Solid State Physics

The Physics of Nanoelectronics

Mark Blumenthal

Resources

Lecturer: Assoc. Professor Mark Blumenthal

Email: Mark.Blumenthal@uct.ac.za
Room: 305
503 Physics Department
Phone: 3347
20 Lectures
5 Tutorials 25%
2 Journal Paper Reviews 10%
1 Class Test 15%
1.5 Hour Exam 50%

Literature
Background Material
C. Kittel Introduction to Solid State Physics, 7th ed., Wiley, New
York, 1996.
N.W. Aschcroft and N.D. Mermin Solid State Physics, Holt, Rinehard
and Winston, Philadelphia, 1976.
Key Books
Low-dimensional Semiconductors: Materials, Physics, Technology,
Devices, Kelly M J (Clarendon Press 1996)
The Physics of Low-Dimensional Semiconductors: An
introduction, Davies J H (CUP 1997)
Nanophysics and Nanotechnology, E. L. Wolf (Wiley-VCH 2007).

Content

Review of fundamental Quantum Physics, Bulk Semiconductors: Crystal structure,

energy band structure, doping.

Electron Properties in Low Dimensional Systems: Band engineering,

heterostructures, free electron gas, 2D electron gas, 1D electron gas, 0D electron
gas, density of states.

Introduction to Low Dimensional Systems: Length and energy scales, overview of

fabrication techniques and possibilities in nano-physics, applications of lowdimensional physics.

Quantum Transport: 1D wires, 0D quantum dots, Coulomb blockade, resonant

tunnelling, charge detection, single-electron dots, electron pumps and turnstiles,
surface-acoustic-wave current source.

Electrons in magnetic fields: Landau levels, Shubnikov-De Haas effect, integer

quantum Hall effect, edge states, Aharonov-Bohm effect

Crystal Structures
Amorphous and Crystalline
Amorphous : No long range order. Crystalline: Long range order.
This will have a big impact on material properties such as mobility and
electron density, which ultimately impacts on the conductivity.

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Crystal Lattice
A lattice is a set of regularly spaced points with positions defined by
multiples of generating vectors. In three-dimensions a lattice of points can
be described in terms of three vectors a1 ,a2 and ,a3 .
R = ma1 + na2 + oa3
The length of the vectors a1 ,a2 and ,a3 are referred to as the lattice
parameters.
Such a lattice of points is known as a Bravais lattice and is depicted below
for a two dimensional lattice.

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Primitive Unit Cell

A primitive unit cell of a lattice is a piece of the lattice which, when
repeated through space without rotation and without gaps or overlaps,
reconstructs the pattern to infinity. The primitive unit cell of a lattice
contains only one lattice point.
A non-primitive unit cell can also be defined, whereby several lattice points
are contained within the cell.

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Wigner-Seitz Cell
A Wigner-Seitz cell is another type of primitive cell. It is defined as the
locus of points in space that are closer to a selected lattice point than to
any of the other lattice points.
The cell is constructed by first selecting a lattice point. Lines are than
drawn to all nearby lattice appoints. Another line is than drawn normal at
the midpoint of each of the first set of lines.

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Basis
The basis defines the content of what is placed at each lattice point. The
basis can consist of one or many atoms.

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Cubic Structures
We now consider some simple cubic structures as shown below.

The simple cubic is not common.....why? What about bcc and fcc?
17 elements crystallise in the bcc structure and 24 in the fcc structure.

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The Structure of CsCl and NaCl

Knowing the the crystal structure of NaCl it is possible to calculate the

electrostatic contribution to lattice energy.

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X-Ray Diraction and Braggs Law

X-Ray diraction is a powerful tool for
determining the structure of a material.
X-rays interact weakly with matter and can
therefore be assumed to scatter only once.
X-ray diraction was discovered by M. von
Laue in 1912 and later in 1913 W.L Bragg
and W.H Bragg came up with a simpler
description.
Braggs law 2d sin = m

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Lattice Planes and Miller Indices

(Miller.mp4)

A lattice plane is defined as a plane containing at

least three non-linear points of a given Bravais
lattice
Lattice planes can be characterised by a set of three
integers known as the Miller indices.

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How to Index a Lattice Plane

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General Diraction Theory

Bragg theory does not give any information on the basis of the structure.
The description of how the X-rays are reflected by the planes is somewhat
obscure.
Consider a general plane wave:
E(r, t) = Eo eikr

i!t

The wave vector k points in the direction of the wave propagation with a
length of 2
Consider the situation where the source of the X-rays is far away from the
sample at the position R.

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The electric field at a point r in space at time t can be given by:

E(r, t) = Eo e ik(r

R) i!t

for simplicity we can ignore the absolute amplitude Eo as we only need the
relative phase changes such that:
E(r, t) / e ik(r

R) i!t

An small volume element dV will scatter the incident wave at point r, we

only need to concern ourselves with the direction towards the detector
0
0
which has been placed at R with wave vector k

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We now assume that the amplitude of the scattered wave in the direction
of the detector will be proportional to that of the incident wave and to a
factor (the local electron charge density: (r )) describing the scattering
probability, such that:
0

E(R , t) / E(r, t)(r )e ik (R

r)

We assume as well that the detector is placed far from the sample.
Substituting in the value for E(r,t), yields:
0

E(R , t) / e ik(r

R) (r )e ik (R

r) e i!t

= e i(k R

kR) (r)e i(k k )r e i!t

Self Study:Make sure you understand why the electron density can be
used to determine the amplitude of the scattered wave. Think how X-rays
interact with the material.

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To obtain the total wave field at the detector we need to integrate over
0
the entire volume of the crystal. We can assume that the wave vector k is
the same for all points in the sample as the detector is situated at a large
distance from the sample.
0

E(R , t) / e

i!t

(r)e i(k

k )r dV

It is often the case that only the intensity of the X-rays can be measured
where the intensity is given by:
I(K)/
0

(r)e

iKr dV 2

Where K = k
k is known as the scattering vector. If elastic scattering is
0
considered than only the direction of k and k will dier not their
magnitudes.
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The Reciprocal Lattice

The mathematical definition:
For a given Bravais lattice:
R = ma1 + na2 + oa3
the reciprocal lattice is defined as the set of vectors G for which:
R G = 2l
where l is an integer. the above expression is often given by:
e iG R = 1
This must hold for any choice of R and G
The lattice vector G can be written as the sum of the three vectors in
three dimensions:
0

G = m b1 + n b 2 + o b3
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The vectors b1 , b2 , b3 spanning the reciprocal lattice can be defined in

terms of the lattice vectors by the following expressions:
b1 = 2

a2 a3
a3 a1
a1 a3
; b2 = 2
; b3 = 2
a1 (a2 a3 )
a1 (a2 a3 )
a1 (a2 a3 )

Reciprocal
All crystals have two lattices, one real and the other reciprocal. Single
points in the reciprocal lattice represent sets of parallel (hkl) atomic planes
1
located a distance dhkl
from the lattice origin.

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Physical Interpretation of the Reciprocal Lattice

We will make use of Braggs law to understand how the reciprocal lattice
is used.

If the wavelength of the X-rays are kept constant and the incident angle is
varied what eect is that going to have on the value d in Braggs law?

d=

2 sin
It is clear that as increases from 0 to 2 , d gets smaller, this is indicated
on the above figure by the red Bragg plane.
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What if the crystal under investigation is rotated?

The sketch above, shows the incident radiation (black arrow), diracting
o dierent Bragg planes (coloured lines). The diracted radiation is
indicated by the coloured arrows. Any object sitting on Bragg planes
separated by some d, will scatter in phase resulting in an increase in
diraction. Objects on planes that are separated by d2 will scatter out of
phase, resulting in no diraction.

