On-chip magnets can be used to implement relatively large local magnetic field gradients in na- noelectronic circuits. Such field gradients provide possibilities for all-electrical control of electron spin-qubits where important coupling constants de
pend crucially on the detailed field distribution. We present a double quantum dot (QD) hybrid device laterally defined in a GaAs / AlGaAs het- erostructure which incorporates two single domain nanomagnets. They have appreciably different coercive fields which allows us to realize four distinct configurations of the local inhomogeneous field distribution. We perform dc transport spectroscopy in the Pauli-spin blockade regime as well as electric-dipole-induced spin resonance (EDSR) measurements to explore our hybrid nanodevice. Characterizing the two nanomagnets we find excellent agreement with numerical simulations. By comparing the EDSR measurements with a second double QD incorporating just one nanomagnet we reveal an important advantage of having one magnet per QD: It facilitates strong field gradients in each QD and allows to control the electron spins individually for instance in an EDSR experi- ment. With just one single domain nanomagnet and common QD geometries EDSR can likely be performed only in one QD.
Due to its p-like character, the valence band in GaAs-based heterostructures offers rich and complex spin-dependent phenomena. One manifestation is the large anisotropy of Zeeman spin splitting. Using undoped, coupled quantum wells (QWs), we examine
this anisotropy by comparing the hole spin dynamics for high- and low-symmetry crystallographic orientations of the QWs. We directly measure the hole $g$ factor via time-resolved Kerr rotation, and for the low-symmetry crystallographic orientations (110) and (113a), we observe a large in-plane anisotropy of the hole $g$ factor, in good agreement with our theoretical calculations. Using resonant spin amplification, we also observe an anisotropy of the hole spin dephasing in the (110)-grown structure, indicating that crystal symmetry may be used to control hole spin dynamics.
The initialization of spin polarization in localized hole states is investigated using time-resolved Kerr rotation. We find that the sign of the polarization depends on the magnetic field, and the power and the wavelength of the circularly polarized
pump pulse. An analysis of the spin dynamics and the spin-initialization process shows that two mechanisms are responsible for spin polarization with opposite sign: The difference of the g factor between the localized holes and the trions, as well as the capturing process of dark excitons by the localized hole states.
We demonstrate a nanostructure composed of partially etched annular trenches in a suspended GaAs membrane, designed for efficient and moderately broadband (approx. 5 nm) emission extraction from single InAs quantum dots. Simulations indicate that a d
ipole embedded in the nanostructure center radiates upwards into free space with a nearly Gaussian far-field, allowing a collection efficiency > 80 % with a high numerical aperture (NA=0.7) optic, and with 12X Purcell radiative rate enhancement. Fabricated devices exhibit an approx. 10 % photon collection efficiency with a NA=0.42 objective, a 20X improvement over quantum dots in unpatterned GaAs. A fourfold exciton lifetime reduction indicates moderate Purcell enhancement.
In a high mobility two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) in a GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well we observe a strong magnetoresistance. In lowering the electron density the magnetoresistance gets more pronounced and reaches values of more than 300%. We observe t
hat the huge magnetoresistance vanishes for increasing the temperature. An additional density dependent factor is introduced to be able to fit the parabolic magnetoresistance to the electron-electron interaction correction.
Transport studies of a bent quantum Hall junction at integer filling factors show strongly insulating states at higher fields. In this paper we analyze the strongly insulating behavior as a function of temperature T and dc bias V, in order to classif
y the localization mechanisms responsible for the insulating state. The temperature dependence suggests a crossover from activated nearest-neighbor hopping at higher T to variable-range hopping conduction at lower T. The base temperature electric field dependence is consistent with 1D variable-range hopping conduction. We observe almost identical behavior at filling factors 1 and 2, and discuss how the bent quantum Hall junction conductance appears to be independent of the bulk spin state. Various models of 1D variable-range hopping which either include or ignore interactions are compared, all of which are consistent with the basic model of disorder coupled counter-propagating quantum Hall edges.
We demonstrate an electrostatic trap for indirect excitons in a field-effect structure based on coupled GaAs quantum wells. Within the plane of a double quantum well indirect excitons are trapped at the perimeter of a SiO2 area sandwiched between the
surface of the GaAs heterostructure and a semitransparent metallic top gate. The trapping mechanism is well explained by a combination of the quantum confined Stark effect and local field enhancement. We find the one-dimensional trapping potentials in the quantum well plane to be nearly harmonic with high spring constants exceeding 10 keV/cm^2.
