arXiv subjects

Diana Mahalu

Publications and source records attributed to Diana Mahalu.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2018

Melting of interference in the fractional quantum Hall effect: Appearance of neutral modes

Electrons living in a two-dimensional world under a strong magnetic field - the so-called fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE) - often manifest themselves as fractionally charged quasiparticles (anyons). Moreover, being under special conditions they are expected to be immune to the environment, thus may serve as building blocks for future quantum computers. Interference of such anyons is the very first step towards understanding their anyonic statistics. However, the complex edge-modes structure of the fractional quantum Hall states, combined with upstream neutral modes, have been suspected to prevent an observation of the much sought after interference of anyons. Here, we report of finding a direct correlation between the appearance of neutral modes and the gradual disappearance of interference in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI), as the bulk filling factor is lowered towards Landau filling ν_B =1; followed by a complete interference quench at ν_B=1. Specifically, the interference was found to start diminishing at ν_B~1.5 with a growing upstream neutral mode, which was detected by a born upstream shot noise in the input quantum point contact (QPC) to the MZI. Moreover, at the same time a ν_QPC =1/3 conductance plateau, carrying shot-noise, appeared in the transmission of the QPC - persisting until bulk filling ν_B =1/2. We identified this conductance plateau to result from edge reconstruction, which leads to an upstream neutral mode. Here, we also show that even the particle-like quasiparticles are accompanied by upstream neutral modes, therefore suppressing interference in the FQHE regime.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2018

Attractive Coulomb interactions in a triple quantum dot

Electron pairing due to a repulsive Coulomb interaction in a triple quantum dot (TQD) is experimentally studied. It is found that electron pairing in two dots of a TQD is mediated by the third dot, when the third dot strongly couples with the other two via Coulomb repulsion so that the TQD is in the twofold degenerate ground states of (1, 0, 0) and (0, 1, 1) charge configurations. Using the transport spectroscopy that monitors electron transport through each individual dot of a TQD, we analyze how to achieve the degeneracy in experiments, how the degeneracy is related to electron pairing, and the resulting nontrivial behavior of electron transport. Our findings may be used to design a system with nontrivial electron correlations and functionalities.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2018

Tuning methods for semiconductor spin--qubits

We present efficient methods to reliably characterize and tune gate-defined semiconductor spin qubits. Our methods are designed to target the tuning procedures of semiconductor double quantum dot in GaAs heterostructures, but can easily be adapted to other quantum-dot-like qubit systems. These tuning procedures include the characterization of the inter-dot tunnel coupling, the tunnel coupling to the surrounding leads and the identification of the various fast initialization points for the operation of the qubit. Since semiconductor-based spin qubits are compatible with standard semiconductor process technology and hence promise good prospects of scalability, the challenge of efficiently tuning the dot's parameters will only grow in the near future, once the multi-qubit stage is reached. With the anticipation of being used as the basis for future automated tuning protocols, all measurements presented here are fast-to-execute and easy-to-analyze characterization methods. They result in quantitative measures of the relevant qubit parameters within a couple of seconds, and require almost no human interference.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

Negative Magnetoresistance in Amorphous Indium Oxide Wires

We study magneto-transport properties of several amorphous Indium oxide nanowires of different widths. The wires show superconducting transition at zero magnetic field, but, there exist a finite resistance at the lowest temperature. The $R(T)$ broadening was explained by available phase slip models. At low field, and far below the superconducting critical temperature, the wires with diameter equal to or less than 100 nm, show negative magnetoresistance (nMR). The magnitude of nMR and the crossover field are found to be dependent on both temperature and the cross-sectional area. We find that this intriguing behavior originates from the interplay between two field dependent contributions.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2016

A New Paradigm for Edge Reconstruction in Fractional Quantum Hall States

Questions on the nature of edge reconstruction and "where does the current flow" in the quantum Hall effect (QHE) have been debated for years. Moreover, the recent observation of proliferation of "upstream" neutral modes in the fractional QHE raised doubts about the present models of edge channels. In this article we focus on hole-conjugate states, nu=2/3 and nu=3/5, and present a new picture of their edge reconstruction. For example, while the present model for nu=2/3 consists of a single downstream charge channel with conductance 2/3 e^2/h and an upstream neutral mode, we show that the current is carried by two separate downstream edge channels, each with conductance 1/3 e^2/h, accompanied by upstream neutral mode(s). We find that if the two downstream channels are not equilibrated, inter-mode equilibration (via particle exchange) takes place over a distance of microns, with the two channels effectively behaving as a single channel. Moreover, the inter-channel equilibration is accompanied by an excitation of upstream neutral modes. In turn, the counter-propagating neutral modes, moving in close proximity to the charge modes, fragment into propagating charges, inducing thus downstream current fluctuations with zero net current - a novel mechanism for non-equilibrium noise. This unexpected edge reconstruction underlines the need for better understanding of edge reconstruction and energy transport in all fractional QHE states.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

