifically in the spatial gradient of thermal fluctuations of electronic couplings. It causes an increase in the density of thermally accessible electronic states, the delocalization of states and the non-adiabatic coupling between states with decreasing temperature. As a result, the carrier wavefunction transitions with higher probability to a neighbouring electronic state towards the cold side compared to the hot side generating a thermoelectric current. Our dynamical perspective of thermoelectricity suggests that the temperature dependence of electronic disorder plays an important role in determining the magnitude of the Seebeck coefficient in this class of materials, opening new avenues for design of OSs with improved Seebeck coefficients.

The combination of deep learning and ab initio materials calculations is emerging as a trending frontier of materials science research, with deep-learning density functional theory (DFT) electronic structure being particularly promising. In this work, we introduce a neural-network method for modeling the DFT density matrix, a fundamental yet previously unexplored quantity in deep-learning electronic structure. Utilizing an advanced neural network framework that leverages the nearsightedness and equivariance properties of the density matrix, the method demonstrates high accuracy and excellent generalizability in multiple example studies, as well as capability to precisely predict charge density and reproduce other electronic structure properties. Given the pivotal role of the density matrix in DFT as well as other computational methods, the current research introduces a novel approach to the deep-learning study of electronic structure properties, opening up new opportunities for deep-learning enhanced computational materials study.

The $RE$Al(Si,Ge) ($RE$ = rare earth) family, known to break both the inversion- and time-reversal symmetries, represents one of the most suitable platforms for investigating the interplay between correlated-electron phenomena and topologically nontrivial bands. Here, we report on systematic magnetic, transport, and muon-spin rotation and relaxation ($\mu$SR) measurements on (Nd,Sm)AlGe single crystals, which exhibit antiferromagnetic (AFM) transitions at $T_\mathrm{N} = 6.1$ and 5.9 K, respectively. In addition, NdAlGe undergoes also an incommensurate-to-commensurate ferrimagnetic transition at 4.5 K. Weak transverse-field $\mu$SR measurements confirm the AFM transitions, featuring a $\sim$90 % magnetic volume fraction. In both cases, zero-field (ZF) $\mu$SR measurements reveal a more disordered internal field distribution in NdAlGe than in SmAlGe, reflected in a larger transverse muon-spin relaxation rate $\lambda^\mathrm{T}$ at $T \ll T_\mathrm{N}$. This may be due to the complex magnetic structure of NdAlGe, which undergoes a series of metamagnetic transitions in an external magnetic field, while SmAlGe shows only a robust AFM order. In NdAlGe, the topological Hall effect (THE) appears between the first and the second metamagnetic transitions for $H \parallel c$, while it is absent in SmAlGe. Such THE in NdAlGe is most likely attributed to the field-induced topological spin textures. The longitudinal muon-spin relaxation rate $\lambda^\mathrm{L}(T)$, diverges near the AFM order, followed by a clear drop at $T < T_\mathrm{N}$. In the magnetically ordered state, spin fluctuations are significantly stronger in NdAlGe than in SmAlGe. In general, our longitudinal-field $\mu$SR data indicate vigorous spin fluctuations in NdAlGe, thus providing valuable insights into the origin of THE and of the possible topological spin textures in $RE$Al(Si,Ge) Weyl semimetals.

Realizing large materials models has emerged as a critical endeavor for materials research in the new era of artificial intelligence, but how to achieve this fantastic and challenging objective remains elusive. Here, we propose a feasible pathway to address this paramount pursuit by developing universal materials models of deep-learning density functional theory Hamiltonian (DeepH), enabling computational modeling of the complicated structure-property relationship of materials in general. By constructing a large materials database and substantially improving the DeepH method, we obtain a universal materials model of DeepH capable of handling diverse elemental compositions and material structures, achieving remarkable accuracy in predicting material properties. We further showcase a promising application of fine-tuning universal materials models for enhancing specific materials models. This work not only demonstrates the concept of DeepH's universal materials model but also lays the groundwork for developing large materials models, opening up significant opportunities for advancing artificial intelligence-driven materials discovery.

The study of exciton-polarons has offered profound insights into the many-body interactions between bosonic excitations and their immersed Fermi sea within layered heterostructures. However, little is known about the properties of exciton polarons with interlayer interactions. Here through magneto-optical reflectance contrast measurements, we experimentally investigate interlayer Fermi polarons for 2s excitons in WSe$_2$/graphene heterostructures, where the excited exciton states (2s) in the WSe$_2$ layer are dressed by free charge carriers of the adjacent graphene layer in the Landau quantization regime. First, such a system enables an optical detection of integer and fractional quantum Hall states (e.g. $\nu=\pm1/3$, $\pm$2/3) of monolayer graphene. Furthermore, we observe that the 2s state evolves into two distinct branches, denoted as attractive and repulsive polarons, when graphene is doped out of the incompressible quantum Hall gaps. Our work paves the way for the understanding of the excited composite quasiparticles and Bose-Fermi mixtures.

