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# Resonant Raman Scattering by Quadrupolar Vibrations of Ni-Ag Core-shell Nanoparticles

## I INTRODUCTION

The quadrupolar vibrational modes of silver or gold nanoparticles embedded in dielectric matrices are easily observable by low-frequency Raman scattering (LFRS) because of the enhancement effect when the light excitation is resonant with the dipolar surface plasmon excitation . This enhancement will be referred to as ”resonant Raman scattering” throughout the paper. For silver particles the absorption by the dipolar plasmon excitation is exhausted by the conduction electrons, and is well separated from the absorption corresponding to the interband transitions. Conversely, for gold nanoparticles the plasmon excitation, in the $`450650nm`$ spectral range, overlaps the low-energy wing of the interband transitions , so that there is a mixing of both excitations. However, the Raman scattering selects the conduction-electron part of the dipolar plasmon for the resonance enhancement . Such a resonance effect was confirmed in the Ag-Au alloy particles in which the contribution of the conduction electrons in the plasmon band increases with the concentration of silver .

The study of the Ni-Ag nanoparticles is interesting for two reasons. One the one hand, the dipolar plasmon excitation does not exist in nickel nanoparticles due to the strong extinction coefficient originating from both the intraband and interband transitions. Nevertheless, when adding some silver to the nickel, the contribution of the conduction electrons is expected to lead to a surface plasmon resonance. On the other hand, nickel and silver do not form an alloy, at least in macroscopically sized samples. In consequence, it will be interesting to determine the confinement effect on the spatial distribution of the Ag and Ni atoms and to observe the evolution of the dipolar plasmon excitation as a function of the silver concentration in the nanoparticles. The different points that were addressed in our research are the following: (1) The resonance effect in the Raman scattering from Ni-Ag nanoparticles embedded in dielectric matrix, (2) the spatial distribution of Ni and Ag atoms in the nanoparticles, (3) the vibrational modes in the composite nanoparticles.

## II EXPERIMENTAL

### A Preparation and characterization of Samples

In our experiment, clusters are produced in a laser vaporization source, described in previous papers . The beam of a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG pulsed laser ($`\lambda =532nm`$) is focused onto a bimetallic rod of given $`Ni_xAg_{1x}`$ composition ($`x=0.25`$ to 1 in step of 0.25). A continuous helium flow cools the laser-produced plasma, and the mixture finally combines into clusters and undergoes a supersonic expansion through a nozzle, at the exit of the source. Moreover, the size distribution and therefore the mean size of the nanoparticles in the sample is controlled by varying the helium pressure. Then, the neutral clusters pass through a skimmer into a vacuum chamber (under approximately $`10^7mbar`$) where they are deposited on a substrate, simultaneously with the alumina matrix. The alumina is evaporated with an electron gun, and the choice of the substrate depends on the characterization experiments to be performed. The metal volumic fraction is taken below $`5\%`$ to minimize the cluster coalescence. The alumina is amorphous and slightly over-stoichiometric in oxygen $`(Al_2O_{3.2})`$, and very porous (about $`50\%`$).

Energy Dispersive X-ray (EDX) and Rutherford Back Scattering (RBS) analyses show that the average stoichiometry of the clusters in the sample is the same as in the alloy rod. Low-energy ion scattering (LEIS) measurements on $`Ni_xAg_{1x}`$ clusters show that the silver atoms move onto the surface of the mixed particles . This phenomenon can be explained by the lower surface energy of silver compared to nickel. One can also emphasize that silver and nickel are known to be immiscible metals in the bulk. Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) shows almost spherical, and randomly distributed nanoparticles, and allows to determine the size distribution (Fig. 1).

The optical transmission of the films deposited on pure silica (suprasil) has been measured with a double beam Perkin-Elmer spectrophotometer, in the photon energy range $`1.45eV`$ \- $`4.51eV`$ ($`275nm`$ \- $`855nm`$). Due to the rather low metal volumic fraction in the films the recorded transmission reflects the – size distribution-averaged – absorption of the individual particles.

In Fig. 2 are displayed absorption spectra of embedded $`(Ni_xAg_{1x})`$ clusters for three different compositions ($`x=0.25`$, 0.5, 0.75) and of pure Ni clusters ($`x=1`$). This last one does not show any resonance (simple Mie calculations indicate that this holds true for the whole spectral range). When some silver is added to the nickel, a broad band appears on the absorption spectra. This absorption band, which is due to the surface plasmon resonance, becomes very pronounced for silver concentration exceeding $`50\%`$ ($`x0.5`$) and the larger the silver concentration in the nanoparticles, the narrower the band plasmon. Moreover, in all the spectra where a plasmon band occurs, one can see that this latter is almost in the same spectral range as the one obtained for pure silver clusters. More details about this study have been given previously .

### B Raman technique

The Raman spectra were recorded on a DILOR Z40 monochromator. The high rejection rate and resolution of this setup, which is due to its five gratings, makes it possible to measure a low-frequency signal close to the Rayleigh line. All the visible lines of an $`Ar^+`$ and a $`Kr^+`$ laser were used for excitation. It was controlled that the laser beam does not heat the sample. The incoming light beam is at grazing incidence and the scattered one was detected at $`\pi /2`$ with respect to excitation.

## III RAMAN EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS

No low-frequency Raman scattering was observed from pure Ni nanocrystals in alumina film with blue, green or red excitations. Relatively intense low-frequency peaks appear from Ni-Ag nanoparticles, even with only $`25\%`$ of silver (Fig. 3). As for pure silver nanoparticles , both an intensity decrease and a shift to lower frequencies were observed when the excitation is turned from the blue to the red. These observations clearly illustrate the effect of resonance with the silver conduction-electron contribution to the dipolar plasmon. The one-electron intraband or interband absorption transitions of nickel do not contribute to the resonance enhancement of the Raman scattering by nanoparticle vibrational modes. It was also the case for the interband transitions of gold .

The depolarization ratio, $`I_{VH}/I_{VV}`$, of the Raman intensity for perpendicular polarizations of excitation and scattered lights ($`VH`$) over the one for parallel polarizations ($`VV`$) has been measured. $`I_{VH}/I_{VV}0.65`$ by excitation at $`514.5nm`$, and $`I_{VH}/I_{VV}0.4`$ by excitation at $`647.1nm`$. It is well known from group theory and due to the plasmon resonance effect that only the quadrupolar modes of nanoparticles exhibit high Raman activity . For Raman scattering by the five-fold degenerate quadrupolar modes of spherical particles the theoretical depolarization ratio is found to be equal to 0.75 . On the other hand, for resonant Raman scattering by the non-degenerate mode of randomly oriented ellipsoidal particles it is equal to 0.33. By comparison with these theoretical values, the experimental depolarization ratios show that the nanoparticles which are excited in the green are mainly the spherical shaped ones while they are ellipsoidal in the red, as it was established for pure silver nanocrystals . The Raman scattering by the quadrupolar modes is relatively intense because of the strong coupling between the vibrational quadrupolar modes and the electronic dipolar plasmon in silver nanoparticles . Recently, the Raman scattering by spherical modes (i.e. the breathing mode and its two first harmonics) was observed for silver nanocrystals with narrow size dispersion . In the case of nanoparticles with a relatively broad size dispersion, as in this experiment, the Raman peaks corresponding to the scattering by the spherical modes are expected to be of very weak intensity. So, these peaks can be easily masked by the high-frequency tail of the much more intense Raman peak due to the quadrupolar mode, and it is therefore not surprising that they do not appear on our LFRS spectra (Fig. 3).

One observes in Fig. 3 that the position of the Raman peak does not depend very much on the composition of the nanoparticles. This is a priori not consistent with a homogeneous mixing of Ni and Ag atoms, the elastic constants of nickel being approximately two times larger than the silver ones. This is in agreement with the Ni-Ag demixion observed by LEIS . In the following part, the experimental vibrational frequencies will be compared to the calculated ones for demixed nanoparticles consisting of a nickel core and a silver shell. It is expected that the vibrational dynamics of the Ni-Ag core-shell nanoparticles depends crucially on the coupling between the silver shell and the nickel core.

## IV INTERPRETATION

The resolution of the Navier equation, by using the continuous medium approximation, demonstrates  that the vibrational frequencies $`\nu `$ of a spherical nanoparticle are inversely proportional to the diameter $`D`$ and proportional to the transversal sound velocity $`v_t`$ :

$$\nu =S\frac{v_t}{D}$$
(1)
The factor $`S`$ depends on the mode and on the ratio of the transversal and longitudinal sound velocities. The frequency $`\nu `$ corresponds to the Raman shift $`\omega `$, that is generally expressed in $`cm^1`$: $`\omega =\nu /c`$, c being the vacuum light speed. Equation-1 was experimentally verified by the comparison of the small angle neutron scattering with the Raman scattering by nanocrystals embedded in a glassy matrix . In the following, the frequency calculated from Eq. (1), with $`D_{max}`$ being the diameter at the maximum of the size distribution, will be compared to the frequency at the maximum of the low-frequency Raman band. The suitability of this procedure lies on the assumption that there is no spatial coherence in the nanoparticle, as it was demonstrated in previous papers for nanoparticles obtained by the same elaboration technique . According to the Lamb’s theory  on the vibrations of an elastic sphere, the $`S`$ factor is close to 0.85 and 0.84 for the fundamental quadrupolar mode, in the case of silver and nickel respectively. The used transversal sound velocities for nickel and silver are respectively $`v_t[Ni]=3000m/s`$ and $`v_t[Ag]=1660m/s`$ . Using these values, without taking explicitly into account the bonding strength between Ag and Ni atoms and the inhomogeneous distribution of the two metals in the nanoparticles, it is found by taking the concentration-weighted average sound velocity in Eq. (1), that the vibration frequency of a $`Ni_{0.75}Ag_{0.25}`$ nanoparticle is 1.3 times larger than that of a $`Ni_{0.25}Ag_{0.75}`$ particle of same size. The experimental ratio is equal to 0.9, and consequently far from the theoretical ratio.

Faced with this discrepancy and in agreement with the LEIS experiment , it is assumed that the nanoparticles have a core-shell geometry with a Ni core and a Ag shell, as suggested above. The possibility that the immiscible metals separate upon silver and nickel particle formation can be rejected for two reasons: (1) no LEIS from nickel was observed , (2) the absorption bands (Fig. 2) are much broader than the ones obtained from the simple superposition of the absorptions by separate silver and nickel nanoparticles. The vibration frequencies of the core-shell nanoparticle can be calculated by using the Navier equation with specific boundary conditions (See Appendix).

