We report the results of an experiment investigating coherence and correlation effects in a system of coupled donors. Two donors are strongly coupled to two leads in a parallel configuration within a nano-wire field effect transistor. By applying a magnetic field we observe interference between two donor-induced Kondo channels, which depends on the Aharonov-Bohm phase picked up by electrons traversing the structure. This results in a non-monotonic conductance as a function of magnetic field and clearly demonstrates that donors can be coupled through a many-body state in a coherent manner. We present a model which shows good qualitative agreement with our data. The presented results add to the general understanding of interference effects in a donor-based correlated system which may allow to create artificial lattices that exhibit exotic many-body excitations.
We observe millisecond spin-flip relaxation times of donor-bound electrons in high-purity n-GaAs . This is three orders of magnitude larger than previously reported lifetimes in n-GaAs . Spin-flip times are measured as a function of magnetic field and exhibit a strong power-law dependence for fields greater than 4 T . This result is in qualitative agreement with previously reported theory and measurements of electrons in quantum dots.
We measure the donor-bound electron longitudinal spin-relaxation time ($T_1$) as a function of magnetic field ($B$) in three high-purity direct-bandgap semiconductors: GaAs, InP, and CdTe, observing a maximum $T_1$ of $1.4~text{ms}$, $0.4~text{ms}$ and $1.2~text{ms}$, respectively. In GaAs and InP at low magnetic field, up to $sim2~text{T}$, the spin-relaxation mechanism is strongly density and temperature dependent and is attributed to the random precession of the electron spin in hyperfine fields caused by the lattice nuclear spins. In all three semiconductors at high magnetic field, we observe a power-law dependence ${T_1 propto B^{- u}}$ with ${3lesssim u lesssim 4}$. Our theory predicts that the direct spin-phonon interaction is important in all three materials in this regime in contrast to quantum dot structures. In addition, the admixture mechanism caused by Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling combined with single-phonon processes has a comparable contribution in GaAs. We find excellent agreement between high-field theory and experiment for GaAs and CdTe with no free parameters, however a significant discrepancy exists for InP.
We analyze Andreev bound states (ABSs) that form in normal sections of a Rashba nanowire that is only partially covered by a superconducting layer. These ABSs are localized close to the ends of the superconducting section and can be pinned to zero energy over a wide range of magnetic field strengths even if the nanowire is in the non-topological regime. For finite-size nanowires (typically $lesssim 1$ $mu$m in current experiments), the ABS localization length is comparable to the length of the nanowire. The probability density of an ABS is therefore non-zero throughout the nanowire and differential-conductance calculations reveal a correlated zero-bias peak (ZBP) at both ends of the nanowire. When a second normal section hosts an additional ABS at the opposite end of the superconducting section, the combination of the two ABSs can mimic the closing and reopening of the bulk gap in local and non-local conductances accompanied by the appearance of the ZBP. These signatures are reminiscent of those expected for Majorana bound states (MBSs) but occur here in the non-topological regime. Our results demonstrate that conductance measurements of correlated ZBPs at the ends of a typical superconducting nanowire or an apparent closing and reopening of the bulk gap in the local and non-local conductance are not conclusive indicators for the presence of MBSs.
We have realized an AlAs two-dimensional electron system in which electrons occupy conduction-band valleys with different Fermi contours and effective masses. In the quantum Hall regime, we observe both resistivity spikes and persistent gaps at crossings between the Landau levels originating from these two valleys. From the positions of the spikes in tilted magnetic field and measurements of the energy gaps away from the crossings, we find that, after occupation of the minority valley, the spin susceptibility drops rapidly, and the electrons possess a {it single} interaction-enhanced g-factor, despite the dissimilarity of the two occupied valleys.
Two-dimensional electrons in AlAs quantum wells occupy multiple conduction-band minima at the X- points of the Brillouin zone. These valleys have large effective mass and g-factor compared to the stan-dard GaAs electrons, and are also highly anisotropic. With proper choice of well width and by applying symmetry-breaking strain in the plane, one can control the occupation of different valleys thus rendering a system with tuneable effective mass, g-factor, Fermi contour anisotropy, and valley degeneracy. Here we review some of the rich physics that this system has allowed us to explore.