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This idea is reinforced by the image below which also depicts how
changing the angle of the incident radiation can bring the scattered
radiation from objects previously out of phase back into pause.

If we consider the incident radiation to be that of the black arrow, the blue
and magenta objects will scatter out of phase. If radiation given by the red
arrow is used instead, the scattered radiation will add more in phase, albeit
not totally in phase.

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When do we see diraction from the crystal planes?

In the figure above left, the unit cell is indicated by the black lines. The
red lines indicate planes separated by one unit cell edge along the a cell,
and the blue lines indicate planes separated by one-third of a unit cell edge
along a. Making use of Miller indexing, the red planes are labelled as the
(100) planes and the blue played are labelled as the (300) planes.

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In the figure on the right on the previous slide, a somewhat more

complicated example is given.
First, consider the planes given by the blue lines. If we follow the blue
arrow from one plane to the next, the next plane is one unit cell edge
further along in both the a and b directions. These planes are therefore
labelled as the (110) planes.
If we follow the magnets arrow from one plane to the next , the next plane
is one unit cell edge further in the a direction, but one cell edge back in
the b direction. These planes are therefore labelled as the (1 10) planes.
Following the green arrow from one plane to the next, we move half a unit
cell along a and a full unit cell edge along b. These planes are therefore
labelled as the (210) planes.
In general, to see diraction from a crystal, the Bragg planes have to cut
all the cell edges an integral number of times. (In, say, the (3 0 0) planes,
the b and c cell edges are cut zero times.)

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Reciprocal Lattice 3D animation

3D animation

(Recip.mp4)

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Mars Rover - XRD

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Section 0: Free Particle and Particle in

a Box
Particle in free space:
=0

Time independent Schrdinger

equation:
-

( )

= E() Helmholtz Equation

Ansatz: () =
() =
= =
Substitution into the Helmholtz gives:
=

Particle in a box:

0, 0 < <
,

Time independent Schrdinger equation:

=

( )

= E() inside the box

Boundary conditions introduced from walls

= 0 = 0 = ( = )
Solution:
= , = 0 =

Thus =
n=1,2,3,.. Is a quantum number
Substitution into the Helmholtz gives:

= sin

Section 1: Band Structure in One

Dimension
Periodic Potential
V(x)
a
x

Periodic potential can be expanded in a Fourier Series

=

Reciprocal
lattice vector

where =

Wave function of an infinite system with a uniform potential are plane waves:
() = with |()| = 1 - expected as potential is uniform
In a periodic potential, density expected to be periodic as well:
|()| =| ( + )| this is achieved if the wave functions in free space are
multiplied by a periodic function : = ( + )
Change in
phase

= ()

+ = ()

Blochs Theorem

Berillouin Zone
k is the Bloch wave number and is known as the crystal momentum.
<<

Suppose k lies in the range

k can be written as =
So: =

+ | | <
=

Repeated Zone Scheme

First Brillouin Zone

Reduced Zone Scheme

Band Gap
Wave scatters from atoms in all directions. In most directions the scattered waves
cancel out but under Bragg reflection = (see tutorial 1) waves interfere
constructively and backscattering is so strong that the electron is unable to
propagate through the crystal.

For most wave numbers the energy for free electron applies except near the zone
boundaries where = , here the energy turns away from the free electron
case and becomes flat. A gap is formed.

Section 2: Crystal Structure of Si and

GaAs

Abundant and cheap to process

Extremely stable structure
Higher hole mobility

Higher electron mobility

Insensitive to heat
Less Noise

Section 3: Doping Semiconductors

Electron/holes systems created with doping the semiconductor with impurities
Donor impurities (n-type)
Acceptor impurities (p-type)

ND Donor Concentration
NA Acceptor Concentration
nc Density of electrons excited
nD Density of electrons not excited
pA Density of holes not excited
pv Density of holes excited
Chemical potential

When dopants are added to a

semiconductor it remains charge neutral as
dopants and semiconductor are neutral
Charge neutrality without dopants:

nc = pV
With dopants:

n c + n D = ND - N A + p A + p V
# of electrons free plus bound must equal the effective # of donors plus the # of holes free plus bound

Section 4: Heterostructures and Band

Engineering
Heterostructures

Metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSEFET)

Electrons move along the Si SiO2 interface. Si is crystalline
but SiO2 is amorphous, impossible to join materials in a
seamless way. Electrons are scattered by the resulting
imperfections. Mobility at low temperatures:
Less than 4
Heterostructures are semiconductors composed of more
than one material. The composition is varied to control the
motion of electrons and holes through band engineering.
To perform better than the MOSFET a near perfect
interface is required. This requires sophisticated growth
techniques. Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE). Mobility at
low temperatures:
Greater than 1000
This corresponds to mean free path of close to 0.1mm

Band Engineering
Different materials have different band gaps. What effect does this have on the conduction
and valence band when a heterostructure is grown?

Consider Andersons rule which is based on the electron affinity of the material. Electron
affinity is independent on the chemical potential unlike the work function which depends
heavily on doping.
Andersons rule gives: = = if we consider GaAs = 4.07eV and
Al0.3Ga0.7As = 3.74eV , = 0.33eV.
= 0.37 this is obtained from the following:
Band gap GaAs = 1.42eV
Bad gap Al0.3Ga0.7As = 1.798eV
1.424+1.247x eV
for x<0.45
2
1.9+0.125x+0.143x for x>0.45
: = 0.04
The band gap of the GaAs is enclosed within the band gap of AlGaAs , thus a sandwich with
GaAs as the filling between two layers of AlGaAs traps both electrons and holes.

Section 5: Modulation Doping

Problem: Doping introduces the extra electrons and holes as required, however
charged donors or acceptors are left behind when electrons or holes are released.
These scatter the carriers through their Coulomb interaction(ionized-impurity
scattering).

Solution: Modulation doping, where the dopants are introduced in one region but the
carriers migrate to another.
Conduction band around a heterojunction between AlGaAs and undoped GaAs.
Electrons are separated from their donors to form a two-dimensional electron
gas.(2DEG)

The movement of electrons separates the negatively charged electrons from their
positively charged donors. An electrostatic potential is setup that drives the electrons
away in the AlGaAs.
The discontinuity in EC prevents the electric field from returning the electrons to their
donors, the field can only squeeze the electrons against the interface, where they ae
trapped in a triangular potential well typically about 10nm wide.
The energy levels for motion along z are quantized in a similar way to a square well.
Electrons are free to move in the x and y dimensions.
Modulation has resulted in the separation of electrons from their donors and confined
the electrons to two dimensions.

Section 5: Low Dimensional Systems

By a combination of band engineering and semiconductor clean room fabrication
techniques, 2DEG, 1DEG and 0DEG systems are created.
2DEG

1DEG

0DEG

Review Point
Free Electron
Particle in a Box
Bloch Equation
Band Gaps and Band Engineering
Heterostructures
Modulation Doping
Low Dimensional Systems

Section 6: Counting States

Return to particle in a box but consider a periodic boundary condition(born-Van Karman) in which the
system is repeated periodically with the same wave function in each system.

0 = ;
=

T in a box:
From Text
Section 0: Particle

e
x
t

= 1,2,3. . The wave functions are standing waves, they carry no current

Periodic boundary conditions require a different choice of k. A travelling exponential wave such that:

=1=

This satisfies the condition on the gradient and the normalized states are:
=

with the allowed values of =

= 0 1 2. .

k is twice as far apart as with fixed boundary conditions and apart from n = 0, each state is degenerate.
A complete description of such a system would require the energies and wave functions of all states
which is not at all practical. We now introduce the density of states concept.