In the first model, it is assumed that there is continuity of both the vibrational displacement and the force at the Ni/Ag interface, and no force at the nanoparticle/matrix interface (due to the large matrix porosity, the contact between the matrix and the particle is very loose so that the hypothesis of free vibrations is justified). For the studied samples, the calculated vibrational frequencies of the quadrupolar mode are more than two times or even more than three times too large in comparison with the experimental ones (cf. Table). It is worth noting that the calculated values are not far from the frequencies obtained from Eq. (1) by taking the concentration-weighted average sound velocity. This discrepancy between the experimental and calculated frequencies proves that the hypothesis of a strong contact between the Ni core and the Ag shell is not correct.

In the second model, the hypothesis of a core-shell structure is kept, but now it is assumed that the Ag shell boundary at the Ag/Ni interface is free (no force, i.e., no effective contact of the Ag shell with the Ni core). As it can be seen in the Table, the frequencies calculated for the Ag shell quadrupolar vibrations are very close to the experimental ones, while they are about four times larger for the Ni core vibrations. This agreement is a strong indication that the vibrations observed by Raman scattering are those of the Ag shell. This is not surprising, since the Raman process is resonant, and that only the conduction-electrons in silver contribute to the effect of resonance. The free internal boundary of the Ag shell is a priori more questionable. However, this approximation can be justified. Silver and nickel do not form an alloy, this means that the bonding between Ag and Ni atoms is weaker than between same atoms. Moreover, the atomic radii of these metals are different ($`r_{Ag}=1.75`$ Å, $`r_{Ni}=1.62`$ Å), resulting in a mismatch between the Ni and Ag lattices. Furthermore, weak Raman lines corresponding to nickel oxyde were observed and it is likely that nickel atoms at the Ag/Ni interface are oxydized. Nickel is much more oxydizable than silver, so that some nickel atoms can have been oxydized during the deposition process, and likely after deposition by oxygen diffusion through the porous alumina matrix and the thin silver shell. In consequence, it is expected that the Ag/Ni interface is relatively loose. Moreover, the elastic constants of Ni are approximately three times larger than the Ag ones, so that there exists a large difference between the vibrational frequencies of the Ni core and the Ag shell, and consequently, the phase matching is hardly achieved.

Another type of core-shell nanoparticle was considered to simulate the Ag/Ni interface. Between the Ag shell and the Ni core, a thin shell of a soft X material is placed. Its thickness is chosen to be $`5\%`$ of the core radius. This type of structure is symbolized by Core-X-Shell in the Table. Taking a density equal to $`5000kg/m^3`$ and a sound velocity equal to $`100m/s`$ in the X material, and assuming the vibrational and force continuity at the inner interfaces, the calculated frequencies for the fundamental quadrupolar mode are again close to the experimental ones (cf. Table). However, in this model the vibrational frequencies are dependent on both the sound velocity and the density of the X material. The free Ag shell approximation, which does not use adjustable parameters, is convincing enough to allow the interpretation of the low-frequency Raman lines as due to the plasmon-resonant scattering by the quadrupolar vibrations of the free silver shell in Ni-Ag core-shell nanoparticles. Low-frequency Raman scattering was observed from nanoparticles of same composition with smaller diameters ($`1.5nm`$ and $`1.2nm`$). The experimental frequencies are approximately two times smaller than the ones calculated with the free shell model. This discrepancy can be explained by the unsuitability of the continuous medium approximation for so small nanoparticles. Very recently, it was shown by simulation that this approximation becomes unvalid for sizes smaller than some limit and that the sound velocity which has to be taken in Eq. (1) can be much smaller than the bulk one . However, such a simulation, that was carried out for amorphous two-dimensional clusters using Lennard-Jones potential, does not allow to estimate this limit for our metallic nanocrystals.

## V CONCLUSION

The observation of low-frequency Raman scattering by the quadrupolar vibrational mode of nickel-silver composite nanoparticles confirms that there is an effect of resonance with the silver conduction-electron contribution to the surface dipolar plasmon excitation. No low-frequency Raman scattering was observed from pure nickel nanoparticles. The frequencies of the vibrational modes are in agreement with a core-shell structure of the particles. The Raman experiment is quantitatively well interpreted by assuming that the scattering originates from the vibrations of a silver shell loosely bonded to the nickel core.

## A Free vibrational modes of core-shell, shell and onion-like systems

The calculations presented here are based on Lamb’s approach  and on Eringen and Suhubi’s equations . These authors express in spherical coordinates the displacement vector $`\stackrel{}{u}(\stackrel{}{r},t)`$ as a function of the position vector $`\stackrel{}{r}`$ and time $`t`$, and the force $`\stackrel{}{F}(\stackrel{}{r},t)`$ that is applied to the element area perpendicular to $`\stackrel{}{r}`$. In this paper, the following vectors are used ($`\stackrel{}{e_r}`$, $`\stackrel{}{e_\theta }`$ and $`\stackrel{}{e_\phi }`$ being the usual spherical unit vectors):

$$\{\begin{array}{ccccccc}\hfill \stackrel{}{e_1}& =& Y_l^m(\theta ,\phi )\stackrel{}{e_r}& & & & \\ \hfill \stackrel{}{e_2}& =& \frac{Y_l^m(\theta ,\phi )}{\theta }& \stackrel{}{e_\theta }& +& \frac{1}{\mathrm{sin}\theta }\frac{Y_l^m(\theta ,\phi )}{\phi }& \stackrel{}{e_\phi }\\ \hfill \stackrel{}{e_3}& =& \frac{1}{\mathrm{sin}\theta }\frac{Y_l^m(\theta ,\phi )}{\phi }& \stackrel{}{e_\theta }& & \frac{Y_l^m(\theta ,\phi )}{\theta }& \stackrel{}{e_\phi }\end{array}$$
(A1)
It should be noted that $`\stackrel{}{e}_2=\stackrel{}{e}_3=\stackrel{}{0}`$ for $`l=0`$.

The projections of $`\stackrel{}{u}`$ and $`\stackrel{}{F}`$ along these three vectors are given in Eqs. (A2) and (A3) respectively.

$$\{\begin{array}{ccc}\hfill u_1& =& \frac{1}{r}\left\{A\left[lz_l\left(qr\right)qrz_{l+1}\left(qr\right)\right]+C\left[l\left(l+1\right)z_l\left(Qr\right)\right]\right\}\mathrm{exp}\left(i\omega t\right)\hfill \\ \hfill u_2& =& \frac{1}{r}\left\{Az_l\left(qr\right)+C\left[\left(l+1\right)z_l\left(Qr\right)Qrz_{l+1}\left(Qr\right)\right]\right\}\mathrm{exp}\left(i\omega t\right)\hfill \\ \hfill u_3& =& Bz_l\left(Qr\right)\mathrm{exp}\left(i\omega t\right)\hfill \end{array}$$
(A2)
$$\{\begin{array}{ccc}\hfill F_1& =& \frac{2\mu }{r^2}\left\{A\left[\left(l^2l\frac{Q^2r^2}{2}\right)z_l\left(qr\right)+2qrz_{l+1}\left(qr\right)\right]+Cl\left(l+1\right)\left[\left(l1\right)z_l\left(Qr\right)Qrz_{l+1}\left(Qr\right)\right]\right\}\hfill \\ & & \mathrm{exp}\left(i\omega t\right)\hfill \\ \hfill F_2& =& \frac{2\mu }{r^2}\left\{A\left[\left(l1\right)z_l\left(qr\right)qrz_{l+1}\left(qr\right)\right]+C\left[\left(l^21\frac{Q^2r^2}{2}\right)z_l\left(Qr\right)+Qrz_{l+1}\left(Qr\right)\right]\right\}\mathrm{exp}\left(i\omega t\right)\hfill \\ \hfill F_3& =& B\frac{\mu }{r}\left[\left(l1\right)z_l\left(Qr\right)Qrz_{l+1}\left(Qr\right)\right]\mathrm{exp}\left(i\omega t\right)\hfill \end{array}$$
(A3)
where $`q=\omega /v_l`$, $`Q=\omega /v_t`$, ($`v_l`$ and $`v_t`$ are the longitudinal and transversal sound velocities), and $`\mu `$ is one of the Lamé’s constants. $`z_l`$ is a Bessel function. Because $`\stackrel{}{u}`$ and $`\stackrel{}{F}`$ cannot diverge, only Bessel functions of the first kind are used in space regions containing the origin ($`z_lj_l`$). Therefore, three constants determine the vibration inside these regions. In regions which do not include the origin, the two kinds of Bessel functions are valid; $`z_l`$ is a linear combination of $`j_l`$ and $`y_l`$, and then six constants are involved. It should be noted that the constant $`B`$, on which depend $`u_3`$ and $`F_3`$, is related to torsional modes. Starting from now, these modes will not be discussed ($`B0`$) because they are not Raman active .

Dealing with spheres, shells, core-shells or onions, is done by changing the boundary conditions at the various interfaces. Different kinds of boundary conditions are used. For free surfaces we use $`\stackrel{}{F}=\stackrel{}{0}`$ and for interfaces between two different materials, $`\stackrel{}{u}`$ and $`\stackrel{}{F}`$ are continuous. Resolving this problem consists in calculating the unknowns in each region.

* $`l0`$: there are two unknowns for the region containing the origin and four for other regions. Each boundary results in two linear equations if a free surface is involved and four linear equations otherwise.
* $`l=0`$: ($`\stackrel{}{e}_2=\stackrel{}{e}_3=\stackrel{}{0}`$) there is one unknown for the region containing the origin and two for other regions. Each boundary results in one linear equation if a free surface is involved and two linear equations otherwise.

It is straightforward to check that in each case the system consists in $`N`$ linear equations with $`N`$ unknowns. This system admits non-zero solutions when its determinant vanishes. This determinant is a function of $`\omega `$ only. Therefore, calculating the vibration eigenfrequencies consists in finding the roots of this function. This was performed numerically .


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# Standard-model particles and interactions from field equations on spin 9+1 dimensional space

(Instituto de Física, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apartado Postal 20-364, México 01000, D. F., México )

## Abstract

We consider a Dirac equation set on an extended spin space that contains fermion and boson solutions. At given dimension, it determines the scalar symmetries. The standard field equations can be equivalently written in terms of such degrees of freedom, and are similarly constrained. At 9+1 dimensions, the $`SU(3)\times SU(2)_L\times U(1)`$ gauge groups emerge, as well as solution representations with quantum numbers of related gauge bosons, leptons, quarks, Higgs-like particles and others as lepto-quarks. Information on the coupling constants is also provided; e. g., for the hypercharge $`g^{}=\frac{1}{2}\sqrt{\frac{3}{5}}.387`$, at tree level.

PACS: 11.10.Kk, 11.15.-q, 12.10.Dm, 12.60.-i.