Moiré superlattice designed in stacked van der Waals material provides a dynamic platform for hosting exotic and emergent condensed matter phenomena. However, the relevance of strong correlation effects and the large size of moiré unit cells pose significant challenges for traditional computational techniques. To overcome these challenges, we develop an unsupervised deep learning approach to uncover electronic phases emerging from moiré systems based on variational optimization of neural network many-body wavefunction. Our approach has identified diverse quantum states, including novel phases such as generalized Wigner crystals, Wigner molecular crystals, and previously unreported Wigner covalent crystals. These discoveries provide insights into recent experimental studies and suggest new phases for future exploration. They also highlight the crucial role of spin polarization in determining Wigner phases. More importantly, our proposed deep learning approach is proven general and efficient, offering a powerful framework for studying moiré physics.

Chern insulators are topologically non-trivial states of matter characterized by incompressible bulk and chiral edge states. Incorporating topological Chern bands with strong electronic correlations provides a versatile playground for studying emergent quantum phenomena. In this study, we resolve the correlated Chern insulators (CCIs) in magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene (MATBG) through Rydberg exciton sensing spectroscopy, and unveil their direct link with the zero-field cascade features in the electronic compressibility. The compressibility minima in the cascade are found to deviate substantially from nearby integer fillings (by $\Delta\nu$) and coincide with the onsets of CCIs in doping densities, yielding a quasi-universal relation $B_c$=$\Phi_0\Delta\nu/C$ (onset magnetic field $B_c$, magnetic flux quantum $\Phi_0$ and Chern number $C$). We suggest these onsets lie on the intersection where the integer filling of localized "f-orbitals" and Chern bands are simultaneously reached. Our findings update the field-dependent phase diagram of MATBG and directly support the topological heavy fermion model.

Lead-free halide double perovskites provide a promising solution for the long-standing issues of lead-containing halide perovskites, i.e., the toxicity of Pb and the low stability under ambient conditions and high-intensity illumination. Their light-to-electricity or thermal-to-electricity conversion is strongly determined by the dynamics of the corresponding lattice vibrations. Here, we present the measurement of lattice dynamics in a prototypical lead-free halide double perovskite, i.e., Cs2NaInCl6. Our quantitative measurements and first-principles calculations show that the scatterings among lattice vibrations at room temperature are at the timescale of ~ 1 ps, which stems from the extraordinarily strong anharmonicity in Cs2NaInCl6. We further quantitatively characterize the degree of anharmonicity of all the ions in the single Cs2NaInCl6 crystal, and demonstrate that this strong anharmonicity is synergistically contributed by the bond hierarchy, the tilting of the NaCl6 and InCl6 octahedral units, and the rattling of Cs+ ions. Consequently, the crystalline Cs2NaInCl6 possesses an ultralow thermal conductivity of ~0.43 W/mK at room temperature, and a weak temperature dependence of T-0.41. Our findings here uncovered the underlying mechanisms behind the dynamics of lattice vibrations in double perovskites, which could largely benefit the design of optoelectronics and thermoelectrics based on halide double perovskites.

Topologically trivial insulators can be classified into atomic insulators (AIs) and obstructed atomic insulators (OAIs) depending on whether the Wannier charge centers are localized or not at spatial positions occupied by atoms. An OAI can possess unusual properties such as surface states along certain crystalline surfaces, which advantageously appear in materials with much larger bulk energy gap than topological insulators, making them more attractive for potential applications. In this work, we show that a well-known crystal, silicon (Si) is a model OAI, which naturally explains some of Si's unusual properties such as its famous (111) surface states. On this surface, using angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), we reveal sharp quasi-1D massive Dirac line dispersions; we also observe, using scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy (STM/STS), topological solitons at the interface of the two atomic chains. Remarkably, we show that the different chain domains can be reversibly switched at the nanometer scale, suggesting the application potential in ultra-high density storage devices.

We consider a prototypical problem of Bayesian inference for a structured spiked model: a low-rank signal is corrupted by additive noise. While both information-theoretic and algorithmic limits are well understood when the noise is a Gaussian Wigner matrix, the more realistic case of structured noise still proves to be challenging. To capture the structure while maintaining mathematical tractability, a line of work has focused on rotationally invariant noise. However, existing studies either provide sub-optimal algorithms or are limited to special cases of noise ensembles. In this paper, using tools from statistical physics (replica method) and random matrix theory (generalized spherical integrals) we establish the first characterization of the information-theoretic limits for a noise matrix drawn from a general trace ensemble. Remarkably, our analysis unveils the asymptotic equivalence between the rotationally invariant model and a surrogate Gaussian one. Finally, we show how to saturate the predicted statistical limits using an efficient algorithm inspired by the theory of adaptive Thouless-Anderson-Palmer (TAP) equations.

Magnetic metals with geometric frustration offer a fertile ground for studying novel states of matter with strong quantum fluctuations and unique electromagnetic responses from conduction electrons coupled to spin textures. Recently, TbTi$_3$Bi$_4$ has emerged as such an intriguing platform as it behaves as a quasi-one-dimension (quasi-1D) Ising magnet with antiferromagnetic orderings at 20.4 K and 3 K, respectively. Magnetic fields along the Tb zigzag-chain direction reveal plateaus at 1/3 and 2/3 of saturated magnetization, respectively. At metamagnetic transition boundaries, a record-high anomalous Hall conductivity of 6.2 $\times$ 10$^5$ $\Omega^{-1}$ cm$^{-1}$ is observed. Within the plateau, noncollinear magnetic texture is suggested. In addition to the characteristic Kagome 2D electronic structure, ARPES unequivocally demonstrates quasi-1D electronic structure from the Tb 5$d$ bands and a quasi-1D hybridization gap in the magnetic state due to band folding with $q$ = (1/3, 0, 0) possibly from the spin-density-wave order along the Tb chain. These findings emphasize the crucial role of mixed dimensionality and the strong coupling between magnetic texture and electronic band structure in regulating physical properties of materials, offering new strategies for designing materials for future spintronics applications.