Density of States 1D System

We plot the allowed values of k along a line.

- -

Number of allowed k-values in the range k is simply:

where

is the spacing of the points. The number of states should also take into

account spin.
The number of allowed k values in the range k is:
() = 2 where = which is a density. The density can also be
given as = which is the density per unit length.
The density of states per unit length as a function of energy can be shown (see tutorial
1) to be:

1 2

1 2
=

Delta Function

Filling of States
Dealing with Fermions we make use of Fermi-Dirac statistics:
1
, , =
( )

+1

Fermi Level is the highest occupied energy level at T=0. It will be shown in this course
material as EF0 . at all other temperatures should be called the chemical
potential. In practice this is never the case and in this course we will use the definition
of the Fermi level loosely.
For energies far above EF(T) the classical Boltzmann distribution applies.

Occupation of States
Find the density of occupied states(the density of electrons) in the system:

() , , where x = 0,1,2 or 3

is the density of electrons or density of occupied states

() is the density of states

At T = 0, this calculation is simple as the Fermi Dirac function becomes a step-function.

=0 =

()

= =

=
1,
0,

<
>

For higher temperatures an analytical calculation is required

For 2D electrons the density of states is a constant for > 0 given by:

So substituting into the density of occupied states equation:

In the limit T 0: =

For T > 0 in can be shown that: =

+1

..A

ln (1 +

) .B (see tutorial 1)

It can be seen that B rises as a function of temperature, if EF remains constant.

We do not expect the density of electrons to vary with temperature therefore equation A must equal equation
B and EF(T) must decrease with temperature.
The Fermi level must now be regarded as a quantity that we tune to keep the desired number of electrons in
the system.
The chemical potential can now be given in terms of the Fermi level:

() = ln (
C shows the expected fall of EF as the temperature rises

- 1)C

In the above plot: For T (With EFO = 10meV, TF = 120K)the distribution

approaches a step function (EF0 ).
Most states are completely filled or empty, except those in the region around EF
For ohmic transport only partially filled states near EF are important. All states far
below EF are filled and no state changing can occur. So conductivity will contain a

factor of

which is peaked around EF

Section 7: The GaAs AlGaAs as a

Heterostructures

Lets add a metal gate to the surface of the GaAs AlGaAs.

What dependence does the electron density have on a surface gate volatge?

The capacitance of the device is C = A/d , d is the distance from the gate to the 2DEG
and A the area of the gate. If we consider the capacitor equation Q = CVg we have:

=

Where NEl is the change in carrier density of the 2D electron gas caused by a change
in gate voltage Vg . This simplifies to:

For a hole gas we have:

Review Point
Born-Van Karman Condition
Counting States
Filling States
Fermi Level/Chemical Potential
Fermi Level as a Function of Temperature
GaAs AlGaAs Heterostructure
Surface Gate Voltage and Density of States

Section 8: Length Scales

Section 9: Fabrication Techniques

In-order to study the design and fabrication techniques of nano-electronic devices
we are going to consider the Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) Electron Pump
described in the paper below.

SAWs were discovered in 1885 by Lord Rayleigh.

Interdigital Transducers(IDTs) are used to convert acoustic waves to electrical
signals and vice versa by exploiting the piezoelectric effect of certain materials

So, what is required to make such a device?

Cleanroom
To fabricate such structures a cleanroom environment is required. The class of
cleanroom needed is dependent on the cleanliness needed for the size of the
structures that are to be fabricated.

Material Selection
First the material system of interest needs to be selected. Nanotubes, nanorods,
graphene, silicon, AlGaAs. In this case AlGaAs will be the material of choice.
Once material is chosen the properties of the material need to be considered. In
AlGaAs the key material properties are electron density and mobility.
Nanotubes
AlGaAs 2DEG

Nanorods
Graphene

Mesa Fabrication
A mesa is fabricated to isolate a region of the wafer where the 2DEG will remain. Due
to the large dimensions of the mesa optical lithography is used.

Ohmic Contact
Electrical connection to the 2DEG is made through ohmic contacts. Optical lithography
is used. An eutectic mix of Au/Ge/Ni in the form of a slug is evaporated onto the chip
from a heated source. 100 200 nm is desirable. After evaporation and removal of
resist the chip needs to be annealed at 430 Degrees C. This allows for the ohmic
material to diffuse through the plane of the 2DEG forming what is known as an ohmic
contact.

Optical gates
Optically defined gates are used to allow easy electrical connection to the much
smaller electron beam defined gates. To ensure that lift-off goes correctly a slight
modification to the standard mesa and ohmic contact method is used.

Electron Beam Gates and SAW Transducers

For very small structures such as the Quantum Point Contacts and the SAW
transducers and electron beam writer is required.

Bonding and Mounting

Once the fabrication of the device is completed it needs to be mounted on a sample
holder and bonded such that electrical connection can be made. A bonding machine is
used.

Review Point
Length Scales
SAW Devices
Cleanroom Classification
Material Choice
Mesa Fabrication
Ohmic Contacts
Optical Gates
Electron Beam Lithography

Section 10: Particle-Like Motion of

Electrons
We know electrons exhibit the wave-particle duality phenomena. Lets look at the particle
like motion of the electron.
Cyclotron Motion
Electrons respond to external fields, so an external magnetic field can be used to interact
with an electron system.
In the absence of an electric field, the Lorentz force on an electron in a 2D system where z
is quantized and x and y are free is:
= v is the electron velocity and is the external magnetic field.
Parallel components of the magnetic field with respect to the electrons in the 2D system
will have no effect on the x and y plane. So we need only consider =
So:
= + (Application of the Curl)
We make use of the effective mass (m*) and Newtons second law of motion:

and =

Let =

..A

the cyclotron frequency

A becomes:
= and = B

On application of a time derivative:

= and = C
Sub B into C which yields:
= and = D
The electron velocity components execute simple harmonic motion.(Hooks Law)

Below the Fermi energy, there are as many states in a given direction as in the opposite,
even with an applied bias. Only the electrons very close to the Fermi surface are detected
in the conduction process. These electrons will therefore be at the Fermi velocity

So in the device above, the velocity of the electrons at the source aperture is:
= and = 0
With these boundary conditions the solution for the position of the electron from A,B,C and
D as a function of time t will be:
=

sin ( t) and y=

(1 cos ( t) )

This motion describes a circle: + ( ) = where =

This motion is known as the Cyclotron Motion.

is the cyclotron radius.

Ballistic Motion
Lets consider an experiment that demonstrates the ballistic motion (unimpeded flow of
charge) of electrons.
We consider the device in the paper by L.W Molenkamp given below.

b
d

There is a source and detector aperture set opposite each other (gates a,b and c,d).
Source aperture has ohmic contact 1 and detector aperture ohmic contact 5.
Ohmic contact 6 is grounded and acts as a sink to all electrons. Ohmic contact 5 is
measured relative to ohmic contact 3.
The measured resistance (V5 V3)/I1 is shown in the above plot as a function of magnetic
field

Skipping Orbits
For a strong magnetic field electrons in the Molenkamp experiment would not reach the
opposite ohmic contact but skip along the source electrostatic boundary (See Cyclotron
motion figure)
Lets consider an experiment that demonstrates skipping orbits.
We consider the device in the paper by J. Spencer given below.

Ohmic contacts E and F are grounded and current is injected from ohmic contact B.
When a negative magnetic field is applied electrons from the source aperture in front of B
skip along the boundary between B and A.

If a multiple of the cyclotron diameter (2R) is equal to the distance between the two
apertures, electrons will pass directly from B into A and an enhanced voltage is measured. If
the diameter is too big or too small there will be a reduction in the measured voltage.
This signal appears as an oscillatory signal in the data obtained above.
When the magnetic field is applied in the positive direction, electrons are deflected to the
left and a single peak is seen. Orbits that cause electrons to reflect from ohmic contact C
and not detected at D since they are absorbed or scattered randomly.