The current theory of elementary particles, the standard model (SM) is successful in describing their behavior, but it is phenomenological. The origin of the interaction groups, the particles’ spectrum and representations, and parameters has remained largely unexplained. Still, the generalization of features of the model into larger structures with a unifying principle has suggested connections among the observables. Thus, additional dimensions in Kaluza-Klein theories are associated with gauge interactions, and larger groups in grand-unified theories put some restrictions on them. Spin is a physical manifestation of the fundamental representation of the Lorentz group and it is more so in relation to space, which uses the vector representation. By setting Poincaré-invariant field equations on an extended spin space, described by a Clifford algebra, this letter finds restrictions on and classifies the symmetries and the representation solutions, at given dimension. They contain spin-1/2 and boson solutions with a fixed scalar representation. A field theory can be formulated in terms of such degrees of freedom. By constraining only the dimension of the spin space on which the fields are formulated, we derive the interactions and representations of the SM at 9+1 dimensions, the minimal space that contains them.

The Dirac equation

$`\gamma _0(i_\mu \gamma ^\mu M)\mathrm{\Psi }=0,`$ (1)
uses an extended spin space when $`\mathrm{\Psi }`$ represents a matrix instead of, as traditionally, a four-entries (column) spinor. Eq. 1 contains four conditions over four spinors in a $`4\times 4`$ matrix. There are, then, additional possible transformations and symmetry operations that further classify $`\mathrm{\Psi }`$. The Dirac-operator transformation $`(i_\mu \gamma ^\mu M)U(i_\mu \gamma ^\mu M)U^\mathit{1}`$ induces the left-hand side of the transformation

$`\mathrm{\Psi }U\mathrm{\Psi }U^{},`$ (2)
and $`\mathrm{\Psi }`$ is postulated to transform as indicated on the right-hand side.

That the equation, the transformation and symmetry operators $`U`$, and the solutions $`\mathrm{\Psi }`$ occupy the same space is not only economical but it befittingly implements quantum mechanics, for it ultimately implies measuring apparatuses are not constituted differently in principle from the objects they measure.

$`U`$ and $`\mathrm{\Psi }`$ can be classified in terms of Clifford algebras. In four dimensions (4-$`d`$) $`U`$ is conventionally a $`4\times 4`$ matrix containing symmetry operators as the Poincaré generators, but it can contain others, although, e. g., in the chiral massless case it can only carry an additional $`U(2)`$ scalar symmetry. More symmetry operators appear if Eq. 1, $`\mu =0,\mathrm{},3,`$ is assumed within the larger Clifford algebra $`𝒞_N,`$ $`\{\gamma _\mu ,\gamma _\nu \}=2g_{\mu \nu }`$, $`\mu ,\nu =0,\mathrm{},N1`$, where $`N`$ is the (assumed even) dimension, whose structure is helpful in classifying the available symmetries, and which is represented by $`2^{N/2}\times 2^{N/2}`$ matrices. The usual 4-$`d`$ Lorentz symmetry, generated in terms of $`\sigma _{\mu \nu }=\frac{i}{2}[\gamma _\mu ,\gamma _\nu ],`$ $`\mu ,\nu =0,\mathrm{},3`$, is maintained and $`U`$ contains also $`\gamma _a`$, $`a=4,\mathrm{},N1`$, and their products as possible symmetry generators. Indeed, these elements are scalars for they commute with the Poincaré generators, which contain $`\sigma _{\mu \nu }`$, and they are also symmetry operators of the massless Eq. 1, bilinear in the $`\gamma _\mu `$ matrices, which is not necessarily the case for mass terms (containing $`\gamma _0`$). In addition, their products with $`\gamma _5=i\gamma _0\gamma _1\gamma _2\gamma _3`$ are Lorentz pseudoscalars. As $`[\gamma _5,\gamma _a]=0`$, we can classify the (unitary) symmetry algebra as $`𝒮_{N4}=𝒮_{(N4)R}\times 𝒮_{(N4)L},`$ consisting of the projected right-handed $`𝒮_{(N4)R}=\frac{1}{2}(1+\gamma _5)U(2^{(N4)/2})`$ and left-handed $`𝒮_{(N4)L}=\frac{1}{2}(1\gamma _5)U(2^{(N4)/2})`$ components.

The solutions of Eq. 1 do not span all the matrix complex space, but this is achieved by considering also solutions of

$`\mathrm{\Psi }\gamma _0(i\stackrel{}{_\mu }\gamma ^\mu M)=0,`$ (3)
consistent with the transformation in Eq. 2, (the Dirac operator transforming accordingly).

It is not possible to find always solutions that simultaneously satisfy equations of the type 1 and 3 (except trivially), which means they are not simultaneously on-shell, but they satisfy at least one and therefore the Klein-Gordon equation. Indeed, the solutions of eqs. 1 and 3, can be generally characterized as bosonic since $`\mathrm{\Psi }`$ can be understood to be formed of spinors as $`_{i,j}a_{ij}|w_iw_j|`$.

Generalized operators acting on this tensor-product space (spinor $`\times `$ spinor $`\times `$ configuration or momentum space) further characterize the solutions. Positive-energy solutions, according to Eq. 1 are interpreted as negative-energy solutions from the right-hand side. This problem is overcome if we assume the hole interpretation for the $`w_j|`$ components, which amounts to the requirement that operators generally acting from the right-hand side acquire a minus, and that the commutator be used for operator evaluation. Thus, the 4-$`d`$ plane-wave solution combination $`\frac{1}{4}[(1\gamma _5)\gamma _0(\gamma _1i\gamma _2)]e^{ikx}`$, with $`k^\mu =(k,0,0,k),`$ is a massless vector$``$axial ($`VA`$) state propagating along $`\widehat{𝐳}`$ with left-handed circular polarization, normalized covariantly according to $`\mathrm{\Psi }_A|\mathrm{\Psi }_B=tr\mathrm{\Psi }_A^{}\mathrm{\Psi }_B,`$ the generalized inner product for the solution space. In fact, combinations of solutions of Eqs. 1 and 3 can be formed with a well-defined Lorentz index: vector $`\gamma _0\gamma _\mu `$, pseudo-vector $`\gamma _5\gamma _0\gamma _\mu `$, scalar $`\gamma _0`$, pseudoscalar $`\gamma _0\gamma _5`$, and antisymmetric tensor $`\gamma _0[\gamma _\mu ,\gamma _\nu ]`$. For example, $`A_\mu ^𝒞(x)=\frac{i}{2}\gamma _0\gamma _\mu e^{ikx}`$ is a combination that transforms under parity into $`A^{𝒞\mu }(\stackrel{~}{x}),`$ $`\stackrel{~}{x}_\mu =x^\mu ,`$ that is, as a vector. We may also view $`\frac{1}{2}\gamma _0\gamma _\mu `$ as an orthonormal polarization basis, $`A_\mu =tr\frac{1}{2}\gamma _\mu A^\nu \frac{1}{2}\gamma _\nu `$111As for $`\overline{\psi }=\psi ^{}\gamma _0`$, a unitary transformation can be applied to the fields and operators to convert them to a covariant form.; just as $`n_\mu `$ in $`A_\mu =g_{\mu \nu }A^\nu =n_\mu A^\nu n_\nu `$. In fact, the sum of Eqs. of 1 and 3 implies  for a $`\mathrm{\Psi }`$ containing $`\gamma _0/A=A^\mu \gamma _0\gamma _\mu `$ that $`A^\mu `$ satisfies the free Maxwell’s equations.

Solutions contain also products of $`\gamma _a`$ matrices that define their scalar-group representation. For given $`N`$, there are variations of the symmetry algebra depending on the chosen Poincaré generators and Dirac equation, respectively, through the projection operators $`𝒫_P,𝒫_D𝒮_{N4}`$, $`[𝒫_P,𝒫_D]=0`$. $`𝒫_P`$ acts as in, e.g., $`𝒫_P\sigma _{\mu \nu }`$, and $`𝒫_D`$ modifies Eqs. 1 and 3 through $`𝒫_D\gamma _0(i_\mu \gamma ^\mu M).`$ Together, they characterize the Lorentz and scalar-group solution representations. We require $`\mathrm{rank}𝒫_D\mathrm{rank}𝒫_P`$, for otherwise pieces of the solution space exist that do not transform properly. For $`𝒫_D1`$ Lorentz operators act trivially on one side of the solutions containing $`1𝒫_P`$, since $`(1𝒫_P)𝒫_P=0`$, so we also get fermions. Fig. 1(a) depicts the distribution of Lorentz-representation solutions according to the matrix space they occupy in $`𝒮_6`$, when $`𝒫_P=𝒫_D1`$. Although it refers to $`N=10`$ case, it is general for any $`N`$.

An interactive field theory can be constructed in terms of the above degrees of freedom. We consider a vector and fermion non-abelian gauge-invariant theory. The expression for the kinetic component of the Lagrangian density $`_V=\frac{1}{4}F_{\mu \lambda }^ag^{\lambda \eta }\delta _{ab}F_\eta ^{b\mu }=\frac{1}{4N_o}tr𝒫_DF_{\mu \lambda }^a\gamma _0\gamma ^\lambda G_aF_\eta ^{b\mu }\gamma _0\gamma _\eta G_b`$ shows $`_V`$ is equivalent to a trace over combinations over normalized components $`\frac{1}{\sqrt{N_o}}\gamma _0\gamma _\mu G_a`$ with coefficients $`F_{\mu \nu }^a=_\mu A_\nu ^a_\nu ^aA_\mu ^a+gA_\mu ^bA_\nu ^cC_{bc}^a`$, $`g`$ the coupling constant, $`\gamma _\mu 𝒞_N`$, $`G_a𝒮_{N4}`$ the group generators, $`C_{bc}^a`$ the structure constants, and $`N_o=trG_aG_a`$, where for non-abelian irreducible representations we use $`trG_iG_j=2\delta _{ij}`$.