New Paradigm for Edge Reconstruction of Fractional States: Part Two - Noise

The recent, unexpected, findings of upstream neutral modes in particle-like fractional quantum Hall states, led to a realization that the nature of the neutral modes is far from being understood. Moreover, the observation of spatially separated of (at least) two downstream charge modes in hole-conjugate states (see Part One - Conductance), still faces unresolved contradictions between conductance and noise measurements. In this work we show how current fluctuations measured in various configurations shed light on the interplay between neutral and charge modes. We demonstrate that once one of the charge modes is taken out of equilibrium, counter-propagating neutral modes born in the equilibration process affect the upstream charge modes, giving rise to a novel mechanism for shot noise with quantized Fano factors. We present a theoretical model that accounts for most of the experimental observations.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

Finite Size Effect in Amorphous Indium oxide

We study the low temperature magneto-transport properties of several highly disordered amorphous Indium oxide(a:InO) samples. Simultaneously fabricated devices comprising a 2-dimensional (2D) film and 10 $μ$m long wires of different widths were measured to investigate the effect of size as we approach the 1D limit, which is around 4 times the correlation length, and happens to be around 100 nm for a:InO. The film and the wires showed magnetic field ({\it B}) induced superconductor to insulator transition (SIT). In the superconducting side, the resistance increased with decrease in wire width, whereas, an opposite trend is observed in the insulating side. We find that this effect can be explained in light of charge-vortex duality picture of the SIT. Resistance of the 2D film follows an activated behavior over the temperature ($T$), whereas, the wires show a crossover from the high-$T$ activated to a $T$-independent behavior. At high temperature regime the wires' resistance follow the film's until they deviate and became independent of $T$. We find that temperature at which this deviation occurs evolve with magnetic field and the width of the wire, which show the effect of finite size on the transport.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

Observation of Interaction-Induced Modulations of a Quantum Hall Liquid's Area

Studies of electronic interferometers, based on edge channel transport in the quantum Hall effect regime, have been stimulated by the search for evidence of abelian and non-abelian anyonic statistics of fractional charges.These studies found the ubiquitous electronic Fabry-Perot interferometer to be Coulomb dominated, thus masking coherent Aharonov-Bohm interference. Typically, the main signature of the Coulomb dominated regime is the lack of interference of the outer most edge channel as the magnetic field is varied. This seemingly surprising behavior is explained by the shrinkage of the interference area with increasing magnetic field, thus keeping the number of electrons and the enclosed flux constant. The model further stipulates, but with no experimental evidence thus far, that once the area shrinks by a size corresponding to an entire flux-quantum, it abruptly inflates to its original size leading to an unobservable 2π phase jump. Here we report on the observation of such area breathing by performing a partial screening of the Coulomb interactions. The novelty is that the variation of the phase induced by the external knobs is not fully cancelled by the area response. We infer the area variations (with a resolution on the order of ~50 nm$^{2}$) from conductance measurements. The latter are sensitive to the continuous phase variations, and reveal abrupt phase-jumps (smaller than 2π). Based on our results, we propose a new experimental tool for probing anyonic statistics.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

Charge of a quasiparticle in a superconductor

Non-linear charge transport in SIS Josephson junctions has a unique signature in the shuttled charge quantum between the two superconductors. In the zero-bias limit Cooper pairs, each with twice the electron charge, carry the Josephson current. An applied bias $V_{SD}$ leads to multiple Andreev reflections (MAR), which in the limit of weak tunneling probability should lead to integer multiples of the electron charge $ne$ traversing the junction, with $n$ integer larger than $2Δ/eV_{SD}$ and $Δ$ the superconducting order parameter. Exceptionally, just above the gap, $eV_{SD}>2Δ$, with Andreev reflections suppressed, one would expect the current to be carried by partitioned quasiparticles; each with energy dependent charge, being a superposition of an electron and a hole. Employing shot noise measurements in an SIS junction induced in an InAs nanowire (with noise proportional to the partitioned charge), we first observed quantization of the partitioned charge $q=e^*/e=n$, with $n=1-4$; thus reaffirming the validity of our charge interpretation. Concentrating next on the bias region $eV_{SD}{\approx}2Δ$, we found a reproducible and clear dip in the extracted charge to $q{\approx}0.6$, which, after excluding other possibilities, we attribute to the partitioned quasiparticle charge. Such dip is supported by numerical simulations of our SIS structure.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