Review Point
Particle Like Motion of Electrons
Cyclotron Motion
Ballistic Motion
Skipping Orbits

Section 11: Current in One Dimension

In the Worked Examples section from the first tutorial, electrical subbands were introduced
in a 2DEG. Such subbands are also present in 1DEG system. In a perfect 1D system, a
current will travel in any 1D subband without scattering into any other.
We consider current passing through a single subband labelled n between two perfect
ohmic contacts.
Quantum Point Contact (Split Gate)
In Section 9 we considered a SAW device that made use of a split gate to squeeze out
electrons that were trapped in the travelling SAW wave.
We now consider a split gate device fabricated on a 2DEG to create a one dimensional
quantum wire.

Net current will flow through the contact if the Fermi energy of the twodimensional electrons on one side of the split gates is higher than that on the
other. As negative voltage is applied to the split gates the region of 2DEG around
the split gate is squeezed, restricting the flow of electrons in the y-direction. Only
electrons with ky allowed by quantization (ky = n/W, where W is the width of the
constriction) are allowed through.
V1

V2

W
Quantized Conductance Steps
We assume V = V1-V2 to be a very small deviation from the average Fermi level
on either side of the split gate. There will be no net current over most of the
energy range of the electrons since electrons moving in opposite directions will
cancel out. Over the range V, electrons will be moving in one direction, towards
the side of the 2DEG at the lower potential. These electrons will move in the xdirection if they satisfy the quantization condition mentioned above.

The current through the split gate can be calculated by:

= . (see notes on occupation of states in Section 6 and
worked example from tutorial 2)
Strictly speaking the Fermi-Dirac distribution should be included. However, the current density is only valid in the energy
range V as current is only due to the electrons in that Energy range. For low temperatures the Fermi-Dirac distribution
becomes a step function. This can be included in the integral A by limiting the interval over which the Integration is applied.

is the density of states of a two dimensional gas and =

group velocity of the electrons and =

is the

After substitution into A:

=

We multiply B by as in this case the electrons are moving in one direction and we
only consider k > 0. So:

=
=

Now =

therefore

The current in subband i is therefore independent of the carrier velocity as well as

the density of states.
Based on the quantum restriction on the quantum number ky, there are only a finite
number nmax of k-values, as nmax <
.
W, the width of constriction increases as the gate voltage is made less negative. nmax
increases allowing for a increasing number of ky values through the constriction.
This is shown experimentally in the data below.
If there are N subbands occupied in the 1D
system, the total current will be:
=

Which implies a conductance of:

=
This remarkable result implies that the
conductance of a 1D system is equal to an
integer multiple of
K.J Thomas et al., Appl. Phys. Lett 67 109 (1995)

Section 12: Zero-Dimensional Electron

Gas
Quantum Dot
A zero-dimensional electron gas is a system where the electron is confined in all three
dimensions. A quantum dot is the realisation of such a system.
In a quantum dot the electrons are contained in an isolated region smaller than their phase
coherence length. Only discrete energy levels are allowed. This is analogous to that of the
hydrogen atom.

A schematic of a QD with a charging energy diagram is given above. The plunger gate is
capacitively coupled to the QD and is used to manipulate the levels of the dot
electrostatically. The QD is weakly in contact with the two reservoirs via tunnel barriers.
Quantum dots can be produced with split-gates or finger gates fabricated on a 2DEG. The
application of a negative voltage to these gates results in a confining potential which forms
the QD.

Coulomb Blockade

Consider a QD as shown in the figure on the previous slide. Assume the dot to be
sufficiently large that its eigen spectrum forms a continuum.
When a potential Vg is applied to the plunger gate, the electrostatic potential of the
electrons in the dot is defined by:

= +

Q is the charge on the dot, C is the capacitance between the dot and the rest of the
system and ext is the external potential which arises from the charges in the rest of
the system Qext = Cext. The external charge is distributed between the surface gate,
ionised donors and reservoirs.
On integrating the above, the electrostatic potential energy of the electrons on the
dot is given by:

=
+
2
The dot is only weakly coupled to the rest of the system, so the total number of
electrons in the dot must be an integer Q = -Ne such that:

()

2

The external charge may be varied continuously by means of the surface gate.
Written in terms of Qext , U(N) takes on the form:
( )

2
2
The figure below is a plot of the electrostatic potential energy U(N) versus gate voltage
Vg for several different values of Qext. Grey dots mark points along the curve where the
value of U(N) has N as an integer. The dots are labelled with the number of electrons
trapped within the dot. Qext can be varied by changing the potential on Vg. As Qext is
increased by making Vg more positive, the energy required to move from state N to
N+1 becomes smaller. In the case that the energy difference between the sates can
not be overcome the dot is said to be in a state known as Coulomb blockade and no
extra electrons can be added to the dot.

Coulomb Blockade Oscillations

The dotted lines define the source-drain window of the system. In-order for an electron to
move on or off he dot, at least one of the charging energy levels has to be confined within
this window.
The schematic diagrams depict the situations as marked by 1 and 2 on the plot of charge
(Q) and current (I) respectively.

Coulomb Blockade Staircase

If source-drain voltage window in increased in size by increasing the potential drop across
the dot, more charging energy levels are incorporated within the window resulting in the
Coulomb Staircase given along side the schematic

Coulomb Diamonds

A two-dimensional plot of the current through the dot with source-drain voltage
versus plunger gate leads to the formation of Coulomb diamonds.

The Coulomb diamond plot is essentially a stability diagram of the single dot system.
The black dots marked on the schematic indicate points on the stability diagram where the number
of electrons transported on and off the dot is not stable.
The black dot marked 2) for example lies on the VSD = 0 axis and is situated on the intersection of the N
and N + 1 stability states. In such a case the number of electrons within the dot can oscillate between N
and N + 1
The white dots marked on the schematic indicate points on the stability diagram where the number of
electrons transported on and off the dot is stable.
The white dot marked 1) also lies on the VSD = 0 axis but is positioned inside the N state diamond. In
this case the number of electrons on the dot is fixed to N and no transport on or off the dot can take
place.

Anywhere within the borders of a Coulomb diamond the dot will be in a stable state and no transport is
allowed.
The white dot marked 3) on the schematic lies on a VSD > 0 axis. The source-drain window has now
increased and the N and N +1 electron charging energy levels are now confined within the source-drain
window. This allows the dot to have N 1, N or N +1 electrons at any given time and is said to
be in a stable state with respect to these three states

Review Point
Current in One-Dimensions
1D Conductance
Quantum Dots

Coulomb Blockade
Coulomb Staircase
Coulomb Diamonds

Section 13:Quantum Coulomb

Blockade
Previous discussion on Coulomb blockade was purely classical. When the QD is small
enough, quantum mechanical effects need to be taken into account. The discrete
energy levels of the dot need to be added to the Coulomb Charging energy such that:

The energies above the minimum energy required to add an extra electron in the
classical approximation formed a continuum. In the quantum representation they
form a discrete set of energies given by .
This quantum spectrum does become visible if more than one electronic energy level
is present within the transport window defined by the source-drain voltage.
An electron tunnelling into the dot then has the pick of which of the states to occupy.
This gives rise to a change in the tunnel current.

Several states are never occupied simultaneously as the bias window is too small to
overcome the additional charging energy requirement. The increase of tunnel current
is only due to the existence of more than one channel.