Similarly, the interactive part of the fermion gauge-invariant Lagrangian $`_f=\frac{1}{2}\psi _{}^{\alpha }{}_{}{}^{}\gamma _0(i\underset{\mu }{\overset{}{}}gA_\mu ^aG_a)\gamma ^\mu \psi ^\alpha ,`$ with $`\psi ^\alpha `$ a massless spinor with flavor $`\alpha `$, can be written $`_{int}=g\frac{1}{2N_o}tr𝒫_DA_\mu ^a\gamma _0\gamma ^\mu G_aj_\lambda ^{b\alpha }\gamma _0\gamma _\lambda G_b,`$ with $`j_\mu ^{a\alpha }=tr\mathrm{\Psi }_{}^{\alpha }{}_{}{}^{}\gamma _0\gamma _\mu G_a\mathrm{\Psi }^\alpha `$ containing $`\mathrm{\Psi }^\alpha =\psi ^\alpha \alpha |`$, and $`\alpha |`$ is a row state accounting for the flavor. $`_{int}`$ is written in terms of $`\gamma _0/A`$, and $`\gamma _0/j^{a\alpha }`$, that is, the vector field and the current occupy the same spin space. This connection and the quantum field theory (QFT) understanding of this vertex as the transition operator between fermion states, exerted by a vector particle, with the coupling constant as a measure of the transition probability, justifies the interpretation for it $`\frac{1}{2}gA^{a\mu }j_\mu ^{a\alpha }=A^{a\mu }\frac{1}{\sqrt{N_o}}tr\mathrm{\Psi }_{}^{\alpha }{}_{}{}^{}\gamma _0\gamma _\mu G_a\mathrm{\Psi }^\alpha `$, leading to the identification $`g2\sqrt{\frac{K}{N_o}}`$, $`K`$ correcting for over-counted reducible representations, which is further clarified below. The theoretical assignment of $`g`$ complements QFT, in which the coupling constant is set experimentally. It should be also understood as tree-level information, while the values are modified by the presence of a virtual cloud of fields, at given energy. Although in QFT the coupling constant is obtained perturbatively in terms of powers of the bare, which takes infinite values absorbed through renormalization, we may take the view that renormalization is a calculational device and that its physical value is a manifestation of the bare one; this is feasible for small coupling constants, which can give small corrections. Energy corrections are also necessary for a more detailed calculation.

As for the initial formulation, $`𝒫_D`$ restricts the possible gauge symmetries that can be constructed in the Lagrangian, for $`\gamma _0\gamma _\mu G_i`$ needs to be contained in the space it projects. Thus, $`𝒫_P`$ and $`𝒫_D`$ determine the symmetries, which are global, and in turn, determine the allowed gauge interactions. Furthermore, they fix the representations, assumed physical. The $`N=6`$ case has been researched and connections have been found to the $`SU(2)_L\times U(1)`$, electroweak sector of the SM. It is apparent that the minimal algebra that includes the SM groups requires $`N=9+1`$, with $`𝒮_6`$, on which we will concentrate. There are limited ways in which we may represent the SM interactions in such a matrix space and only one giving the correct fermion and boson quantum numbers. In order to have fermions we need $`𝒫_P1`$. Account of the quark quantum numbers requires that their left-handed $`SU(3)\times SU(2)_L`$, and right-handed $`SU(3)\times U(1)_Y`$ symmetry generators be direct-product reducible representations occupying, respectively, $`6\times 6`$ matrix pieces of $`𝒮_{6L}`$ and $`𝒮_{6R}`$. The remaining $`2\times 2`$ matrix into which $`𝒮_{6L}`$ is broken is associated to the $`SU(2)_L`$ acting on the $`SU(3)`$-singlet leptons, and that of $`𝒮_{6R}`$ to a $`U(1)`$ describing the right-handed leptons hypercharge, and an inert $`U(1)`$ that gives rise to two fermion generations (all this applies also to antiparticles). There are additional $`U(1)`$ symmetries which can be assigned in correspondence to SM symmetries.

To represent these $`𝒮_6`$ terms, we use the 64 matrices composed of 6 $`\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{a4}=\gamma _a`$, $`a=5,\mathrm{},9`$, $`\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_0=i\gamma _4`$, 15 pairs $`\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{ab}=\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_a\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_b`$, $`a<b,`$ etc., 20 triplets $`\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{abc}=\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_a\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_b\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_c`$, 1 sextuplet $`\overline{\gamma }_7=\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_0\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_1\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_2\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_3\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_4\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_5,`$ 15 quadruplets $`\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{7ab}=\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_7\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{ab}`$, 6 quintuplets $`\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{7a}=\overline{\gamma }_7\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_a`$, and the identity $`1`$.

$`𝒮_6`$ has a Cartan algebra of dimension 8+8, which we write in terms of the projection operators $`P_R=\frac{1}{4}(1\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_0)(1+\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{73})`$, $`P_{S\pm }=\frac{1}{2}(1i\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{26})`$. The latter contains the baryon numbers $`P_{B(V\pm A)}=\frac{1}{2}(1\pm \gamma _5)(1P_R)`$, with $`V\pm A`$ components; $`SU(3)`$ $`\lambda _{3(V\pm A)}=\frac{1}{2}P_{B(V\pm A)}[P_{S+}(\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_4+\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{73})+P_S(\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_4+\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{703})]`$, $`\lambda _{8(V\pm A)}=\frac{1}{2\sqrt{3}}P_{B(V\pm A)}[P_{S+}(\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_4+\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{73}2\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{703})+P_S(\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_42\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{73}+\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{703})]`$; lepton numbers $`P_{L(V+A)}=\frac{1}{2}(1+\gamma _5)P_RP_{S+},`$ $`P_{L(VA)}=\frac{1}{2}(1\gamma _5)P_R;`$ $`SU(2)_L`$ $`I_3=(P_{B(VA)}+P_{L(VA)})i\stackrel{~}{\gamma }_{26};`$ flavor operators generated by $`P_F=\frac{1}{2}(1+\gamma _5)P_RP_S`$ (and additional); hypercharges $`Y_\pm =\frac{1}{2}(1\pm \gamma _5)[P_{L(VA)}\frac{1}{3}P_{B(VA)}+2P_{L(V+A)}+\frac{1}{3}P_{B(V+A)}(2P_{S+}4P_S)]`$; isocolor $`\overline{\lambda }_{j(VA)}=\lambda _{j(VA)}I_3`$, and hypercolor $`\overline{\lambda }_{j(V+A)}=\frac{1}{3}\lambda _{j(V+A)}P_{B(V+A)+}(4P_{S+}+2P_S)`$, $`j=3,8`$.

The choice $`Y=Y_++Y_{}`$ that gives the correct hypercharge fermion quantum numbers can be deduced from the condition that it not be axial, separately for quarks and leptons, namely, $`tr\gamma _5YL=0,`$ and $`tr\gamma _5YB=0`$, where $`L=P_{L(V+A)}+P_{L(VA)},`$ $`B=P_{B(V+A)}+P_{B(VA)}`$, which leads to the correct ratios between right-handed and left-handed lepton and quark hypercharges. The anomaly-cancellation condition sets the ratio between lepton and quark hypercharges. For $`N=6`$, $`Q=\frac{1}{2}Y+I_3`$ can also be deduced as one of the operators commuting with the Hamiltonian when mass terms are added, which sets the form of $`Y`$.

$`𝒫_P=𝒫_D=B+L𝒮_6`$ is the only option describing SM fermions. In Fig. 1(a)-(d) are the solution representations resulting from such massless Hamiltonian, classified with the above generators. Each of the four types of solution in (a) is an $`8\times 8`$ matrix, three of which are given explicitly in (b)-(d) with the solutions’ quantum numbers. (b) and (d) contain vectors (and axial-) $`\gamma `$-bilinear solutions that are in the adjoint representation, with (b) also containing the flavor group, and fermion solutions. (c) has $`\gamma `$-linear solutions conformed of scalar (and pseudo-), antisymmetric tensors, and fermions. Fixing $`𝒫_D`$, the physically feasible ($`trG_iG_j=2\delta _{ij}`$) gauge groups are comprised of the $`U(1)`$ and compact simple algebras generated in it. With the conditions of anomaly-cancelling, renormalizability, $`B,`$ $`L`$ conservation, the allowed Lagrangian reduces basically to that of the SM, with particles with correct Lorentz and gauge group representations: gluons, weak, and hypercharge vectors. A Higgs-like particle can also be constructed from the neutral and charged scalar $`SU(2)_L`$ doublets in (c). There are two generations of $`SU(2)_L`$ lepton and quark doublets $`(e,\nu )_L,`$ $`(u,d)_L`$ and $`e_R,`$ $`u_R,`$ $`d_R`$ singlets (generation choice arbitrary). We also find particles beyond the SM as scalar leptoquarks in (b), and $`VA`$ iso-gluons in (c).

The vector-field normalized polarizations provide the coupling constants. The physics guides in obtaining the field configuration, pointing at overcounted degrees of freedom in $`K`$ direct-product reducible representations, and gives a clue on the energy scale. For the hypercharge $`B_\mu =\frac{g^{}}{2}Y\gamma _0\gamma _\mu `$, so $`g^{}=2/[2(2+2^2+6(\frac{1}{3})^2+3(\frac{2}{3})^2+3(\frac{4}{3})^2)]^{1/2}`$ $`=\frac{1}{2}\sqrt{\frac{3}{5}}.387`$. The normalized weak-boson component $`W_{B\mu }^{(\mathrm{𝟑},\mathrm{𝟏})}`$ (in direct product with $`SU(3)`$ space) needs to be contracted to $`\overline{W}_{B\mu }^{(\mathrm{𝟑},\mathrm{𝟏})}`$, leading to its coupling to be rescaled by $`\sqrt{3},`$ which gives the same couplings to quarks as to leptons (see (d)). Gluons are described by $`\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}(A_\mu ^{(\mathrm{𝟏},\mathrm{𝟖})}+\stackrel{~}{A}_\mu ^{(\mathrm{𝟏},\mathrm{𝟖})})`$ terms (see (b), (d).) One $`2^{1/2}`$ factor corrects each $`V\pm A`$ components (same coupling to chiral and massive quarks) and another $`2^{1/2}`$ corrects for the $`SU(2)_L`$ and hypercharge products. This gives $`g_s=2^2/[2(2^3)]^{1/2}=1,`$ or $`\alpha _s=\frac{g_s^2}{4\pi }.080.`$ In the case of the physical weak field $`W_\mu ^{(\mathrm{𝟑},\mathrm{𝟏})}=\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}(\overline{W}_{L\mu }^{(\mathrm{𝟑},\mathrm{𝟏})}+W_{B\mu }^{(\mathrm{𝟑},\mathrm{𝟏})})`$, we assume a single $`SU(2)_L`$ irreducible representation, for $`W_\mu ^{(\mathrm{𝟑},\mathrm{𝟏})}`$ acts separately on quarks and leptons. Then $`g=2/[2(2^2)]^{1/2}=\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}.707`$. From the demand that a vector particle be obtained with the correct parity, or others, $`Q`$ is derived as the only non-trivial scalar commuting the Hamiltonian, leading to an expression for the photon $`A_\mu =\frac{1}{\sqrt{g^2+g_{}^{}{}_{}{}^{2}}}(gB_\mu +g^{}W_\mu ^0)`$. One gets Weinberg’s angle $`\theta _W`$ from here. It can also be consistently obtained directly from $`g`$ and $`g^{}`$. From the SM $`tan(\theta _W)=g^{}/g`$, so $`sin^2(\theta _W)=3/13.23078.`$ The assumed fermion massive terms and electroweak symmetry-breaking conditions suggest a comparison of these numbers with experimental values at energies of order $`M_Z.`$ These are, one standard-deviation last-ciphers uncertainty in parenthesis, $`g_{ex}^{}=.35743(8)`$, $`sin^2(\theta _{Wex})=.23117(16),`$ and $`\alpha _{s(ex)}=.1185(20)`$. Unified-generator fields are obtained when assuming that $`Y`$ and $`I_3`$ belong to the same group, thus having the same normalization convention, so $`g^{}`$ needs to be rescaled to $`g_1^{uni}=\sqrt{\frac{5}{3}}g_{}^{}{}_{}{}^{uni}`$. From the assumption that $`g_1=g`$ and that $`I_3`$ acts equally on massless chiral leptons or quarks, we get $`g^{uni}=2/[2(8)]^{1/2}=\frac{1}{2}`$ ($`K=1`$), and recover the $`SU(5)`$ unification result $`sin^2(\theta _W^{uni})=3/8`$.