While all of the polymorphs of pure NH$_4$I and KI are non-polar, we identify that (NH$_4$)$_{0.95}$K$_{0.05}$I is ferroelectric and (NH$_4$)$_{0.87}$K$_{0.13}$I and (NH$_4$)$_{0.83}$K$_{0.17}$I are pyroelectric through measurements of their pyroelectric current and complex dielectric constant. The order to disorder phase transitions occur near 245 K. Magnetic susceptibility measurements indicate that the proton orbitals of the NH$_4$$^+$ continue to become ordered in the ground state in the (NH$_4$)$_{1-x}$K$_x$I system up to x <= 0.17. The polar phases are proposed to stem from K$^+$ ions disrupting the symmetry of proton-orbital-lattice interactions between the NH$_4$$^+$ and I$^-$ ions. Our work introduces a new pathway for the ordered phases of ammonium-based compounds to potentially become ferroelectric.

While all of the polymorphs of NH$_4$I and NH$_4$Br are non-polar, a reversible electric polarization is established in the ordered $\gamma$ phases of (NH$_4$)$_{0.73}$(ND$_4$)$_{0.27}$I and (NH$_4$)$_{0.84}$(ND$_4$)$_{0.16}$Br (where D is $^2$H) via $dc$ electric fields. The presence of two groups of orbital magnetic moments appears to be responsible for the asymmetric lattice distortions. Our findings provide an alternative pathway for hydrogen-based materials to potentially add a ferroelectric functionality.

Recently, a new kind of collinear magnetism, dubbed altermagnetism, has attracted considerable interests. A key characteristic of altermagnet is the momentum-dependent band and spin splitting without net magnetization. However, finding altermagnetic materials with large splitting near the Fermi level, which necessarily requires three-dimensional k-space mapping and is crucial for spintronic applications and emergent phenomena, remains challenging. Here by employing synchrotron-based angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), spin-resolved ARPES and model calculations, we uncover a large altermagnetic splitting, up to ~1.0 eV, near the Fermi level in CrSb. We verify its bulk-type g-wave altermagnetism through systematic three-dimensional k-space mapping, which unambiguously reveals the altermagnetic symmetry and associated nodal planes. The ARPES results are well captured by density functional theory calculations. Spin-resolved ARPES measurements further verify the spin polarizations of the split bands near Fermi level. In addition, tight-binding model analysis indicates that the large altermagnetic splitting arises from strong third-nearest-neighbor hopping mediated by Sb ions, which breaks both the space-time reversal symmetry and the translational spin-rotation symmetry. The large band/spin splitting near Fermi level in metallic CrSb, together with its high TN (up to 705 K) and simple spin configuration, paves the way for exploring emergent phenomena and spintronic applications based on altermagnets.

Recent experimental discovery of fractional Chern insulator in moiré Chern band in twisted transition metal dichalocogenide homobilayers has sparked intensive interest in exploring the ways of engineering band topology and correlated states in moiré systems. In this letter, we demonstrate that, with an additional exchange interaction induced by proximity effect, the topology and bandwidth of the moiré minibands of twisted $\mathrm{MoTe_2}$ homobilayers can be easily tuned. Fractional Chern insulators at -2/3 filling are found to appear at enlarged twist angles over a large range of twist angles with enhanced many-body gaps. We further discover a topological phase transition between the fractional Chern insulator, quantum anomalous Hall crystal, and charge density wave. Our results shed light on the interplay between topology and correlation physics.

The combination of deep learning algorithm and materials science has made significant progress in predicting novel materials and understanding various behaviours of materials. Here, we introduced a new model called as the Crystal Transformer Graph Neural Network (CTGNN), which combines the advantages of Transformer model and graph neural networks to address the complexity of structure-properties relation of material data. Compared to the state-of-the-art models, CTGNN incorporates the graph network structure for capturing local atomic interactions and the dual-Transformer structures to model intra-crystal and inter-atomic relationships comprehensively. The benchmark carried on by the proposed CTGNN indicates that CTGNN significantly outperforms existing models like CGCNN and MEGNET in the prediction of formation energy and bandgap properties. Our work highlights the potential of CTGNN to enhance the performance of properties prediction and accelerates the discovery of new materials, particularly for perovskite materials.

In this study, we investigate the dynamics of tunable spin-orbit-coupled spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates confined within a harmonic trap, focusing on rapid transport, spin manipulation, and splitting dynamics. Using shortcuts to adiabaticity, we design time-dependent trap trajectories and spin-orbit-coupling strength to facilitate fast transport with simultaneous spin flip. Additionally, we showcase the creation of spin-dependent coherent states via engineering the spin-orbit-coupling strength. To deepen our understanding, we elucidate non-adiabatic transport and associated spin dynamics, contrasting them with simple scenarios characterized by constant spin-orbit coupling and trap velocity. Furthermore, we discuss the transverse Zeeman potential and nonlinear effect induced by interatomic interactions using the Gross-Pitaevskii equation, highlighting the stability and feasibility of the proposed protocols for the state-of-the-art experiments with cold atoms.