The peak heights in the above plot fluctuate, indicating only one internal energy level
of the QD is coupled to the reservoirs. Different internal energy levels couple to the
reservoirs with different strengths leading to the observed amplitude modulation.

Section 14: Charging Energy and

Capacitance of a QD
Charging Energy
From Section 12, the electrostatic potential energy of the electrons on the dot is
given by:
A
We can assume the source(S), drain(D) and middle gate(M) capacitance to be the main
contributions to the total capacitance C of the system, such that:
C = CS+CD+CM and Qext = CSVS+CDVD+CMVM

A then takes on the following form:

Where: and is know as the lever arm term and describes the influence
the voltage Vi has on the potential energy of the dot.

The chemical energy

(Thermodynamics) of the electrons on the dot is:

B

Thus the energy needed to place one extra electron on the dot is given by:

This is known as the charging energy of the dot. It is clear that the value of the
capacitance C of the dot is vital in understanding the full dynamics of the QD system.

Determining C from the Coulomb Diamonds

The slopes of the Coulomb diamonds can be used to determine the value of the lever
arm term.

The assumption is made that one side of the source-drain is grounded such that:
VS = 0 and VD = VSD
Equation B (chemical energy) can now be defined as a function of VSD and VM such that:

, =
+

Where const represents the terms from B which are independent of VSD and VM. The
boundary of each Coulomb diamond corresponds to where the chemical potential for
adding an extra electron to the dot is in resonance with either the source or drains
chemical potential.
For the case when the source is in resonance, =0, we consider the change in
, as a function of the change in VSD and VM. We obtain the following relation:

= =

For the case when the drain is in resonance, =eVSD, we consider the change in
, as a function of the change in VSD and VM. We obtain the following relation:
= =

.D

ms and mD are the gradient of the boundaries of the diamond as shown in the
schematic below.

VM
By making use of C and D the lever arm term for the drain can be shown to be:

=

The change in source-drain voltage can also be obtained from the Coulomb diamonds
and is taken as the difference between the source-drain voltage at the top of the
diamond and that at the bottom as shown above.

The charging energy U can be expressed in terms of the change in source-drain

voltage obtained from the diamonds as well as the lever arm term such that:
=

VSD

Source

N+1

N+1

Drain

N-1

N+1

Drain

Source

Gate

N
N-1

N+1

The capacitance of the dot can then be found by equating the charging energy above
to the charging energy =

calculated earlier, such that:

=

Section 15: Landauer-Bttiker

Formalism
Multiterminal Conductor

In the multiterminal structure below , current can be fed into the active region
through leads connected to electron reservoirs, each at a chemical potential given by
j . We derive the form of the injected current (I) into the active region from each
channel (j) and leaving through channel (i) in terms of the reflection (Rjj) and
transmission (Tij) coefficients.
2

We assume that the structure is small and each channel j has Nj one-dimensional subbands.

The reservoirs attached to each channel are able to feed each of the channels equally. If
there is a potential difference between the channels, there will exist a chemical potential 0
below which all electrons states are occupied and cannot contribute to the current.
Current fed from reservoir i is given by:
= ( ) (See Section 11)
Of the current incident into channel i, a fraction Rii is reflected and the net inward current is
further reduced by the current incident from the other leads such that the current out of
lead i is:

0 has been set to 0.

Quantized Conductance Revisited

In an attempt to investigate the origins of quantized conductance as discussed previously in Section 11

and the Worked Example in Tutorial 2, we make use of the Landauer-Bttiker Formalism.
The schematic below is of a two terminal measurement such as the quantum point contact device given
in Section 11
T21

R22

R11
1

T12
We begin by considering the Landauer-Bttiker Formula:

For current in channel 1:

=

.B

For this simple 2-terminal geometry, T21=T12=T and R11=R22=R

Current conservation requires that all of the electron modes in channel 1 are either reflected back into
channel 1 or transmitted into channel 2 such that:
= +

On substitution of the above in B:

After multiplying by 2 to take into account spin degeneracy we have the desired value
for conductance as:
=

..C

For a long quantum wire this is not particularly remarkable. T can take on any value
between 0 and 1, depending on how strong the backscattering is in the channel. For a
quantum point contact in the ballistic regime, no scattering takes place and T = 1. The
total transmission is therefore:
= = , = = where N is the number of subbands
On substitution in C we obtain the conductance of a 2-terminal ballistic wire as:
2
=

Review Point
Quantum Coulomb Blockade
Charging Energy
Dot Capacitance
Landauer-Bttiker Formalism
Multiterminal Problem

Section 16: Double Quantum Dots

Double dot system are the next logical step up from a single dot configuration.
The two dots could have weak coupling whereby the electrons are localized in the
individual dots or strong coupling where the electron is able to tunnel many times
between the two dots.

Consider the schematic above which contains two coupled quantum dots QD1 and QD2
The double dot can be modelled as a network of tunnel resistors and capacitors .
The dots are capacitively coupled to gate voltages Vg1(2) through the capacitor Cg1(2) and
to the source and drain through tunnel barriers represented by tunnel resistors RL(R) in
parallel with a capacitor CL(R)
The dots couple to each other by a tunnel barrier represented by a tunnel resistor RM
and capacitor CM in parallel. The number of electrons on each dot 1(2) is given by N1(2)

The electrostatic energy of the two dots are given

by:
The electrochemical energy of the two
dots are given by:

A full derivation of the above equations can be found in the appendix of:

The charging energies can be expressed in terms of the capacitances as follows:

= , ( 1, )
= , ( , 1)
= , + 1 , = + 1, ,
Where:

EC1(2) is the charging energy of the individual dot 1(2) and ECM is the electrostatic
coupling energy. C1(2) is the sum of all capacitances attached to dot 1(2) including CM
such that:

Charge Stability Diagrams

From the electrochemical equations for each dot, a charge stability diagram can be
constructed, giving the equilibrium electron numbers N1 and N2 as a function of Vg1
and Vg2.
Vg2
Vg2

Vg1
Vg1

Completely Decoupled
CM 0

Vg2

Intermediate
The vertices of the square
domains separate into triple
points

Changes in gate voltages

Vg1(2) changes the charge on
dot 1(2), without affecting
the charge on the other

Large Interdot Coupling

CM /C1(2) 1
Triple point separation at a
maximum, double dot behaves
Vg1 like one date with charge N1+N2

Triple Points
In the schematic below two kinds of triple points are distinguishable.
At the triple point
the dot cycles anticlockwise through the sequence:
(0,0)(1,0)(0,1)(0,0), here one electron has been shuttled through the system

At the triple point

the dot cycles clockwise through the sequence:
(1,1)(0,1)(1,0)(1,1), here one hole has been shuttled through the system.
This is an example of sequential tunnelling and the energy difference between the
electron and hole process determines the separation between the triple points
and
. This is given by ECM

Section 17: Controlled Electron

Transport
Up to now , we have only discussed single electron transport through a QD based on
the stochastic nature of quantum mechanical tunnelling. In this section we are going
to investigate devices that allow for deterministic transport of electrons through a QD.
Electron Turnstiles
First demonstration of controlled single-electron transport(SET) was reported in 1990
by Geerlings et al in a device using metallic islands separated by tunnel junctions.

The device was referred to as turnstiles, where the potentials of the islands could be
varied by capacitively coupling them to gates. The height of the tunnel barriers
themselves could not be varied.
A year later Kowenhoven et al carried out the first demonstration in a semiconductor
quantum dot turnstile device capable of delivering a single-electron per cycle.

Below are set of schematics taken from Kouwenhoven et al showing the mode of
(
)
operation of the turnstile device. A bias voltage of =
is applied across the
dot.