The theory thus presented succeeds in reproducing many aspects of the SM. We obtain the groups $`SU(2)_L\times SU(3)\times U(1)`$, with corresponding vector bosons acting on quarks and leptons in two generations with correct quantum numbers and chiralities. A Higgs particle is also obtained. By using the allowed vertices with normalized-polarisation fields we are able to calculate coupling constants, around electroweak breaking. It is not obvious that SM features can be described and yet a special model configuration among few possible gives such predictions. An assortment of new particles beyond the SM are also obtained but not all need be stable or appear at low energies.

With the Poincaré and SM-gauge symmetric Lagrangian presentation of the model, renormalization and quantization can be applied, leading to a QFT formulation. Its simplicity, with spin as its basic building block, should allow for a generalization and application in theories such as supersymmetry and those accounting for gravity, such as supergravity and strings.

There is a robustness to the predictions, for extension of the model into such structures, requiring additional reducible representations and quantum numbers, will not change the results. On the other hand, inclusion into other models with different irreducible representations should modify them, making the $`N=9+1`$ case unique.

The close connection between the results hence derived and the physical particles’ phenomenology makes plausible the idea that, as with the spin, the gauge vector and matter fields, and their interactions originate in the structure of space-time.

The author acknowledges support from DGAPA for project IN118600 at the UNAM.


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# Ultrafast optical signature of quantum superpositions in a nanostructure

## Abstract

We propose an unambiguous signature for detecting quantum superposition states in a nanostructure, based on current ultrafast spectroscopy techniques. The reliable generation of such superposition states via Hadamard-like quantum gates is crucial for implementing solid-state based quantum information schemes. The signature originates from a remarkably strong photon antibunching effect which is enhanced by non-Markovian dynamics.

The possibility of performing quantum information processing in nanostructure systems is of great interest from the perspectives of both fundamental science and future emerging technologies. Quantum dots (QDs) are solid-state nanostructures which are analogs of real atoms; semiconductor QDs and macromolecules are seen as excellent candidates for performing quantum information processing tasks. There are also many inorganic and organic structures that qualify as ‘nanostructures’ and may therefore become good candidates: e.g. carbon buckyballs, and even micro-biological molecular structures such as the photosynthetic complexes in purple bacteria. Essential steps toward the implementation of standard quantum information schemes in such nanostructures, include: (1) the identification of the basic qubit (quantum bit), and (2) the application of one- and two-qubit quantum gates in order to generate quantum superpositions and entanglement. An important example of a one-qubit gate is the Hadamard-like gate, since it generates a superposition state (e.g. $`|0+|1`$) from an un-superposed initial state (e.g. $`|0`$). Reference  showed that (1) and (2) can be achieved with excitons generated using current techniques in ultrafast optical spectroscopy. Several experimental groups are now actively pursuing this route. Such qubit control has already been achieved in neutral atoms and ions in an ion trap, however scalability issues may limit such non solid-state devices to just a few qbits.

However there is a crucial third step, which is to verify the reliability of the quantum superpositions (entanglements) generated in the single nanostructure (pair of nanostructures) by the one-qubit (two-qubit) quantum gate. How can we show experimentally that we have generated such superposition (entanglement)? The present work addresses this question for the important first step of a single nanostructure (e.g. a single QD). Specifically, we consider the ultrafast second-order coherence function of the emitted light from the optically-generated exciton in a single nanostructure (e.g. a QD). This quantity $`g^{(2)}`$ is calculated for the QD interacting with two baths: (i) photon environment and (ii) a phonon system. A strong antibunching effect is predicted in the resonance fluorescence response at very short times, if and only if the initial exciton state comprises a quantum superposition. This strong effect does not arise for initial states described by a statistical mixture, i.e. non-superposed states. We show numerically, that non-Markovian effects significantly enhance the antibunching signal, hence demonstrating that temporal correlations cannot be neglected a priori in such ultrafast regimes. In addition to the quantum superposition test, our results may prove useful in designing photon-emitting devices with controllable and accurate emission rates.

In atomic systems, resonance fluorescence experiments have already proved themselves to be extremely valuable. Similar experiments in solid-state systems have only recently been performed. In particular it has been demonstrated that for a single CdSe QD at room temperature and a single self-assembled InAs QD at cryogenic temperatures, strong antibunching effects are observed in fluoresence experiments. This provides direct evidence that single QDs present the same kind of nonclassical light emission as a single two-level atom. The present paper provides a further stimulus to experimentalists to improve resolution times, with the potential payoff that antibunching measurements will then provide a direct probe of the initial quantum state.

The solid-state system of interest here comprises a nanostructure (e.g. a QD) of any shape, coupled to the electromagnetic field and to a heat bath, represented by a set of harmonic oscillators, which provides the basic source of temperature dependence. The light source is of low intensity hence the number of excitons generated is small. A single exciton in its ground state can be described by a two-level system. The Hamiltonian is given by

$`H={\displaystyle \frac{ϵ}{2}}\sigma _z+{\displaystyle \underset{k}{}}\omega _ka_k^{}a_k+{\displaystyle \underset{k}{}}(g_k\sigma ^+a_k+g_k^{}\sigma ^{}a_k^{})`$ (1)
$`+{\displaystyle \underset{q}{}}\mathrm{\Omega }_qb_q^{}b_q+{\displaystyle \underset{q}{}}\sigma _z(f_qb_q+f_q^{}b_q^{})+`$ (2)
$`E(t)\sigma ^+e^{i\omega t}+c.c.`$ (3)
where $`a_k`$ and $`b_q`$ represent the annihilation operators for photons and phonons respectively, $`ϵ`$ is the total exciton energy, $`\omega _k`$ ($`\mathrm{\Omega }_q`$) denotes the photon (phonon) frequencies, $`g_k`$ ($`f_q`$) the exciton-photon (exciton-phonon) coupling and $`E(t)`$ describes the envelope of a classical source of light of frequency $`\omega `$ acting on the QD. The exciton population is described by $`\sigma _z=|XX||00|`$ where $`|X`$ stands for a one exciton state while $`|0`$ denotes the QD vacuum, i.e. no exciton. Similarly the raising and lowering pseudo-spin operators are $`\sigma ^+=|X0|`$ and $`\sigma ^{}=|0X|`$, respectively. From Eq.(1) it is seen that the photon field is associated with the dissipative dynamics of the QD whereas the phonon field is responsible for dephasing effects. This phonon dephasing accounts for the temperature effects. The fundamental band gap is typically much larger than $`k_BT_e`$ ($`T_e`$ is the temperature) hence the photon field can be taken as remaining at zero temperature. Non-Markovian effects are included for both exciton-photon and exciton-phonon couplings. One of the advantages of this model is that it is reasonably simple, yet sufficiently complex to manifest many important features of the ultrafast response of nanostructures. More refined models should consider multiexciton complexes if a strong excitation is applied. In that case, joint effects coming from Non-Markovian processes as described here, together with strong particle correlations, should be observable. However, these kind of effects are beyond of the scope of the present work.

We employ a master equation of Lindblad form, since this kind of equation can properly account for the coupling of the QD system to its environment - it can also go beyond the Markov approximation using time dependent damping coefficients. We stress that master equations with time-independent damping coefficients are unable to account for the evolution of an open system on very short time scales. At resonance, i.e. $`\omega =ϵ`$, and using the rotating wave approximation, the Liouvillian acting on any QD operator $`O`$ is given by:

$`L(t)O={\displaystyle \frac{i}{\mathrm{}}}[E\sigma ^++E^{}\sigma ^{},O]+`$ (4)
$`\gamma _{relax}(t)[\sigma ^{}O\sigma ^+{\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}}O\sigma ^+\sigma ^{}{\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}}\sigma ^+\sigma ^{}O]`$ (5)
$`+\gamma _{dph}(T_e,t)[\sigma _z,[\sigma _z,O]]`$ (6)
where the coupling to photons $`\gamma _{relax}(t)`$, and the coupling to phonons $`\gamma _{dph}(T_e,t)`$, include non-Markovian effects through their time dependences. Temperature effects do not need to be included for $`\gamma _{relax}`$ in the coupled light-QD subsystem, since $`\mathrm{}ϵ>>k_BT_e`$. Solving the Liouville equation for the QD density matrix $`\rho `$, and for different Rabi frequencies $`\mathrm{\Omega }=\frac{\mu |E|}{\mathrm{}}`$ ($`\mu `$ is the dipole moment), expectation values for any QD operator may be evaluated and the characteristics of the emitted photon field hence obtained.

