arXiv subjects

E. H. Linfield

Publications and source records attributed to E. H. Linfield.

33 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2002

Magnetoresistance of a 2D electron gas caused by electron interactions in the transition from the diffusive to the ballistic regime

On a high-mobility 2D electron gas we have observed, in strong magnetic fields (omega_{c} tau > 1), a parabolic negative magnetoresistance caused by electron-electron interactions in the regime of k_{B} T tau / hbar ~ 1, which is the transition from the diffusive to the ballistic regime. From the temperature dependence of this magnetoresistance the interaction correction to the conductivity delta sigma_{xx}^{ee}(T) is obtained in the situation of a long-range fluctuation potential and strong magnetic field. The results are compared with predictions of the new theory of interaction-induced magnetoresistance.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2001

Modulation origin of 1/f noise in two-dimensional hopping

We show that 1/f noise in a two-dimensional electron gas with hopping conduction can be explained by the modulation of conducting paths by fluctuating occupancy of non-conducting states. The noise is sensitive to the structure of the critical hopping network, which is varied by changing electron concentration, sample size and temperature. With increasing temperature, it clearly reveals the crossover between different hopping regimes.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv1999

Anomalous behaviour of S/N mesoscopic structures near T_c

We observe a maximum in the conductance of Aluminum / n-GaAs junctions at temperatures 20 mK lower than the superconducting transition temperature. This is the first observation of a non- monotonic behavior of the conductance near the superconducting transition in superconducting normal junctions. To accommodate this effect we calculate the full temperature dependence of the conductance of these structures, invoking quasiclassical Green's functions in the diffusive limit. In addition to the well-known low temperature peak at temperatures on the order of the Thouless energy, we find a maximum near the critical temperature. This peak has the same origin as the subgap conductance observed in superconducting-normal junctions at low temperatures. Its calculated magnitude and position are in good agreement with our experimental observation.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv1999

Weak localisation, hole-hole interactions and the "metal"-insulator transition in two dimensions

A detailed investigation of the metallic behaviour in high quality GaAs-AlGaAs two dimensional hole systems reveals the presence of quantum corrections to the resistivity at low temperatures. Despite the low density ($r_{s}>10$) and high quality of these systems, both weak localisation (observed via negative magnetoresistance) and weak hole-hole interactions (giving a correction to the Hall constant) are present in the so-called metallic phase where the resistivity decreases with decreasing temperature. The results suggest that even at high $r_{s}$ there is no metallic phase at T=0 in two dimensions.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv1999

An observation of spin-valve effects in a semiconductor field effect transistor: a novel spintronic device

We present the first spintronic semiconductor field effect transistor. The injector and collector contacts of this device were made from magnetic permalloy thin films with different coercive fields so that they could be magnetized either parallel or antiparallel to each other in different applied magnetic fields. The conducting medium was a two dimensional electron gas (2DEG) formed in an AlSb/InAs quantum well. Data from this device suggest that its resistance is controlled by two different types of spin-valve effect: the first occurring at the ferromagnet-2DEG interfaces; and the second occuring in direct propagation between contacts.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv1998

Re-entrant insulator-metal-insulator transition at B=0 in a two dimensional hole gas

We report the observation of a re-entrant insulator--metal--insulator transition at B=0 in a two dimensional (2D) hole gas in GaAs at temperatures down to 30mK. At the lowest carrier densities the holes are strongly localised. As the carrier density is increased a metallic phase forms, with a clear transition at σ= ~5e^2/h. Further increasing the density weakens the metallic behaviour, and eventually leads to the formation of a second insulating state for σ> ~50e^2/h. In the limit of high carrier densities, where k_F.l is large and r_s is small, we thus recover the results of previous work on weakly interacting systems showing the absence of a metallic state in 2D.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv1997

Current flow past an etched barrier: field emission from a two-dimensional electron gas

We find that, under appropriate conditions, electrons can pass a barrier etched across a two dimensional electron gas (2DEG) by field emission from the GaAs/AlGaAs heterojunction into a second, low-density 2DEG formed deep in the substrate. The current-voltage characteristics exhibit a rapid increase in the current at the field emission threshold and intrinsic bistability above this threshold, consistent with a heating instability occurring in the second 2DEG. These results may explain similar behaviour recently seen in a number of front-gated devices by several groups.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv1997

Resonant Tunneling Spectroscopy of Interacting Localised States -- Observation of the Correlated Current Through Two Impurities

We study effects of Coulomb interactions between localised states in a potential barrier by measuring resonant-tunneling spectra with a small bias applied along the barrier. In the ohmic regime the conductance of 0.2um--gate lateral GaAs microstructures shows distinct peaks associated with individual localised states. However, when an electric field is applied new states start contributing to the current, which becomes a correlated electron flow through two interacting localised states. Several situations of such correlations have been observed, and the conclusions are confirmed by calculations.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv1997

Metal-insulator transition at B=0 in a dilute two dimensional GaAs-AlGaAs hole gas