The barriers defining the dot are modulated with applied RF signals such that the
barriers are always present ensuring the dot is properly defined and decoupled from
the 2DEG at all times throughout the cycle. The RF signal therefore increases and
decreases the probability of an electron tunnelling on and off the dot
The current transported through the dot is defined as:
=

Electron Pumps
The first electron pump demonstrated by Pothier et al was similar to the turnstile
devices just discussed. A pump however does not require a source-drain voltage to
operate and can pump against a source-drain voltage if one is applied.

The pump device consists of two dots and three tunnel junctions. RF signals are
capacitively coupled to the dots, lower and raise the potential of the island allowing
an electron to enter or preventing one form entering. The phase relationship between
the signals applied to the two gates determines the direction in which the electrons
are transported.
The pump operates in an analogous manner to a fluid peristaltic pump.

To understand such a pump, we consider the stability diagram of a two dot system
Vg2

Vg1

The pump is operated by first setting the DC voltages on the gates such that the
system is in the vicinity of a triple point. The two periodic signals with the same
frequency but phase shifted by are then superimposed on the gated voltages.
Electrons are pumped through the system in a trajectory as shown by the circular
arrow at point A. A change of phase difference between the two periodic signal by
leads to pumping in the opposite direction.

To investigate the basic operation of the pump, we consider the trajectory

taken by the gate voltages as the phase difference applied to the gates is changed
4

VG1

VG2

1
1

Review Point
Double Quantum Dot
Charge Stability Diagrams

Triple Points
Controlled Electron Transport
Electron Turnstiles

Electron Pumps

Section 18: General Definition of the

Density of States
See The Physics of Low-Dimensional Semiconductors: An introduction, Davies J H (CUP 1997)

The total density of states in energy can be described by:

N = ( )A
Where n is the energy of the states of the system.
How can we check to see that the above definition is correct?
If there is any validity in A, we would expect that the
integral of A would return the total number of states
over the limits of integration. Lets check!!!
Consider the plot of the density of states given on the right.
. =

( )

Integral range

N(E)

1 2 E1

n E2

On integration the -function will return a one for all states in the integration range and a
zero for those out. Then performing sum , indeed returns the expected total number of
states between E1 and E2

Lets consider the case of free electrons in one dimensions. By making use of
equation A and labelling the states by their wave number k, we obtain:

=2

[ ]

Spin has been included by the factor of 2. We now assume as large system and replace
the sum by an integral - Derivation given in class:

Section 19: Local Density of States

See The Physics of Low-Dimensional Semiconductors: An introduction, Davies J H (CUP 1997)

In Section 18 the system studied was translationally invariant. In such systems the
density of states is the same at each point. For systems that are not translationally
invariant we need to define a local density of states.
Consider a free electron that is restricted to the region x > 0, by an impenetrable wall at
x = 0. The wave function for such a system would be k(x) = sinkx, such that k(0) = 0.
A reasonable expectation would be that the density of states would also vanish at that
point. The local density of states will deal with such situations by ensuring that the
contribution of each state is weighted by the density of its wave function at the point of
interest. The local density of states is thus defined by:

, =

| ()| ( )

On integrating the above over x we obtain the previous result of section 18

, =

( )

| | =

= ()

Section 20: Triangular Potential Well

A triangular potential well is given in the figure below
V(z)=eFz

http://www.nextnano.de/nextnano3/tutorial/1Dtutorial_GaAs_triangular_well.htm

The Schrdinger equation is given by:

+ = () with boundary conditions = 0 = 0

To solve the Schrdinger equation we introduce scales of distance and energy given by:
=

Derivation given in class

and =

()
2

The above equation is know as the Stokes or Airy equation and has two independent
solutions, the Airy functions Ai(s) and Bi(s)

The Airy Functions

Based on the potential in the triangular well, we require a wave function that is well
behaved as z (s) goes to infinity. From the above plot we can reject Bi immediately.
The impenetrable boundary at z=0 (s=-)requires that the wave function:
(z=0)=(s=-)=0
The above plots show that there are an infinite number of negative values where
Ai(s)=0. These in most texts are denoted by an or cn and must be computed
numerically.

We therefore have = and the allowed energies are given by:

=

, n= 1,2,3

The unnormalized wave functions are given by:

= =

Section 22:Uniform Electric Field

See The Physics of Low-Dimensional Semiconductors: An introduction, Davies J H (CUP 1997)

Wave Function and Energies

We consider a charge in a uniform electric field F along z. The potential is constant in time so the
Schrdinger equation is given by:

+ =
2

The potential energy eFz, three wave functions and energies for the electrons in GaAs in a uniform
electric field is given below

We have already solved a similar problem for the triangular well.

How will the energy levels for this problem differ from those of the triangular well?

The unnormalized wave functions are given by:

(, ) =

With the length and energy scale given by:

=

and =

()
2

Here however as there are no boundary conditions on the wave functions, the
electrons are free to move in all space and can take on any energy value.
The solutions are standing waves, not propagating waves. This is due to the reflection
that is setup when the electron traveling in the +z direction reflects off the potential at
reflects and returns along the z direction. The interference between the two
waves of equal intensity sets up a standing waves.

The Density of States

With the addition of an electric field, the allowed energies are allowed to take on
values from . The system is also no longer translationally invariant, so the
density of states is expected to change as well.
We make use of the local density of states as defined in section 19.

For a uniform electric field there is a continuous range of energy levels so the form of
the local density of states in section 19 is changed from a sum to an integral:

.A

As the wave functions used were not normalized we obtain a factor C which we need
to solve for.
To solve for C, we consider the regime where the kinetic energy is high (E- eFz E)and
we expect that the density of states to be similar to that for free electrons:
~

.B

The asymptotic (large x) form of the Airy function Ai is given by:

1
()~
2

2
1

3
4

So A can be given by:

, ~

2
3

If we equate the above to B, and take the average value of to be , we can solve
for the constant C:

2 2
=

Finally the local density of states of a 1D system in an electric field is given by:

2 2
, =

Review Point
General Density of States
Local Density of States
Triangular Potential Well

Airy Functions
Uniform Electric Field

Section 22: Uniform Magnetic Field

We now consider a magnetic field applied to a 2DEG. We consider a magnetic field B
applied in the z-direction leading to an effect only in the x and y direction.
The Schrdinger equation for a magnetic field takes on the form:
+
Where: =

and =

= A

. The vector potential A =(0,Bx,0).

A can be transformed into the Schrdinger equation for a harmonic oscillator:

1

+ +
=
2
2

is the cyclotron frequency as defined in Section 10

Landau Levels
If we consider the orbital motion of the electrons only, then the allowed energies
are those of the harmonic oscillator given by:
= +

n=0,1,2,3..

The states corresponding to different n are called the Landau levels. The energy spectrum
of this system is just a regularly spaced sequence of Landau levels separated by an energy
. The energy depends only on n and not k, therefore states with the same n but
different k are degenerate.
The wave functions for the motion in the x y plane take on the following form:
+
+
(, )

exp ()

2
Hn are the Hermite polynomials, =

radius), =

and is known as the centre coordinate (cyclotron

which is the length scale and is known as the magnetic length.

From the wave functions above, it is clear that the motion along the y-direction
corresponds to free electrons. The motion along the x-direction has been changed by the
magnetic field.

Density of States
With the changes in the energy level of the 2DEG, the form of the density of states is
going to change from a constant as shown in Section 6 to a series of discrete allowed
energy levels as shown in the plot below.

()

The original density of states needs to now be distributed among the discrete energy
levels, which requires that each level has an enormous degeneracy. To calculate the
number of states in each level we make use of xk defined on the previous slide.
Consider a sample with dimensions of Lx x Ly. Periodic boundary conditions along y are
defined as in the usual way.