The coherence properties of the emitted photon field can be properly accounted for by the second-order coherence function given by

$`g^{(2)}(T,\tau )={\displaystyle \frac{\sigma ^+(T)\sigma ^+(T+\tau )\sigma ^{}(T+\tau )\sigma ^{}(T)}{\sigma ^+(T)\sigma ^{}(T)\sigma ^+(T+\tau )\sigma ^{}(T+\tau )}}.`$ (7)
where $`\tau =t_1t_2`$ represents the time difference between the photons’ arrival at the detector and $`T=\frac{t_1+t_2}{2}`$. This coherence function can be expressed in a very simple form, valid for any initial condition of the QD, as follows:

$`g^{(2)}(T,\tau )={\displaystyle \frac{X|𝒯e^{_0^\tau L(t^{})𝑑t^{}}(|00|)|X}{\rho _{X,X}(T+\tau )}}`$ (8)
where $`𝒯`$ denotes the time-ordering operator and $`\rho `$ is the QD reduced density matrix. By changing the initial preparation state of the QD, the value of the non-stationary second-order coherence function should change through its dependence on $`\rho _{X,X}`$. A closed expression for $`g^{(2)}`$ and the antibunching effect, characterized by the growth of $`g^{(2)}`$ from zero for $`\tau =0`$, has been well documented in the steady-state situation, with non-zero relaxation decay $`\gamma _0`$ and with $`\gamma _{dph}=0`$. However an expression for Eq.(4) in closed form for the ultrafast regime, valid for any $`T`$ and $`\tau `$, is not available. A numerical solution of the Bloch equations for the different elements of the QD reduced density matrix must therefore be performed. Our present work represents a far more general study of the variations of $`g^{(2)}`$, and includes the effect of different initial QD states. In particular, it is interesting to quantify the variations of $`g^{(2)}`$ for the following initial conditions: (i) a pure state comprising a quantum superposition (QS) of type $`|\mathrm{\Psi }=\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}(|0+i|X)`$ where $`\rho (0)=|\mathrm{\Psi }\mathrm{\Psi }|`$, (ii) the usual experimental case in which the QD is prepared in its ground state (GS) given by $`\rho (0)=|00|`$, and (iii) a statistical mixture (SM) of states $`\rho (0)=\frac{1}{\sqrt{2}}(|00|+|XX|)`$. The initial photon state is the vacuum.

We start by examining the system’s qualitative behavior within the Markov approximation. Results for $`g^{(2)}`$ are shown in Fig. 1a for a single QD containing up to one electron-hole pair. The experimentally obtained decay rate $`\mathrm{}\gamma _{relax}=\mathrm{}\gamma _0=20\mu eV`$ and $`\gamma _{dph}=0.5\gamma _0`$ are used in the calculations. The Rabi frequency is 2.25$`\gamma _0`$ ($`\mu `$ 15 Debyes). A clear sub-poissonian character is observed at very short times. The enhancement property of $`g^{(2)}`$ can be readily understood from Eq.(4), in particular from a vanishing value of the element $`\rho _{X,X}`$ of the QD density matrix. The second-order time correlation function can be written as $`g^{(2)}(T,\tau )=(\rho _{X,X}(\tau )|_{\rho (\tau =0)=|XX|})/\rho _{X,X}(T,\tau )`$, where the numerator represents the density matrix element given that the QD is in its ground state. By solving the Bloch equations for $`\rho `$ at very short times, it can be seen that this enhancement appears for $`\tau (\mathrm{\Omega }\gamma _0)^1`$, i.e. when $`\rho _{X,X}(T,\tau )0`$ in agreement with Fig.1a. We stress that this condition cannot be obtained if the system is initially prepared in its GS or in a SM of states (not shown). Previous experiments with their limited resolution times could not have detected this feature because the correlations always vanish for long detection times.

Since this antibunching behaviour occurs at very short times, we will now consider the quantitative effects of non-Markovian behavior characterized by time-dependent damping rates. In reference $`[16]`$ an explicit expression for $`\gamma _{relax}(t)`$, is given as

$`\gamma _{relax}(t)={\displaystyle \frac{2\gamma _0\mathrm{sinh}(dt/2)}{(d/\lambda )\mathrm{cosh}(dt/2)+\mathrm{sinh}(dt/2)}}`$ (9)
where $`d=\sqrt{\lambda ^22\gamma _0\lambda }`$, $`\gamma _0`$ is the constant Markov decay rate (time-independent) and $`\gamma _0/\lambda `$ is the ratio between the photon reservoir correlation time and a typical time scale on which the QD exciton changes. For $`\gamma _0/\lambda <<1`$, this yields $`\gamma _{relax}(t)/\gamma _0=1e^{\lambda t}`$. This explicit expression for $`\gamma _{relax}(t)`$, is appropriate for a Lorentzian photon reservoir. A memoryless photon environment corresponds to $`\lambda `$ going to infinity in which case the Markov situation is recovered. It is worth noting that by slightly changing this form of $`\gamma _{relax}(t)`$, non-Markovian effects in a structured photon environment such as a microcavity could also be modeled.

For the pure dephasing rate, the standard form of the independent boson model is taken as

$`\gamma _{dph}(T_e,t)={\displaystyle \underset{q}{}}|f_q|^2\mathrm{coth}({\displaystyle \frac{\mathrm{\Omega }_q}{2T_e}}){\displaystyle \frac{1\mathrm{cos}(\mathrm{\Omega }_qt)}{\mathrm{\Omega }_q^2}}.`$ (10)
In the continuum limit for phonon $`\stackrel{}{q}`$ vectors, all information about the bath which is essential to the dynamics of the QD, is contained in the compact form of the spectral density function $`J(\omega )=\frac{\pi }{2}_q|f_q|^2\delta (\omega \mathrm{\Omega }_q)`$. An appropriate choice for the spectral function $`J(\omega )`$, and its associated cut-off frequency, can be made according to the QD environment. In terms of the Debye model the natural cutoff is the Debye frequency ($`\omega _D`$) yielding a spectral function of the form $`J(\omega )\omega ^3e^{\omega /\omega _D}`$. An explicit form for $`\gamma _{dph}`$, with the latter choice for $`J(\omega )`$, has been derived by Palma et al.. For different temperatures ($`\eta =T_e/\omega _D`$), $`\gamma _{relax}(t)`$ and $`\gamma _{dph}`$ are shown in Fig.1b. On very short time-scales the effective decay rates for both processes, radiative and pure dephasing, are very low indicating that Markov approximations (which are valid on long time-scales) overestimate the decay effects at short times. As demonstrated, this explicit form of $`\gamma _{relax}(\tau )`$ and $`\gamma _{dph}(T_e,\tau )`$ leads to an inefficient damping at times $`\tau <\gamma _0^1`$; hence the Markov approximation overestimates the damping effects in the ultrafast regime. Therefore, any antibunching enhancement that occurs on a very short time scale, should be reinforced by non-Markovian phenomena. A demonstration of this statement is shown in Fig. 1c with $`\eta =2.85`$ and $`\mathrm{\Omega }=2.25\gamma _0`$, for different resolution detecting times. Clearly, the QS shows a strong enhancement compared with a GS. The second-order time correlation function at very short times therefore provides information about the initial state preparation. The main result of the present work is that for times smaller than the time scale in which dissipation of energy takes place, a strong antibunching effect is predicted. Within this time scale the correlations between the dot and the environment are not very important and clearly non classical light emission is enhanced. As a consequence, antibunching enhancement should be most prominent in QDs fabricated from II-VI semiconductors, III-V nitrides, organic materials or hybrid heterostructures due to the fact that in these systems exciton-photon coupling is not necessarily weak and non-Markovian effects can be important.

Figure 2 shows how the peak in $`g^{(2)}(T\gamma _0=0.5,\tau )`$ develops a symmetric shape, growing quite large at low Rabi frequencies. For large Rabi frequencies the antibunching for QS initial state is observed at very short times and the light emission begins to evolve into a mere statistical mixtures of states. Crucial information concerning the state in which the system was initially prepared, can hence be obtained via a measurement of $`g^{(2)}`$. Our results therefore show that QS states can be far more robust to decoherence than other initial states at very short times. We conjecture that this robustness may also hold for multiple qubits (see also Ref.$`[22]`$). We now turn our attention to the long time behaviour ($`\tau >>\gamma _0^1`$) for $`g^{(2)}(\tau )`$. In the inset of Fig. 2, the antibunching effect is clearly observed, however the peak intensities are not as large as those predicted for the QS state. To avoid confusion concerning this sub-Poissonian characteristic, we stress that this peak intensity comes from the natural Rabi oscillations of the coupled QD-light subsystem. The antibunching signal reported in this work is observed when the vacuum fluctuations dominate, if and only if the system is prepared in a QS. Interestingly the QS initial state is rather insensitive to the decoherence mechanism, for typical experimental values and at very short times. Experimentally, the effects presented here could be observed using ultrafast spectroscopy with a resolution of the order of the dephasing times, e.g. 50 ps for a semiconductor QD. We also note that different initial QS states can be probed by tailoring the polarization of the driving field.

In summary, we have shown that ultrafast fluorescence intensity-correlation measurements in single QDs provide a sensitive probe not only of the photonic and phononic environment, but also of memory effects such as those determined by specific initial state preparation. At the heart of our results is an enhancement of the lack of photon coincidence on short time scales as a result of the exciton superposition state. As a side-product of our findings, the transformation from sub-Poissonian ($`g^{(2)}<1`$) to super-Poissonian ($`g^{(2)}>1`$) behavior on short time-scales may be of practical interest in the design of devices which act as triggered single photon sources. This paper has concentrated on the basic building block comprising single nanostructures and superpositions created by the application of one-qubit gates. Nonclassical light features in the fluorescence of coupled QD systems will be dealt with elsewhere.

The authors acknowledge partial support from COLCIENCIAS (Colombia) projects No.1204-05-10326, 1204-05-1148, Banco de la República (Colombia) and from the EPSRC-DTI LINK project (UK).

Figure Captions

FIG. 1. Second-order coherence function in the Markov approximation for $`\eta =2.85`$, $`\lambda =2.0\gamma _0`$ and $`\mathrm{\Omega }=2.25\gamma _0`$. (a) $`g^{(2)}`$ for three different detecting times in a Quantum Superposition (QS) initial state using the Markov approximation. (b) Time evolution of the decay rate $`\gamma (t)`$ and pure dephasing rate $`\gamma _{dph}(T_e,t)`$ for different temperatures. (c) $`g^{(2)}`$ including non-Markovian effects for initial QS and Ground State (GS).

FIG. 2. Second-order coherence function, including non-Markovian effects, for a Quantum Superposition (QS) and a Statistical Mixture (SM) of states. Results shown for various Rabi frequencies $`\mathrm{\Omega }=2\gamma _0`$ (continuous line), $`\mathrm{\Omega }=2.25\gamma _0`$(dotted-line), $`\mathrm{\Omega }=2.75\gamma _0`$(dashed-line), $`\mathrm{\Omega }=6\gamma _0`$(thick dot-dashed line). Here $`\eta =2.85`$, $`\lambda =2.0\gamma _0`$ and $`T\gamma _0=0.5`$. Inset: The stationary limit for the system prepared in a QS initial state.


text:
# The Photometric Plane of Elliptical Galaxies

## 1 Introduction

Studies of supermassive black holes and the elliptical galaxies (and bulges) at whose centers they reside have revealed that the Sérsic (1968) index $`n`$ can be used just as effectively for predicting the mass of the black hole as the velocity dispersion of the stars (Graham et al. 2001). Aside from the physical insight this provides into the formation of galaxy and black hole alike, it also has important practical consequences: relatively expensive spectroscopic observations can be replaced with (photometrically uncalibrated) images. Furthermore, the issue of aperture corrections for velocity dispersion measurements is bypassed completely.