The $\beta$ and $\gamma$ phases of methylammonium chloride CH$_3$NH$_3$Cl and methylammonium bromide CH$_3$NH$_3$Br are identified to be ferroelectric $via$ pyroelectric current and dielectric constant measurements. The magnetic susceptibility also exhibits pronounced discontinuities at the Curie temperatures. We attribute the origin of spontaneous polarization to the emergence of two groups of proton orbital magnetic moments from the uncorrelated motion of the CH$_3$ and NH$_3$ groups in the $\beta$ and $\gamma$ phases. The two inequivalent frameworks of intermolecular orbital resonances interact with each other to distort the lattice in a non-centrosymmetric fashion. Our findings indicate that the structural instabilities in molecular frameworks are magnetic in origin as well as provide a new pathway toward uncovering new organic ferroelectrics.

Colloidal building blocks with re-configurable shapes and dynamic interactions can exhibit unusual self-assembly behaviors and pathways. In this work, we consider the phase behavior of colloids coated with surface-mobile polymer brushes that behave as "dynamic surfactants." Unlike traditional polymer-grafted colloids, we show that colloids coated with dynamic surfactants can acquire anisotropic macroscopic assemblies, even for spherical colloids with isotropic attractive interactions. We use Brownian Dynamics simulations and dynamic density functional theory (DDFT) to demonstrate that time-dependent reorganization of the dynamic surfactants leads to phase diagrams with anisotropic assemblies. We observed that the microscopic polymer distributions impose unique geometric constraints between colloids that control their packing into lamellar, string, and vesicle phases. Our work may help discover versatile building blocks and provide extensive design freedom for assembly out of thermodynamic equilibrium.

The microscopic origin of the remarkable optoelectronic properties of one of the most studied contemporary materials remains unclear. Here, we identify the existence of magnetic interactions between intermolecular proton orbitals in CH$_3$NH$_3$PbI$_3$ and CH$_3$NH$_3$PbBr$_3$. In particular, a unique sharp drop and a pronounced step-up discontinuity in the magnetic susceptibility at the tetragonal-to-cubic phase transitions are identified in CH$_3$NH$_3$PbI$_3$ and CH$_3$NH$_3$PbBr$_3$, respectively. The magnetic interactions in the orthorhombic and tetragonal phases are dependent on thermal history and lattice orientation while nearly independent of the applied external magnetic field. In CH$_3$NH$_3$PbBr$_3$, the CH$_3$ and NH$_3$$^+$ components reorient in an uncorrelated fashion resulting the cubic phase to also exhibit magnetic anisotropy. Our findings provide a potential link connecting the highly light-absorbing CH$_3$NH$_3$$^+$ and the exceptional properties of the charge carriers of the inorganic framework in hybrid perovskite solar cells.

We propose how to achieve nonreciprocal quantum phase transition in a spinning microwave magnonic system composed of a spinning microwave resonator coupled with an yttrium iron garnet sphere with magnon Kerr effect. Sagnac-Fizeau shift caused by the spinning of the resonator brings about a significant modification in the critical driving strengths for second- and one-order quantum phase transitions, which means that the highly controllable quantum phase can be realized by the spinning speed of the resonator. More importantly, based on the difference in the detunings of the counterclockwise and clockwise modes induced by spinning direction of the resonator, the phase transition in this system is nonreciprocal, that is, the quantum phase transition occurs when the system is driven in one direction but not the other. Our work offers an alternative path to engineer and design nonreciprocal magnonic devices.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials are promising candidates for spintronic applications. Maintaining their atomically smooth interfaces during integration of ferromagnetic (FM) electrodes is crucial since conventional metal deposition tends to induce defects at the interfaces. Meanwhile, the difficulties in picking up FM metals with strong adhesion and in achieving conductance match between FM electrodes and spin transport channels make it challenging to fabricate high-quality 2D spintronic devices using metal transfer techniques. Here, we report a solvent-free magnetic electrode transfer technique that employs a graphene layer to assist in the transfer of FM metals. It also serves as part of the FM electrode after transfer for optimizing spin injection, which enables the realization of spin valves with excellent performance based on various 2D materials. In addition to two-terminal devices, we demonstrate that the technique is applicable for four-terminal spin valves with nonlocal geometry. Our results provide a promising future of realizing 2D spintronic applications using the developed magnetic electrode transfer technique.