Dephasing of an Electronic Two-Path Interferometer

This work was motivated by the quest for observing interference of fractionally charged quasi particles. Here, we study the behavior of an electronic Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) at the integer quantum Hall effect (IQHE) regime at filling factors greater than one. Both the visibility and the drift velocity were measured, and were found to be highly correlated as function of filling factor. As the filling factor approached unity, the visibility quenched, not to recover for filling factors smaller than unity. Alternatively, the velocity saturated around a minimal value at unity filling factor. We highlight the significant role interactions between the interfering edge and the bulk play, as well as that of the defining potential at the edge. Shot noise measurements suggest that phase-averaging (due to phase randomization), rather than single particle decoherence, is likely to be the cause of the dephasing in the fractional regime.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2015

Little-Parks Oscillations in a Single Ring in the vicinity of the Superconductor-Insulator Transition

We present results of measurements obtained from a mesoscopic ring of a highly disordered superconductor. Superimposed on a smooth magnetoresistance background we find periodic oscillations with a period that is independent of the strength of the magnetic field. The period of the oscillations is consistent with charge transport by Cooper pairs. The oscillations persist unabated for more than 90 periods, through the transition to the insulating phase, up to our highest field of 12 T.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2014

Non-Equilibrated Counter Propagating Edge Modes in the Fractional Quantum Hall Regime

It is well established that 'density reconstruction' at the edge of a two dimensional electron gas takes place for 'hole-conjugate' states in the fractional quantum Hall effect (such as $ν=2/3, 3/5,$ etc.). Such reconstruction leads, after equilibration between counter propagating edge channels, to a downstream chiral current edge mode accompanied by upstream chiral neutral modes (carrying energy without net charge). Short equilibration length prevented thus far observation of the counter propagating current channels - the hallmark of density reconstruction. Here, we provide evidence for such non-equilibrated counter-propagating current channels, in short regions $(l=4μm$ and $l=0.4μm)$ of fractional filling $ν=2/3$, and, unexpectedly, $ν=1/3$, sandwiched between two regions of integer filling $ν=1$. Rather than a two-terminal fractional conductance, the conductance exhibited a significant ascension towards unity quantum conductance $(G_Q=e^2/h)$ at or near the fractional plateaus. We attribute this conductance rise to the presence of a non-equilibrated downstream $ν=1$ channel in the fractional short regions.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2014

Robust Electron Pairing in the Integer Quantum Hall Effect Regime

Electron pairing is a rare phenomenon appearing only in a few unique physical systems; e.g., superconductors and Kondo-correlated quantum dots. Here, we report on an unexpected, but robust, electron "pairing" in the integer quantum Hall effect (IQHE) regime. The pairing takes place within an interfering edge channel circulating in an electronic Fabry-Perot interferometer at a wide range of bulk filling factors, $2<ν _B<5$. The main observations are: (a) High visibility Aharonov-Bohm conductance oscillations with magnetic flux periodicity $Δϕ=φ_0/2=h/2e$ (instead of the ubiquitous $h/e$), with $e$ the electron charge and $h$ the Planck constant; (b) An interfering quasiparticle charge $e ^* {\sim} 2e$ - revealed by quantum shot noise measurements; and (c) Full dephasing of the $h/2e$ periodicity by induced dephasing of the adjacent edge channel (while keeping the interfering edge channel intact) : a clear realization of inter-channel entanglement. While this pairing phenomenon clearly results from inter-channel interaction, the exact mechanism that leads to e-e attraction within a single edge channel is not clear.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2013