In this paper we explore whether or not the ‘Fundamental Plane’ (Djorgovski & Davis 1987; Dressler et al. 1987) remains as thin (or at an acceptable/useful thickness) when the central velocity dispersion term is replaced with the Sérsic index $`n`$, producing what is called a ‘Photometric Plane’.

Khosroshahi et al. (2000a) constructed a near-infrared Photometric Plane from a sample of 42 Coma elliptical galaxies and the bulges of 26 early-type disk galaxies taken from the field (Khosroshahi, Wadadekar & Kembhavi 2000b). Their Photometric Plane was constructed using the Sérsic index $`n`$, the effective radius $`r_\mathrm{e}`$ and the central bulge surface brightness $`\mu _0`$ derived from the best-fitting $`r^{1/n}`$ model. The authors claimed that the scatter about their (elliptical only) Photometric Plane implied an error of 53 per cent in the derived distance to any single galaxy. Möllenhoff & Heidt (2001) modelled 40 early-type spiral galaxy bulges and computed a correlation coefficient $`r=0.91`$ between $`\mathrm{log}n`$ and a linear combination of $`\mu _0`$ and $`\mathrm{log}r_e`$. Although they did not give an estimate to the scatter, a strong correlation clearly exists.

In the present analysis, the Photometric Plane will be derived using a well known sample of Virgo and Fornax elliptical galaxies for which the required data has already been published. Importantly, both the Photometric Plane and the Fundamental Plane will be derived for exactly the same galaxy sample, enabling a direct comparison of the scatter about the two planes. The usefulness of the Photometric Plane will subsequently be tested by computing the Virgo-Fornax distance modulus and comparing the result with the latest estimate from the HST Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale.

Section 2 introduces the data which has been collated from the literature. The construction and analysis of the Photometric and Fundamental Planes for the full galaxy sample (and various sub-samples) is presented in Section 3. A hyperplane using all three Sérsic (photometric) parameters plus the central velocity dispersion is also introduced here. The analysis is discussed in Section 4, and a brief comparison and/or discussion is made of several other purely photometric relations such as the Kormendy relation, the scalelength-shape ($`rn`$) relation of Young & Curry (1994) and the ‘Entropic Plane’ (Lima Neto et al. 1999). Lastly, the Photometric Plane of the intermediate redshift cluster Cl 1358+62 ($`z`$=0.33) is constructed and shown to have comprable scatter to the local Photometric Plane.

## 2 Kinematic and Photometric Data

The photometric data for the present investigation have been taken from table 2 of Caon, Capaccioli & D’Onofrio (1993) and table A1 of D’Onofrio, Capaccioli & Caon (1994). The data is discussed further in Caon, Capaccioli & Rampazzo (1990) and Caon, Capaccioli & D’Onofrio (1994a). In essence, it consists of a ($`B`$-band) magnitude-limited sample of elliptical and non-barred S0 galaxies which is 100 per cent complete down to $`B_T`$=15 mag for the Fornax cluster and 80 per cent complete down to $`B_T`$=14 mag for the Virgo cluster. These tables give the model-independent equivalent half-light radii ($`r_\mathrm{e}=\sqrt{a_\mathrm{e}b_\mathrm{e}}`$, where $`a_\mathrm{e}`$ and $`b_\mathrm{e}`$ are the half-light radii of the semi-major and semi-minor axis) and the $`B`$-band surface brightness at this radius ($`\mu _\mathrm{e}`$). These two quantities will therefore be used together with the equivalent-profile Sérsic index $`n_{\mathrm{eq}}`$ ($`n`$ hereafter). The equivalent axis rather than the major-axis was selected because more galaxies have tabulated values of $`n_{\mathrm{eq}}`$ than $`n_{\mathrm{maj}}`$. Typical erorrs for the value of $`n`$ are around 25%, or 0.10 dex for $`\mathrm{log}n`$.

No attempt has been made here to re-model the light profile data as this task was very recently performed by D’Onofrio (2001a, 2001b). Using his new data produced consistent results (see section 4) with the data referred to above.

The trend of increasing central bulge intensity with increasing bulge luminosity (and $`n`$) which holds for spiral galaxy bulges (Khosroshahi et al. 2000b), and dwarf elliptical and ordinary elliptical galaxies (Jerjen & Binggeli 1997; Graham, Trujillo & Caon 2001) breaks down for the high-luminosity ellipticals (see, e.g. Faber et al. 1997, their figure 4). This is likely due, at least in part, to the presence of ‘cores’ in bright elliptical galaxies (Ferrarese et al. 1994; Lauer et al. 1995). Consequently, the (extrapolated) central surface brightness derived from a Sérsic model may not always be realised, especially for those galaxies with large values of $`n`$. As the present investigation will use several bright elliptical galaxies, the central surface brightness (used by Khosroshahi et al. 2000a and Möllenhoff & Heidt 2001) will therefore not be used here. Instead, the mean surface brightness within the effective half-light radius will be used. Values of $`\mu _\mathrm{e}`$ have been converted111See, e.g., Appendix A of Graham & Colless 1997. into $`<\mu >_\mathrm{e}`$, the mean surface brightness within $`r_\mathrm{e}`$, in units of mag arcsec-2. This is what is typically used for constructing the Fundamental Plane. When expressed in linear units, this term shall be denoted $`\mathrm{\Sigma }_\mathrm{e}`$.

Central velocity dispersion measurements ($`\sigma _0`$) have been taken from Hypercat222Hypercat can be reached at http://www-obs.univ-lyon1.fr/hypercat/. In order to make a direct comparison between the Fundamental Plane and the Photometric plane, only galaxies for which central velocity dispersion measurements and $`n_{\mathrm{eq}}`$ are available have been used. This resulted in a final sample of 19 Es and 11 S0s from the Virgo cluster, and 8 Es from the Fornax cluster. This is therefore in no sense a statistically complete galaxy sample. The collated data set is given in Table 1.

The central velocity dispersion has been plotted against the equivalent- (and major-) axis Sérsic index in Figure 1. It is worth stating the obvious here: these are two completely independently derived quantities. Despite this, and the heterogeneous nature of the velocity dispersion data, for the elliptical galaxy sample the Spearman rank-order correlation coefficient is $`r_s`$=0.82 when using $`n_{\mathrm{eq}}`$ and $`r_s`$=0.83 when using $`n_{\mathrm{maj}}`$. Obviously $`n`$ is not simply some random third parameter in the $`r^{1/n}`$ model which produces better profile fits. Quite the contrary, the Sérsic index not only traces the mass of a galaxy (given that central velocity dispersion is a reliable estimate of mass) but is also known to quantify a galaxy’s degree of concentration (Trujillo, Graham & Caon 2001; Graham, Trujillo & Caon 2001). The existence of colour gradients does however mean that $`n`$ will unfortunately be a function of bandpass, whereas stellar velocity dispersion should not.

## 3 The Fundamental and Photometric Planes

Performing a least-squares regression analysis which minimises the scatter in the distance-dependent quantity $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$ gave the Fundamental Plane relation $`r_\mathrm{e}\sigma _0^{1.11\pm 0.12}\mathrm{\Sigma }_\mathrm{e}^{0.71\pm 0.06}`$ with a vertical scatter of 0.137 dex in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$. This scatter translates to a 37 per cent error in distance per galaxy. The minimisation of $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$ on the two photometric parameters gave the Photometric Plane $`r_\mathrm{e}n^{0.86\pm 0.13}\mathrm{\Sigma }_\mathrm{e}^{0.57\pm 0.09}`$, with a vertical scatter of 0.170 dex in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$, or a 48 per cent error in distance (see Figure 2).

The above minimisation routine was tested on several galaxy sub-samples. Removing the 8 Fornax elliptical galaxies and using only the Virgo galaxies had no significant affect on the above results. In using only the elliptical galaxy sample from the Virgo and Fornax clusters (i.e. excluding the 11 S0 galaxies) also did not significantly alter the Fundamental Plane, but the Photometric Plane changed to $`r_\mathrm{e}n^{0.75\pm 0.17}\mathrm{\Sigma }_\mathrm{e}^{0.75\pm 0.12}`$, with a vertical scatter of 0.153 dex in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$, or a 42 per cent distance error per galaxy. Use of the velocity dispersion data from McElroy (1995) was also explored and found not alter the above results beyond the 1$`\sigma `$ significance level.

Using the complete sample of Virgo and Fornax galaxies and treating all variables equally (see, e.g., Feigelson & Babu 1992), rather than minimising the residuals of just one variable (as done above), yielded the Photometric Plane $`r_\mathrm{e}n^{0.89\pm 0.14}\mathrm{\Sigma }_\mathrm{e}^{0.60\pm 0.09}`$ and the Fundamental Plane $`r_\mathrm{e}\sigma _0^{1.22\pm 0.11}\mathrm{\Sigma }_\mathrm{e}^{0.74\pm 0.08}`$. A consistent result was obtained after the exclusion of the S0 galaxies, and the separate exclusion of the Fornax galaxies. This Fundamental Plane is also, as one might expect, in complete agreement with the multivariate analysis performed by D’Onofrio et al. (1997), where they obtained $`r_\mathrm{e}\sigma _0^{1.26\pm 0.09}\mathrm{\Sigma }_\mathrm{e}^{0.70\pm 0.03}`$ for their Virgo cluster data.

Given the tight correlation between $`n`$ and $`\sigma _0`$, one might not expect there to be any significant gains in using all four parameters (i.e. $`n,r_\mathrm{e},<\mu >_\mathrm{e}`$ and $`\sigma _0`$). Nonetheless, as the data is already at hand, a hyperplane was constructed and the scatter in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$ measured to be 0.125 dex (cf. 0.137 dex for the Fundamental Plane). Removing the 8 Fornax galaxies produced a scatter of 0.123 dex in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$, and the additional removal of the 11 S0 galaxies resulted in a scatter of only 0.105 dex in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$ about the hyperplane. This is equivalent to an error of 27 per cent in distance per galaxy, whereas the Fundamental Plane gave a scatter of 0.125 dex (33 per cent error in distance) for this reduced galaxy sample, and the Photometric Plane had a scatter of 0.141 dex (38 per cent error in distance).

The analysis above has been performed assuming that the Virgo and Fornax clusters reside at the same distance from us. The latest results from the HST Key project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale (Freedman et al. 2001) find a Virgo-Fornax distance modulus of 0.51$`\pm `$0.21 mag. This result is based on Cepheid distances to 5 spiral galaxies in the Virgo cluster and 3 spiral galaxies in the Fornax cluster.