Non-reciprocal devices are key components in modern electronics covering broad applications ranging from transistors to logic circuits thanks to the output rectified signal in the direction parallel to the input. In this work, we propose a transverse Cooper-pair rectifier in which a non-reciprocal current is perpendicular to the driving field, when inversion, time reversal, and mirror symmetries are broken simultaneously. The Blonder-Tinkham-Klapwijk formalism is developed to describe the transverse current-voltage relation in a normal-metal/superconductor tunneling junction, where symmetry constraints are achieved by an effective built-in supercurrent manifesting in an asymmetric and anisotropic Andreev reflection. The asymmetry in the Andreev reflection is induced when inversion and time reversal symmetry are broken by the supercurrent component parallel to the junction while the anisotropy occurs when the mirror symmetry with respect to the normal of the junction interface is broken by the perpendicular supercurrent component to the junction. Compared to the conventional longitudinal one, the transverse rectifier supports fully polarized diode efficiency and colossal nonreciprocal conductance rectification, completely decoupling the path of the input excitation from the output rectified signal. This work provides a formalism for realizing transverse non-reciprocity in superconducting junctions, which is expected to be achieved by modifying current experimental setups and may pave the way for future low-dissipation superconducting electronics.

Motivated by the recent experimental study on a quantum Ising magnet $\text{K}_2\text{Co}(\text{SeO}_3)_2$ where spectroscopic evidence of zero-field supersolidity was presented [arXiv: 2402.15869], we simulate the excitation spectrum of the corresponding microscopic $XXZ$ model for the compound, using the recently developed excitation ansatz of infinite projected entangled-pair states (iPEPS). We map out the ground state phase diagram and compute the dynamical spin structure factors across a range of magnetic field strengths, focusing especially on the two supersolid phases found near zero and saturation fields. Our simulated excitation spectra for the zero-field supersolid "Y" phase are in excellent agreement with the experimental data - recovering the low-energy branches and integer quantized excited energy levels $\omega_n=nJ_{zz}$. Furthermore, we demonstrate the nonlocal multi-spin-flip features for modes at $\omega_2$, indicative of their multi-magnon nature. Additionally, we identify characteristics of the high-field supersolid "$\Psi$" phase in the simulated spectra, to be compared with future experimental results.

The interplay of topological band structures and electronic correlations may lead to novel exotic quantum phenomena with potential applications. First-principles calculations are critical for guiding the experimental discoveries and interpretations, but often fail if electronic correlations cannot be properly treated. Here we show that this issue occurs also in the antiferromagnetic kagome lattice Mn$_3X$ ($X=$ Sn, Ge), which exhibit a large anomalous Hall effect due to topological band structures with Weyl nodes near the Fermi energy. Our systematic investigations reveal a crucial role of the Hund's rule coupling on three key aspects of their magnetic, electronic, and topological properties: (1) the establishment of noncollinear antiferromagnetic orders, (2) the weakly renormalized bands in excellent agreement with ARPES, and (3) a sensitive tuning of the Weyl nodes beyond previous expectations. Our work provides a basis for understanding the topological properties of Mn$_3X$ and challenges previous experimental interpretations based on incorrect band structures.

Spin-orbit torque (SOT) in the heavy elements with a large spin-orbit coupling (SOC) has been frequently used to manipulate the magnetic states in spintronic devices. Recent theoretical works have predicted that the surface oxidized light elements with a negligible SOC can yield a sizable orbital torque (OT), which plays an important role in switching the magnetization. Here, we report anomalous-Hall-resistance and harmonic-Hall-voltage measurements on perpendicularly magnetized Ta/Cu/[Ni/Co]$_5$/Cu-CuO$_x$ multilayers. Both torque efficiency and spin-Hall angle of these multilayers are largely enhanced by introducing a naturally oxidized Cu-CuO$_x$ layer, where the SOC is negligible. Such an enhancement is mainly due to the collaborative driven of the SOT from the Ta layer and the OT from the Cu/CuO$_x$ interface, and can be tuned by controlling the thickness of Cu-CuO$_x$ layer. Compared to the Cu-CuO$_x$-free multilayers, the maximum torque efficiency and spin-Hall angle were enhanced by a factor of ten, larger than most of the reported values in the other heterostructures.

Tuning thermal transport in nanostructures is essential for many applications, such as thermal management and thermoelectrics. Nanophononic metamaterials (NPM) have shown great potential for reducing thermal conductivity by introducing local resonant hybridization. In this work, the thermal conductivity of NPM with crystalline Si (c-Si) pillar, crystalline Ge (c-Ge) pillar and amorphous Si (a-Si) pillar are systematically investigated by molecular dynamics method. The analyses of phonon dispersion and spectral energy density show that phonon dispersions of Si membrane are flattened due to local resonant hybridization induced by both crystalline and amorphous pillar. In addition, a-Si pillar can cause larger reduction of thermal conductivity compared with c-Si pillar. Specifically, when increasing the atomic mass of atoms in pillars, the thermal conductivity of NPMs with crystalline pillar is increased because of the weakened phonon hybridization, however, the thermal conductivity of NPMs with amorphous pillar is almost unchanged, which indicates that the phonon transports are mainly affected by the scatterings at the interface between amorphous pillar and Si membrane. The results of this work can provide meaningful insights on controlling thermal transport in NPMs by choosing the materials and atomic mass of pillars for specific applications.