Proliferation of neutral modes in fractional quantum Hall states

The fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE) is a canonical example of a topological phase in a correlated 2D electron gas under strong magnetic field. While electric currents propagate as chiral downstream edge modes, chargeless upstream chiral neutral edge modes were recently observed only in hole-conjugate states (states filling ν, n+1/2<ν<n+1, with n=0,1,2,...), and in the even denominator state ν=5/2. It is believed that spontaneous 'density reconstruction' near the edges of the 2D gas, leads to multiple counter propagating edge channels, being separated from each other by incompressible strips. Unavoidable disorder induces inter-channel tunneling; accompanied by Coulomb interaction it renormalizes the multiple edge channels to a downstream charge mode and upstream neutral edge mode(s), while maintaining the parity requirements (e.g., the heat conductance along the edge) dictated by the bulk. Here, we report of highly sensitive shot noise measurements that revealed unexpected presence of neutral modes in a variety of non-hole-conjugate fractional states. As already reported previously, we did not observe neutral modes in any of the integer states. In addition to the upstream neutral edge modes, we were surprised to find also neutral energy modes that propagate through the incompressible bulk. While along the edge, density reconstruction may account for the edge modes, we are not aware of a model that can account for the bulk modes. The proliferation of neutral modes, in every tested fractional state, changes drastically the accepted picture of FQHE states: an insulating bulk and 1D chiral edge channels. The apparent ubiquitous presence of these energy modes may account for decoherence of fractional quasiparticles - preventing observation of coherent interference in the fractional regime.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2013

Fractional charges in emergent neutral modes at the integer quantum Hall effect

Charge fractionalization is a possible emergent excitation in a low-dimensional system of interacting electrons. A known example is that of fractional charges in the fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE) regime, which is a consequence of strong Coulomb interaction among the electrons whose kinetic energy is quenched by the strong magnetic field. Alternatively, the integer QHE (IQHE), with electrons behaving largely as independent particles in Landau levels (LLs), lacks such fractionalization. However, for integer LLs filling v=2, 3,... electrons propagate in copropagating adjacent chiral edge channels, and thus interact and modify the non-interacting LLs. For example, at v=2, an electron injected selectively into a single non-interacting (bare) edge channel is expected to decompose into a 'fast' mode and a 'slow' mode in the region of interaction; each mode carry fractional charges shared between the two bare channels. Here, we report our sensitive shot noise measurement that affirms the presence of such fractionalization in v=2. Injecting partitioned current into a 'hot' edge channel led to low frequency shot noise in the adjacent currentless 'cold' edge channel after it had been partitioned. Controlling the partitioning of the hot and cold channels allowed a determination of the fractional charges in both channels as well as the channels' velocity difference. This approach can be easily extended to study interaction in two-dimensional systems with a topology dictating edge channels transport.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2012

Extracting net current from an upstream neutral mode in the fractional quantum Hall regime

Upstream neutral modes, counter propagating to charge modes and carrying energy without net charge, had been predicted to exist in some of the fractional quantum Hall states and were recently observed via noise measurements. Understanding such modes will assist in identifying the wavefunction of these states, as well as shedding light on the role of Coulomb interactions within edge modes. In this work, performed mainly in the nu=2/3 state, we placed a quantum dot a few micrometers upstream of an ohmic contact, which served as a neutral modes source. We showed the neutral modes heat the input of the dot, causing a net thermo-electric current to flow through it. Heating of the electrons led to a decay of the neutral mode, manifested in the vanishing of the thermo-electric current at T>110mK. This setup provides a straightforward method to investigate upstream neutral modes without turning to the more cumbersome noise measurements.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2012

Entangling electrons by splitting Cooper pairs: Two-particle conductance resonance and time coincidence measurements

Entanglement, being at the heart of the Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) paradox, is a necessary ingredient in processing quantum information. Cooper pairs in superconductors - being composites of two fully entangled electrons - can be split adiabatically, thus forming entangled electrons. We fabricated such electron splitter by contacting an aluminum superconductor strip at the center of a suspended InAs nanowire; terminated at both ends with two normal metallic drains. Intercepting each half of the nanowire by gate - induced Coulomb blockaded quantum dot strongly impeded the flow of Cooper pairs due to large charging energy, while still permitting passage of single electrons. Here, we provide conclusive evidence of extremely high efficiency Cooper pairs splitting via observing positive average (conductance) and time (shot noise) correlations of the split electrons in the two opposite drains of the nanowire. Moreover, The actual charge of the injected quasiparticles was verified by shot noise measurements.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2012

Universal lineshape of the Kondo zero-bias anomaly in a quantum dot

Encouraged by the recent real-time renormalization group results we carried out a detailed analysis of the nonequilibrium Kondo conductance observed in an InAs nanowire-based quantum dot and found them to be in excellent agreement. We show that in a wide range of bias the Kondo conductance zero-bias anomaly is scaled by the Kondo temperature to a universal lineshape predicted by the numerical study. The lineshape can be approximated by a phenomenological expression of a single argument $eV_{sd}=k_{\rm B}T_{\rm K}$. The knowledge of an analytical expression for the lineshape provides an alternative way for estimation of the Kondo temperature in a real experiment, with no need for time consuming temperature dependence measurements of the linear conductance.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