Remember each Hermite polynomial n is the wave function for each energy level n,
however the Hermite polynomial is also a function of xk. It is through xk that the high
level of degeneracy is obtained.

The centre coordinates xk are separated by :

2
=
=

So the number of centre coordinates that can be accommodated along L x is:

Thus the allowed number of states in each Landau level per unit area is:

It should be noted that we have not included spin as in a magnet field the degeneracy
of the spin up, spin down state is broken.

Filling Factor
The filling factor or number of occupied Landau levels can simply be obtained from
the number of allowed states in the Landau level nB and the density of electrons in the
system:

The filling factor in general is not an integer and at zero temperature there will be i
Landau levels full where i is the largest integer below and the top Landau level i+1
will be only partially full.
As B is increased the Landau levels will move up in energy and the number of states in
each level will also increase. Electrons will then begin to depopulate the higher
Landau levels(i.e: The filling factor decreases). This ensures that the carrier density
remains constant. This is shown in the figures taken from Davies below.

The potential of a 2D system in a semiconductor is effected by the electric fields from

ionised impurities, interface defects as well as crystal defects. These fields have the
effect of broadening the delta function Landau levels as shown above

Oscillation of the Fermi level

In Section 7, we showed that the charge density can be altered with the application of
a voltage to a surface gate. The change in charge density with the change in voltage on
the surface gate was given as:

In figure (a) below the Landau level is at the chemical potential. If we apply a voltage to a
surface gate such that we reduce the charge density in the vicinity of the gate by a small
amount, the Fermi energy EF will not change by much, as in the centre of a broadened
Landau level, the energy states are close together. The Landau level is said to be pinned
at the chemical potential.
In figure (b) the chemical potential is in-between two Landau levels where there are no
states. In-order to remove an electron, the Fermi level needs to drop quickly, aligning
with occupied states in the next Landau level.

When the nth Landau level is pinned at the chemical potential, the Fermi level will
be: +

to within the width of the broadened Landau level.

The Fermi level will remain at this value until the density has been reduced by an
amount: = , the density of electrons in the Landau level. The Fermi level will
then jump to the next value: 1 + . This process is shown
schematically in the figure below. Here the magnetic field B is fixed.

Fermi level Fan

The Fermi level moves with the density of states in-order to keep the density of
electrons constant.
If we assume a perfect system with -function Landau levels the movement of the
Fermi level as a function of the magnetic field is given below:

Review Point
Uniform Magnetic Field
Landau Levels
Density of States Magnetic Field

Filling Factor
Fermi Level Fan (Landau Fan)

Section 23: Classical Hall Effect

Lets first examine the classical Hall effect.
Discovered 1879 by Edwin Herbert Hall in Maryland.
The Hall effect was first observed in a conductor in a magnetic field. The field exerts a
transverse force on the moving charge. This results in a build up of charge on the sides
of the conductor, producing a measurable voltage between the two sides. The build
up of charge on the sides of the conductor will balance the applied magnetic field.
B

VH
w

++++++++++++++
Fm
Fe
-------------------

I = wNelev
Nel is the areal carrier density
v the average carrier velocity
w the width of the sample

When a magnetic field, B is applied perpendicular to the sample, it causes a force on

each sample given by:
= ( )
This leads to a build-up of charge on the two sides parallel to the direction of current, until
the induced electric field EH, exactly balances the magnetic force:
=
With a measurable Hall voltage VH across the sample given by:
= =
Combining the above with the I = wNelev, we obtain an expression for the Hall voltage in
terms of the magnetic field and areal density.

=
I

With the Hall resistance given by:

=
=

The Hall resistance is often used to measure the carrier density, Nel, and also the carrier
mobility , which can be determined knowing the current I, carrier density and applied
voltage V.

Section 24: Edge States

We begin with a 2DEG in an magnetic field. We include an potential such that the
electrons are now confined in the x direction and remain free along y. The Schrdinger
equation with the Landau gauge and extra x confinement takes on the following form:

1

+ +
+ () =
2
2

First we define the magnetic potential in terms of

usual kinetic energy for motion along y when B = 0.

which reduces to the

We are going to have a qualitative look at the formation of edge states by considering
a confining potential of a infinitely deep square well given by:
1
<
= 0,
2
,

This confining well potential can be seen as reducing he 2DEG to that of a quantum
wire in 1D.

When B = 0, the energy of the system is given by:

0 =
+
2
2
Now we consider the case when k=0. In this case the magnetic potential is a parabola
centred at the origin.
As the magnetic field is increased the confining potential due to the magnetic field
increases.
The figures below show the magnetic confining potential for a weak and strong
magnetic field. In both cases k = 0, such that the magnetic potential is centred at the
origin of the well.

For low fields the boundaries of V(x) provide

the main confinement.
For high fields, the electrons are confined
more tightly and the wave function has decayed
to almost zero before the well boundaries are
reached.

Now consider the case when k is increased.

The vertex of the magnetic potential will be shifted to xk. The energy when B = 0 has
also been increased by

For large k, the vertex of the magnetic parabola will lie out side of the well as shown in
the figure below.

The electron now exists in a roughly triangular potential well where,

the energy has risen and the degeneracy is lost (why???).

The states squeezed against the side of the well contain

higher energy than those in the middle and are called edge states

The effects just discussed are summarized in the plots below where the energy is
plotted against the average position of the wave function

For high magnetic fields the energy is constant when

lies within the wire but
rises as the edge states are approached. This shows how the degeneracy is broken.

The figure above gives a classical description of how the electron acquire a net drif
velocity.

Review Point
Classical Hall Effect
Edge States

Section 25: Conductivity and

Resistivity Tensors
Lets consider a 2DEG , the current density(J) and electric field(E) are related by:
J = E
How is conductivity related to resistivity?
We know that: =

What happens in a magnetic field?

A magnetic field turns on the Hall effect, an electric field is generated that is now perpendicular to the current. The
conductivity () must now be represented by a tensor giving:

The diagonal elements of are equal and the off-diagonal elements are equal and opposite in sign such that:

The resistivity is the reciprocal of the conductivity and can be represented now by:
=

( + )

In the absence of a magnetic field both matrices for conductivity and resistivity are diagonal and the well know result
of:
=

holds

What about a strong magnetic field?

As the magnetic field is increased, there will be an increase in the Lorenz force and hence
the electric field perpendicular to the injected current. In high fields it is possible to achieve
the condition:

In this limit:

and =

We now have the longitudinal components of and are in direct proportion rather than
inversely. Thus if the conductivity goes to zero, so does the resistivity.

Section 26: Shubnikov-De Hass Effect

It can be shown that the resistivity in the longitudinal direction goes to zero when the
Landau levels are fully occupied (integer filling factor) and . In such a
regime we have a high magnetic field and low temperature.
In the case RI = 0, the electrons cannot scatter to other states that are empty with the
same energy (Fermi level is in-between Landau levels) and when , the
electrons cannot scatter to other Landau levels.
The figure below shows a plot of the longitudinal voltage, this plot is that of the
Shubnikov-De Hass effect and is evidence of the quantum mechanical behaviour of
electrons in a magnetic field.

Minima occur at field strengths Bn when v = n (ignoring spin splitting and n refers to
the nth Landau level), as the Fermi level is fixed in-between Landau levels where the
density of states = 0 and no conduction can take place.

Given =

and =
and substituting in v = n we can obtain an

expression for n as a function of 1/Bn : =

Plotting n against the measured 1/Bn will result in a straight line with slope (h/e)Nel.
This is a standard technique of measuring the density of charge carriers (Nel).