Moiré-twisted materials have garnered significant research interest due to their distinctive properties and intriguing physics. However, conducting first-principles studies on such materials faces challenges, notably the formidable computational cost associated with simulating ultra-large twisted structures. This obstacle impedes the construction of a twisted materials database crucial for datadriven materials discovery. Here, by using high-throughput calculations and state-of-the-art neural network methods, we construct a Deep-learning Database of density functional theory (DFT) Hamiltonians for Twisted materials named DDHT. The DDHT database comprises trained neural-network models of over a hundred homo-bilayer and hetero-bilayer moiré-twisted materials. These models enable accurate prediction of the DFT Hamiltonian for these materials across arbitrary twist angles, with an averaged mean absolute error of approximately 1.0 meV or lower. The database facilitates the exploration of flat bands and correlated materials platforms within ultra-large twisted structures.

The interplay of polarization and magnetism in materials with light can create rich nonlinear magneto-optical (NLMO) effects, and the recent discovery of two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals magnets provides remarkable control over NLMO effects due to their superb tunability. Here, based on first-principles calculations, we reported giant NLMO effects in CrI3-based 2D magnets, including a dramatic change of second-harmonics generation (SHG) polarization direction (90 degrees) and intensity (on/off switch) under magnetization reversal, and a 100% SHG circular dichroism effect. We further revealed that these effects could not only be used to design ultra-thin multifunctional optical devices, but also to detect subtle magnetic orderings. Remarkably, we analytically derived conditions to achieve giant NLMO effects and propose general strategies to realize them in 2D magnets. Our work not only uncovers a series of intriguing NLMO phenomena, but also paves the way for both fundamental research and device applications of ultra-thin NLMO materials.

Low-dimensional photoconductors have extraordinarily high photoresponse and gain, which can be modulated by gate voltages as shown in literature. However, the physics of gate modulation remains elusive. In this work, we investigated the physics of gate modulation in silicon nanowire photoconductors with the analytical photoresponse equations. It was found that the impact of gate voltage varies vastly for nanowires with different size. For the wide nanowires that cannot be pinched off by high gate voltage, we found that the photoresponses are enhanced by at least one order of magnitude due to the gate-induced electric passivation. For narrow nanowires that starts with a pinched-off channel, the gate voltage has no electric passivation effect but increases the potential barrier between source and drain, resulting in a decrease in dark and photo current. For the nanowires with an intermediate size, the channel is continuous but can be pinched off by a high gate voltage. The photoresponsivity and photodetectivity is maximized during the transition from the continuous channel to the pinched-off one. This work provides important insights on how to design high-performance photoconductors.

Electrical-controllable antiferromagnet tunnel junction is a key goal in spintronics, holding immense promise for ultra-dense and ultra-stable antiferromagnetic memory with high processing speed for modern information technology. Here, we have advanced towards this goal by achieving an electrical-controllable antiferromagnet-based tunnel junction of Pt/Co/Pt/Co/IrMn/MgO/Pt. The exchange coupling between antiferromagnetic IrMn and Co/Pt perpendicular magnetic multilayers results in the formation of interfacial exchange bias and exchange spring in IrMn. Encoding information states 0 and 1 is realized through the exchange spring in IrMn, which can be electrically written by spin-orbit torque switching with high cyclability and electrically read by antiferromagnetic tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistance. Combining spin-orbit torque switching of both exchange spring andexchange bias, 16 Boolean logic operation is successfully demonstrated. With both memory and logic functionalities integrated into our electrical-controllable antiferromagnetic-based tunnel junction, we chart the course toward high-performance antiferromagnetic logic-in-memory.

Co-based materials have recently been explored due to potential to realise complex bond-dependent anisotropic magnetism. Prominent examples include Na$_2$Co$_2$TeO$_6$, BaCo$_2$(AsO$_4$)$_2$, Na$_2$BaCo(PO$_4$)$_2$, and CoX$_2$ (X = Cl, Br, I). In order to provide insight into the magnetic interactions in these compounds, we make a comparative analysis of their local crystal electric field excitations spectra via Raman scattering measurements. Combining these measurements with theoretical analysis confirms the validity of $j_{\rm eff} = 1/2$ single-ion ground states for all compounds, and provides accurate experimental estimates of the local crystal distortions, which play a prominent role in the magnetic couplings between spin-orbital coupled Co moments.

Deep-learning density functional theory (DFT) shows great promise to significantly accelerate material discovery and potentially revolutionize materials research. However, current research in this field primarily relies on data-driven supervised learning, making the developments of neural networks and DFT isolated from each other. In this work, we present a theoretical framework of neural-network DFT, which unifies the optimization of neural networks with the variational computation of DFT, enabling physics-informed unsupervised learning. Moreover, we develop a differential DFT code incorporated with deep-learning DFT Hamiltonian, and introduce algorithms of automatic differentiation and backpropagation into DFT, demonstrating the capability of neural-network DFT. The physics-informed neural-network architecture not only surpasses conventional approaches in accuracy and efficiency, but also offers a new paradigm for developing deep-learning DFT methods.