We can quickly gauge the Photometric Plane’s ability to estimate distances by adding some constant value to one clusters distance-dependent values of $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$ (kpc) until the Photometric Plane of the combined Virgo+Fornax sample has a minimum scatter in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$. Both the E+S0 and the E-only galaxy samples were found to have a minimum scatter when the Fornax galaxy radii were increased by 0.06 dex, giving a Virgo-Fornax distance modulus of +0.30 mag and placing Fornax 15 per cent more distant than Virgo.

A more accurate approach is to use the Working-Hotelling (1929) confidence bands described, and further developed, in Feigelson and Babu (1992). This technique has previously been applied to Fundamental Plane data in Graham (1998) to determine the intercept offset along the $`\mathrm{log}r_e`$ axis between the Virgo and Fornax Fundamental Planes and is described there. The method allows for the fact that an error in slope to the fitted data will cause a greater discrepancy at the ends of the relation, and hence the method gives more weight to central data points. For our full galaxy sample, the Virgo and Fornax Fundamental Planes were found to have an offset of 0.114$`\pm `$0.067 dex in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$, implying a Virgo-Fornax distance modulus of 0.57$`\pm `$0.34 mag. The Photometric Planes had an offset of 0.117$`\pm `$0.088 dex in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$, implying a distance modulus of 0.59$`\pm `$0.44 mag. The largish error can, in part, be attributed to the presence of only 8 galaxies in our Fornax cluster sample. Including those galaxies without velocity dispersion estimates but with measurements of $`n`$, the Virgo-Fornax distance modulus derived from the Photometric Plane was found to be 0.62$`\pm `$0.30 mag333The results given at the start of this section did not change significantly when a Virgo-Fornax distance modulus of 0.6 was applied because there are only 8 Fornax galaxies..

## 4 Discussion

It had been our intention to analyze the Photometric Plane using those galaxies studied by Tonry et al. (1997) in their measurements of surface brightness fluctuations (SBF) for determining galaxy distances. However, with regard to their data reduction process they write: “Finally, we make a mask of the obvious stars and companion galaxies in the cleaned image and determine the sky background by fitting the outer parts of the galaxy image with an $`r^{1/4}`$ profile plus sky level.” Unfortunately, this procedure is fundamentally flawed because of its assumption that all elliptical galaxies have outer $`r^{1/4}`$ profiles. Any real departures from an $`r^{1/4}`$ profile in the actual galaxy light profile will be largely erased by their tunable sky-level. This of course has many consequences: for example, colour gradients will be erroneous.

This explains the strange behaviour of the $`r^{1/4}`$ models fitted to this data by Kelson et al. (2000a). While their models match the outer light-profiles very well, they fail to the fit the inner regions of almost every galaxy. Although fitting an $`r^{1/4}`$ model to an $`r^{1/n}`$ profile may not effect the $`r_\mathrm{e}`$ and $`\mathrm{\Sigma }_\mathrm{e}`$ combination in the standard Fundamental Plane (Trujillo et al. 2001), the erroneous construction of an $`r^{1/4}`$ profile from an $`r^{1/n}`$ profile is another issue. This may possibly explain why the Fundamental Plane analysis of Kelson et al. (2000a) gave a notably different Hubble constant to the other techniques employed by the HST Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale team444The use of aperture velocity dispersions within widely varying fractions of each galaxy’s effective radius (as also used here) may have also been a contributing factor., and certainly rules out our hope to derive a Photometric Plane from these data.

Across the Atlantic, D’Onofrio (2001a,b) recently performed a two-dimensional fit to the light distributions of the magnitude-limited galaxy samples discussed in section 2. He fitted both seeing-convolved $`r^{1/n}`$ and seeing-convolved ($`r^{1/n}`$ \+ exponential) models. Using the parameters from his $`r^{1/n}`$ models fitted to the ‘genuine’ elliptical galaxies, and the Sérsic bulge parameters from the ($`r^{1/n}`$ \+ exponential) models fitted to the ‘genuine’ S0 galaxies gave a Photometric (and Fundamental) Plane consistent (at the 1$`\sigma `$-level) with that derived above using the full galaxy sample of 38 objects mentioned in section 2. Using only the elliptical galaxies from D’Onofrio (2001) gave a level of scatter equivalent to that found previously; inclusion of the S0 galaxies resulted in an increased scatter. It should however be noted that the analysis by D’Onofrio (2001a,b) took into account several errors which can affect the structural parameters and in many ways this new data set is to be preferred. The planes constructed using both data sets are, reassuringly, the same.

It is of course of interest to know what the prospects are for the Photometric Plane at higher redshifts. Fortunately we have been able to immediately address this question using published Sérsic model parameters from galaxies in the $`z`$=0.33 cluster Cl 1358+62 (Kelson et al. 2000b, their table 1). Kelson et al. fitted seeing-convolved Sérsic models to their $`z`$=0.33 galaxy light profiles. Performing a regression that minimised the residuals in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$ for the combined E, E/S0 and S0 galaxy sample gave a scatter of 0.150 dex (an error of 41 per cent in distance555A distance error of 35 per cent was obtained when the later galaxy types used by Kelson et al. (2000b) were included here.), the same as obtained above for the Virgo/Fornax elliptical galaxy sample. This is an extremely encouraging result, which could well be pursued with cluster samples spanning a range of redshifts (e.g. Fasano et al. 2002).

While the Photometric Plane used here can be viewed as a variant of the Fundamental Plane, in which the Sérsic index $`n`$ has replaced the velocity dispersion, it can also be seen as an extension to the scalelength–shape666Given the results of Figure 1, the luminosity–shape ($`Ln`$) relation of Young & Currie (1994) can be understood as a variant of the luminosity–velocity dispersion relation of Faber & Jackson (1976). relation of Young & Currie (1995; 2001). The scatter in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$ about the $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$$`\mathrm{log}n`$ relation for the present data sample is 0.35 dex, while the scatter we have computed about the Kormendy relation between $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$ and $`<\mu >_\mathrm{e}`$ is 0.25 dex777These values reduced to 0.28 dex and 0.21 dex when using only the Virgo Elliptical galaxies.. As we have seen above, using all three photometric parameters resulted in a tighter correlation.

Concerns of parameter coupling in the fitting of the Sérsic model, and henceforth spurious correlations in our Photometric Plane, can largely be laid to rest (see also Trujillo et al. 2001). We have used both the model-independent effective radius, and surface brightness at this radius, obtained directly from the image with no recourse to the Sérsic model. The Sérsic index $`n`$ has of course come from the best-fitting $`r^{1/n}`$ model and this was used to convert $`\mu _\mathrm{e}`$ into $`<\mu >_\mathrm{e}`$. However, the scatter about our Photometric Planes are the same no matter which of these two surface brightness terms we use.

One big advantage in replacing the Fundamental Plane with a a relation based on purely photometric quantities is the considerable reduction in observational time and data analysis. This has of course been recognised before, and led Scodeggio, Giovanelli & Haynes (1997) to replace the stellar velocity dispersion term in the Fundamental Plane with the difference between the magnitude of a galaxy and that of the mode of the Gaussian luminosity function of the E/S0 galaxies. This method could however only be applied to galaxy clusters whose E/S0 luminosity function could be reliably determined. Additionally, the accuracy for distance determinations did not scale with the square root of the number of objects used to perform the fit. Nonetheless, this was an interesting venture into the use of a purely photometric distance indicator for early-type galaxies.

Assuming an isotropic velocity dispersion tensor, the absence of rotational energy, a constant mass-to-light ratio and a constant specific entropy for elliptical galaxies, Lima Neto et al. (1999) presented theoretical arguments for the existence of what they termed an ‘Entropic Plane’. This is a two-dimensional plane within the three-dimensional space of photometric parameters $`\mathrm{ln}\mathrm{\Sigma }_0`$, $`\mathrm{ln}h`$ and $`F(n)`$, where $`\mathrm{\Sigma }_0`$ is the central intensity of a bulge, $`h`$ is the radial scalelength (rather than half-light radius), and $`F(n)`$ is a function of the Sérsic index $`n`$.

Analyzing a sample of ordinary elliptical and dwarf spheroidal galaxies (with values of $`n`$ less than 4) taken from the rich clusters Coma and ABCG 85, and also from the group NGC 4839, Lima Neto et al. (1999) showed that the tilt to their observed Entropic planes did not quite match the value expected from theory. Márquez et al. (2000) subsequently identified one likely cause for the offset: Elliptical galaxies do not have a constant specific entropy but a value which increases with galaxy luminosity. This conclusion was reached using the same data sample used in Lima Neto et al. (1999) and was further supported by simulations of hierarchial merging galaxy formation. One may well expect the level of entropy (disorder) to increase through mergers. Nonetheless, despite this and other likely systematic differences with luminosity888Low luminosity elliptical and S0 galaxies are known to contain significant rotation (e.g., Davies et al. 1983; Prugniel & Simien 1994, 1996; Busarello et al. 1997; Graham et al. 1998), and dwarf elliptical galaxies are generally believed to be anisotropic (Bender, Burstein & Faber 1992). The issue of a constant M/L ratio with luminosity remains somewhat undecided, or at least has not yet been universally agreed upon (see, e.g., Prugniel & Simien 1997). , a relatively tight plane was found to exist within a purely photometric set of parameters. The physical grounds for this are pursued further in Márquez et al. (2001). Additional insight may come from the statistical mechanics of violent relaxation (Lynden-Bell 1967) which have been invoked to explain the range of elliptical galaxy light-profile shapes, such that $`n`$ increases as the luminosity (mass) does (Hjorth & Madsen 1995).

To conclude, the Photometric Planes studied here display $``$15-30 per cent more scatter than the Fundamental Planes corresponding to the same galaxy sample. Due to the strong ($`r_s`$=0.82) correlation between the Sérsic index $`n`$ and the central stellar velocity dispersion, hyperplanes which use all three photometric parameters plus the velocity dispersion have 11-18 per cent less scatter than the Fundamental Plane. The scatter in $`\mathrm{log}r_e`$ about the Photometric Plane translates to a distance error of $``$38-48 per cent per galaxy. A scatter of 35-41 per cent was found for the $`z`$=0.33 cluster Cl 1358+62. The offset in $`\mathrm{log}r_\mathrm{e}`$ between the Virgo and Fornax Photometric Planes constructed using galaxies without velocity dispersion measurements gave a distance modulus of 0.62$`\pm `$0.30, implying the Fornax cluster is, on average, 33$`\pm `$15 per cent more distant. This result is in good agreement with other accurate distance determinators, and indicates the applicability of the Photometric Plane to practical situations. Although the Fundamental Plane appears to have less scatter than the Photometric Plane, we would recommend authors construct the Photometric Plane and check if its level of accuracy is sufficient for their needs before pursuing additional (expensive) kinematical data.