We report the observation of a metal insulator transition at B=0 in a high mobility two dimensional hole gas in a GaAs-AlGaAs heterostructure. A clear critical point separates the insulating phase from the metallic phase, demonstrating the existence of a well defined minimum metallic conductivity sigma(min)=2e/h. The sigma(T) data either side of the transition can be `scaled' on to one curve with a single parameter (To). The application of a parallel magnetic field increases sigma(min) and broadens the transition. We argue that strong electron-electron interactions (rs = 10) destroy phase coherence, removing quantum intereference corrections to the conductivity.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv1997

Correlation Effects on the Coupled Plasmon Modes of a Double Quantum Well

At temperatures comparable to the Fermi temperature, we have measured a plasmon enhanced Coulomb drag in a GaAs/AlGaAs double quantum well electron system. This measurement provides a probe of the many-body corrections to the coupled plasmon modes, and we present a detailed comparison between experiment and theory testing the validity of local field theories. Using a perpendicular magnetic field to raise the magnetoplasmon energy we can induce a crossover to single-particle Coulomb scattering.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv1996

Tunneling Between Parallel Two-Dimensional Electron Gases

The tunneling between two parallel two-dimensional electron gases has been investigated as a function of temperature $T$, carrier density $n$, and the applied perpendicular magnetic field $B$. In zero magnetic field the equilibrium resonant lineshape is Lorentzian, reflecting the Lorentzian form of the spectral functions within each layer. From the width of the tunneling resonance the lifetime of the electrons within a 2DEG has been measured as a function of $n$ and $T$, giving information about the density dependence of the electron-impurity scattering and the temperature dependence of the electron-electron scattering. In a magnetic field there is a general suppression of equilibrium tunneling for fields above $B=0.6$ T. A gap in the tunneling density of states has been measured over a wide range of magnetic fields and filling factors, and various theoretical predictions have been examined. In a strong magnetic field, when there is only one partially filled Landau level in each layer, the temperature dependence of the conductance characteristics has been modeled with a double-Gaussian spectral density.

cond-mat↗

arXiv1996

Distribution Function Analysis of Mesoscopic Hopping Conductance Fluctuations

Variable-range hopping (VRH) conductance fluctuations in the gate-voltage characteristics of mesoscopic GaAs and Si transistors are analyzed by means of their full distribution functions (DFs). The forms of the DF predicted by the theory of Raikh and Ruzin have been verified under controlled conditions for both the long, narrow wire and the short, wide channel geometries. The variation of the mean square fluctuation size with temperature in wires fabricated from both materials is found to be described quantitatively by Lee's model of VRH along a 1D chain. Armed with this quantitative validation of the VRH model, the DF method is applied to the problem of magnetoconductance in the insulating regime. Here a non-monotonic variation of the magnetoconductance is observed in Si MOSFETS whose sign at low magnetic fields is dependent on the channel geometry. The origin of this defect is discussed within the framework of the interference model of VRH magnetoconductance in terms of narrowing of the DF in a magnetic field.

cond-mat↗

arXiv1996

Re-entrant resonant tunneling

We study the effect of electron-electron interactions on the resonant-tunneling spectroscopy of the localized states in a barrier. Using a simple model of three localized states, we show that, due to the Coulomb interactions, a single state can give rise to two resonant peaks in the conductance as a function of gate voltage, G(Vg). We also demonstrate that an additional higher-order resonance with Vg-position in between these two peaks becomes possibile when interactions are taken into account. The corresponding resonant-tunneling process involves two-electron transitions. We have observed both these effects in GaAs transistor microstructures by studying the time evolution of three adjacent G(Vg) peaks caused by fluctuating occupation of an isolated impurity (modulator). The heights of the two stronger peaks exibit in-phase fluctuations. The phase of fluctuations of the smaller middle peak is opposite. The two stronger peaks have their origin in the same localized state, and the third one corresponds to a co-tunneling process.

cond-mat↗

arXiv1995

Tunneling Between Two-Dimensional Electron Gases in a Weak Magnetic Field

We have measured the tunneling between two two-dimensional electron gases (2DEGs) in weak magnetic fields, when the carrier densities of the two electron layers are matched. At zero magnetic field, B=0, the lineshape of the equilibrium tunneling resonance is best fit by a Lorentzian, with a linewidth which is determined by the roughness of the tunnel barrier. For $B\not=0$ with filling factors $ν\gg 1$, there is a suppression of the resonant tunneling conductance about zero bias, $V_{\text{sd}}=0$. This low field signature of the high field Coulomb gap shows the same linear $B$ dependence as previously measured for $ν<1$.

cond-mat↗

arXiv1994

Tunneling Between Two-Dimensional Electron Gases in a Strong Magnetic Field

We have measured the tunneling between two two-dimensional electron gases at high magnetic fields $B$, when the carrier densities of the two electron layers are matched. For filling factors $ν<1$, there is a gap in the current-voltage characteristics centered about $V=0$, followed by a tunneling peak at $\sim 6$~mV. Both features have been observed before and have been attributed to electron-electron interactions within a layer. We have measured high field tunneling peak positions and fitted gap parameters that are proportional to $B$, and independent of the carrier densities of the two layers. This suggests a different origin for the gap to that proposed by current theories, which predict a $\sqrt{B}$ dependence.

cond-mat↗