Polymer microgels exhibit intriguing macroscopic flow properties arising from their unique microscopic structure. Microgel colloids comprise a crosslinked polymer network with a radially decaying density profile, resulting in a dense core surrounded by a fuzzy corona. Notably, microgels synthesized from poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) are thermoresponsive, capable of adjusting their size and density profile based on temperature. Above the lower critical solution temperature ($T_\text{LCST}\sim 33$ $^\circ$C), the microgel's polymer network collapses, leading to the expulsion of water through a reversible process. Conversely, below $33$ $^\circ$C, the microgel's network swells, becoming highly compressible and allowing overpacking to effective volume fractions exceeding one. Under conditions of dense packing, microgels undergo deformation in distinct stages: corona compression and faceting, interpenetration, and finally, isotropic compression. Each stage exhibits a characteristic signature in the yield stress and elastic modulus of the dense microgel suspensions. Here, we introduce a model for the linear elastic shear modulus through the minimization of a quasi-equilibrium free energy, encompassing all relevant energetic contributions. We validate our model by comparing its predictions to experimental results from oscillatory shear rheology tests on microgel suspensions at different densities and temperatures. Our findings demonstrate that combining macroscopic rheological measurements with the model allows for temperature-dependent characterization of polymer interaction parameters.

Cubic gauche nitrogen (cg-N) has received wide attention due to its high energy density and environmental friendliness. However, existing synthesis methods for cg-N predominantly rely on the high-pressure techniques, or the utilization of nanoconfined effects using highly toxic and sensitive sodium azide as precursor, which significantly restrict the practical application of cg-N as high energy density materials (HDEM). Here, based on the first-principles simulations, we find that the adsorption of potassium on the cg-N surface exhibits superior stabilization compared to sodium. Then, we chose the safer potassium azide as raw material for synthesizing cg-N. Through plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition treatment, the free-standing cg-N was successfully synthesized without the need of high-pressure and nanoconfined effects. Importantly, it demonstrates excellent thermal stability up to 760 K, and then a rapid and intense thermal decomposition occurs, exhibiting typical behaviors of HDEM thermal decomposition. Our work has significantly promoted the practical application of cg-N as HDEM.

We theoretically investigated the coupling between the exciton internal and center-of-mass motions in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides subjected to a periodic electrostatic potential. The coupling leads to the emergence of multiple absorption peaks in the exciton spectrum which are the hybridizations of 1s, 2s and 2p$\pm$ Rydberg states with different center-of-mass momentums. The energies and wave functions of hybrid states can be strongly modulated by varying the profile of the periodic electrostatic potential, which well reproduces the recent experimental observations. Combined with the electron-hole exchange interaction, non-degenerate valley-coherent bright excitons can be realized by applying an in-plane electric field, with the valley coherence determined by the field direction.

Orbitronics devices operate by manipulating orbitally-polarized currents. Recent studies have shown that these orbital currents can be excited by femtosecond laser pulses in ferromagnet as Ni and converted into ultrafast charge current via orbital-to-charge conversion. However, the terahertz emission from orbitronic terahertz emitter based on Ni is still much weaker than the typical spintronic terahertz emitter. Here, we report more efficient light-induced generation of orbital current from CoPt alloy and the orbitronic terahertz emission by CoPt/Cu/MgO shows terahertz radiation comparable to that of efficient spintronic terahertz emitters. By varying the concentration of CoPt alloy, the thickness of Cu, and the capping layer, we confirm that THz emission primarily originates from the orbital accumulation generated within CoPt, propagating through Cu and followed by the subsequent orbital-to-charge conversion from the inverse orbital Rashba-Edelstein effect at the Cu/MgO interface. This study provides strong evidence for the very efficient orbital current generation in CoPt alloy, paving the way to efficient orbital terahertz emitters.

Topological and valleytronic materials are promising for spintronic and quantum applications due to their unique properties. Using first principles calculations, we demonstrate that germanene (Ge)-based ferromagnetic heterostructures can exhibit multiple quantum states such as quantum anomalous Hall effect (QAHE) with Chern numbers of C=-1 or C=-2, quantum valley Hall effect (QVHE) with a valley Chern number of C$v$=2, valley-polarized quantum anomalous Hall effect (VP-QAHE) with two Chern numbers of C=-1 and C$v$=-1 as well as time-reversal symmetry broken quantum spin Hall effect (T-broken QSHE) with a spin Chern number of C$s$~1. Furthermore, we find that the transitions between different quantum states can occur by changing the magnetic orientation of ferromagnetic layers through applying a magnetic field. Our discovery provides new routes and novel material platforms with a unique combination of diverse properties that make it well suitable for applications in electronics, spintronics and valley electronics.

Neural network force fields have significantly advanced ab initio atomistic simulations across diverse fields. However, their application in the realm of magnetic materials is still in its early stage due to challenges posed by the subtle magnetic energy landscape and the difficulty of obtaining training data. Here we introduce a data-efficient neural network architecture to represent density functional theory total energy, atomic forces, and magnetic forces as functions of atomic and magnetic structures. Our approach incorporates the principle of equivariance under the three-dimensional Euclidean group into the neural network model. Through systematic experiments on various systems, including monolayer magnets, curved nanotube magnets, and moiré-twisted bilayer magnets of $\text{CrI}_{3}$, we showcase the method's high efficiency and accuracy, as well as exceptional generalization ability. The work creates opportunities for exploring magnetic phenomena in large-scale materials systems.

Calculating perturbation response properties of materials from first principles provides a vital link between theory and experiment, but is bottlenecked by the high computational cost. Here a general framework is proposed to perform density functional perturbation theory (DFPT) calculations by neural networks, greatly improving the computational efficiency. Automatic differentiation is applied on neural networks, facilitating accurate computation of derivatives. High efficiency and good accuracy of the approach are demonstrated by studying electron-phonon coupling and related physical quantities. This work brings deep-learning density functional theory and DFPT into a unified framework, creating opportunities for developing ab initio artificial intelligence.

Deep-learning electronic structure calculations show great potential for revolutionizing the landscape of computational materials research. However, current neural-network architectures are not deemed suitable for widespread general-purpose application. Here we introduce a framework of equivariant local-coordinate transformer, designed to enhance the deep-learning density functional theory Hamiltonian referred to as DeepH-2. Unlike previous models such as DeepH and DeepH-E3, DeepH-2 seamlessly integrates the simplicity of local-coordinate transformations and the mathematical elegance of equivariant neural networks, effectively overcoming their respective disadvantages. Based on our comprehensive experiments, DeepH-2 demonstrates superiority over its predecessors in both efficiency and accuracy, showcasing state-of-the-art performance. This advancement opens up opportunities for exploring universal neural network models or even large materials models.

The origin of anomalous resistivity peak and accompanied sign reversal of Hall resistivity of ZrTe$_5$ has been under debate for a long time. Although various theoretical models have been proposed to account for these intriguing transport properties, a systematic study from first principles view is still lacking. In this work, we present a first principles calculation combined with Boltzmann transport theory to investigate the transport properties in narrow-gap semiconductors at different temperatures and doping densities within the relaxation time approximation. Regarding the sensitive temperature-dependent chemical potential and relaxation time of semiconductors, we take proper approximation to simulate these two variables, and then comprehensively study the transport properties of ZrTe$_5$ both in the absence and presence of an applied magnetic field. Without introducing topological phases and correlation interactions, we qualitatively reproduced crucial features observed in experiments, including zero-field resistivity anomaly, nonlinear Hall resistivity with sign reversal, and non-saturating magnetoresistance at high temperatures. Our calculation allows a systematic interpretation of the observed properties in terms of multi-carrier and Fermi surface geometry. Our method can be extended to other narrow-gap semiconductors and further pave the way to explore interesting and novel transport properties of this field.

Criticality and symmetry, studied by the renormalization groups, lie at the heart of modern physics theories of matters and complex systems. However, surveying these properties with massive experimental data is bottlenecked by the intolerable costs of computing renormalization groups on real systems. Here, we develop a time- and memory-efficient framework, termed as the random renormalization group, for renormalizing ultra-large systems (e.g., with millions of units) within minutes. This framework is based on random projections, hashing techniques, and kernel representations, which support the renormalization governed by linear and non-linear correlations. For system structures, it exploits the correlations among local topology in kernel spaces to unfold the connectivity of units, identify intrinsic system scales, and verify the existences of symmetries under scale transformation. For system dynamics, it renormalizes units into correlated clusters to analyze scaling behaviours, validate scaling relations, and investigate potential criticality. Benefiting from hashing-function-based designs, our framework significantly reduces computational complexity compared with classic renormalization groups, realizing a single-step acceleration of two orders of magnitude. Meanwhile, the efficient representation of different kinds of correlations in kernel spaces realized by random projections ensures the capacity of our framework to capture diverse unit relations. As shown by our experiments, the random renormalization group helps identify non-equilibrium phase transitions, criticality, and symmetry in diverse large-scale genetic, neural, material, social, and cosmological systems.

It is widely known that freezing breaks soft, wet materials. However, the mechanism underlying this damage is still not clear. To understand this process, we freeze model, brittle hydrogel samples, while observing the growth of ice-filled cracks that break these apart. We show that damage is not caused by the expansion of water upon freezing, or the growth of ice-filled cavities in the hydrogel. Instead, local ice growth dehydrates the surrounding hydrogel, leading to drying-induced fracture. This dehydration is driven by the process of cryosuction, whereby undercooled ice sucks nearby water towards itself, feeding its growth. Our results highlight the strong analogy between freezing damage and desiccation cracking, which we anticipate being useful for developing an understanding of both topics. Our results should also give useful insights into a wide range of freezing processes, including cryopreservation, food science and frost heave.

In this study, ultrafast optical spectroscopy was employed to elucidate the intricate topological features of EuIn$_2$As$_2$, a promising candidate for a magnetic topological-crystalline axion insulator. Our investigation, focusing on the real-time evolution of topological states, unveiled a narrow surface magnetic gap (2$\Delta_0$ $\simeq$ 8.2 meV)) emerging at the antiferromagnetic transition temperature ($T_N$ $\approx$ 16 K). Below $T_N$, two extremely low-energy collective modes, $\omega_1$ and $\omega_2$, with frequencies of $\sim$9.9 and 21.6 GHz at $T$ = 4 K, respectively, were observed, exhibiting strong temperature dependence. $\omega_1$ correlates with an acoustic phonon, while $\omega_2$ is associated with a magnon. The results suggest that EuIn$_2$As$_2$ has the potential to manifest a magnetic topological-crystalline axion insulator, presenting a small magnetic energy gap on the (001) surface. The findings further our understanding of the interplay between magnetism and topology in this material, showcasing its potential for applications in quantum information processing and spintronics.