Section 27: Quantum Hall Effect

In a 2DEG how does the Hall effect become quantised?
Recall that the energy levels in the ground state subband of a 2DEG are given by:

, = +
+
2
When a strong magnetic field B, is applied perpendicular to the 2DEG, the electrons
move in cyclotron orbits in the 2D plane.
When taking into account quantisation effects , the allowed orbital energies are those
of the Landau levels as shown in Section 21:

= +

n=0,1,2,3..

Consider the mesa patterned in a 2DEG GaAs-AlGaAs system

The aim of this measurement is to measure the resistivity tensor.

A current I is passed between ohmic contacts S and D giving a current density of:

For the longitudinal resistivity = the voltage between ohmic contacts A and B
(VAB) is measured to find:

For the Hall resistivity

measured to find:

the voltage between ohmic contacts A and C (VAc) is

For magnetic fields below B ~ 0.5T, xx is constant and xy is linear in magnetic field. As
the magnetic field is increased the longitudinal resistivity begins to show oscillations
(SdH) that are periodic in 1/B and the Hall resistivity begins to show plateaux at integer
multiples of h/e2. The formation of these plateaux is known as the quantum Hall effect

Do we expect plateaux in the Hall resistance and oscillations in the longitudinal resistance
in low magnetic fields? (See Worked Example 1.2 in Tutorial 4)

Section 28: Extended and Localized

States
We have discussed the broadening of the Landau levels due to the disorder in the systems.
However more detail of the Landau level is needed if we are to interpret the long plateaux
generated in the Hall resistance measurements.
In Section 22 we discussed the Fermi Fan, whereby the variation of the Fermi level as a function
of magnetic field was shown.
Sharp jumps were seen between Landau levels which are rounded, if the levels are broadened or
the temperature rises. It should however be noted that is difficult to place the Fermi level
in-between the Landau levels.

Percolation Threshold
Potential Landscape
Lakes (Localized)

Percolating Coastlines (Extended)

M.Sigrist Institute Theoretical Physics, Zurich

Islands (Localized)

Section 29: Group Velocity

The group velocity of a state with wave vector kx in the nth Landau level is given by the
gradient of the dispersion curve:
1 ,
, =

In the dispersion curve given above, states with a guiding centre position such that their
Cyclotron orbit does not touch the walls of the wire have zero group velocity and therefore
stationary cyclotron orbits. The states that touch the walls have a group velocity that increase
the closer they are forced to the walls (See Section 24).
This corresponds with the findings that electrons can only pass through the system by
skipping along the edges of the wire.

The density of states then splits into two parts: bulk states that are stationary
cyclotron orbits and edge states that skip along the walls of the wire.

Section 30: Quantum Hall Effect

Landauer-Bttiker Formalism
Making use of the Landauer-Bttiker Formalism, the total current ejected form ohmic
contact i is give by (See Section 15 and Worked Example 1.1 in Tutorial 5):

Consider the Hall bar given below: We assume to reflection and that transmission

does occur between the subbands of the probes

= N

Ohmic contacts A,B and C contribute no current

= N

0 = N

0 = N

0 = N

The Hall resistance is found by passing current I between ohmic contacts A and C:

The corresponding longitudinal resistance is found from:

From D we have VA = VB, therefore RXX = 0

From C we have VA = VS, and substituting into A we have:
=

Which gives:

We have thus derived the experimental results of the SdH oscillations and the Quantum Hall effect.
The Quantum Hall effect is extremely robust. If there are N edge states originating at the same ohmic
contact, the edge states will all be at the same potential. Any scattering between these N edge states
will simply redistribute current between the states. The total current however will be conserved and
there would be no change in the hall resistance and the SdH oscillations.
Scattering between opposite edges of the Hall bar does increase Rxx as backscattering has now occurred,
this is the cause of the SdH peaks, which occur when EF lies in a Landau level in the middle of the
sample.

Review Point
Conductivity and Resistivity Tensors
Shubnikov-De Hass Effect
Quantum Hall Effect

Extended and Localised States

Group Velocity
Quantum Hall Effect Landauer-Bttiker Formalism

Section 31: Reflection of Edge States

From the theory of the quantum Hall effect, there should be as many edge states as there are occupied
Landau levels. This may be tested by considering the reflected edge states from a split gate using the
Hall bar configuration as shown below:

The bulk 2D system has N occupied Landau levels and the split gate reflects N M edge states, so that at
the centre only M Landau levels are occupied.
A current is passed between ohmic contacts 1 and 4, with the voltage measured between the other
contacts.
In tutorial 5, you will be asked to prove that the resistivities take on the following form:

, =
=

1 1
=

Fractional quantisation in the integer quantum Hall regime of a four terminal

measurement is shown in the figure below.
The conductance (1/R23) of a split gate in a magnetic field of 1.4T at T = 0.6K.
The solid horizontal lines indicate the quantised plateaux predicted by:

With N = 5 and M = 1,2,3,4.

1 1
=

Section 32: Aharonov-Bohm Effect

Introduction
We consider a system where electrons enter a ring with two possible routes around the ring as
indicated below.

A magnetic field is applied perpendicular to the centre of the ring, such that the field is zero in the paths
the electrons are to take. This is equivalent to an infinite solenoid where the field inside is uniform and
outside is zero.
If we are to consider the quantum behaviour of the electrons through the ring, we need to solve for the
Schrodinger equation containing the vector potential of the field B. We need to determine the form of
the vector potential A, outside the solenoid.

In the paths the electrons are to take, we have:

= = 0
From Stokes theorem we have:

. =

. =

. =

C is the contracted path of integration around the rings and m is the total magnetic flux through the ring. The
vector potential then takes on the form:
=

r, is the distance from the centre axis through the ring.

Classically we do not expect the electron motion to be affected by the enclosed magnetic field since the
electrons are in fact not moving through the magnetic field. The particles wave function is however affected by
the existence of the enclosed flux and a total phase difference between the two paths can be shown to be
equal to:
=

where, = know as the quantum flux

Interference is therefore periodic in the number of flux quanta passing through the loop. It is constructive
when is a multiple of 0 and destructive halfway between.
(For the complete derivation of the above see Worked Example 1.2 in Tutorial 5)

So, if we change the magnetic field through the centre of the ring, we will change the phase difference
between the electron waves on each path and how the two waves interfere at the outgoing channel of the
ring.

Experimental Realisation
We consider the paper published by Webb et al

The device consists of a small gold ring patterned on the

surface of a semiconductor. The oscillatory trace shows
the resistance of the ring as a function of magnetic field.
The lower trace is that of the power spectrum.
The ring was of a purity that the phase coherence length
was twice that of the circumference of the ring.
The oscillation in resistance can be understood in-terms of
the phase difference of the electron waves as discussed on
the previous slide.

And that by Timp et al

The first unambiguous observation of the AB effect in highmobility GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures .

The device fabricated using electron beam lithography and

reactive ion etching.
Three devices measured with average diameters of
nominally 2.5, 2.0 and 1.0 m

The electron density was measured for the 2m diameter ring and was found to be
(2.50.2) x 1011 cm-2. This is in contrast with the density of (3.90.2) x 1011 cm-2
measured in a 2D (300x900 m-2) Hall bridge at 4K.
Why the discrepancy in the density of electrons?
The figures below shows the periodic oscillations in magnetic field for the 2.5 and 2.0 m
diameter annulus respectively.

The periods of the high frequency oscillations correspond with the penetration of
the flux through the average area of the annulus.

Section 33: Quantum Dots in Surface

Acoustic Waves

Electron Heating

The potential of the dynamic QD is shown by the

contour lines at 5meV intervals.
Electrons shown in different colours can be tracked
as the potential of the dot is changed as the SAW
moves through the split gate constriction.
The velocity of the electrons are shown as arrows,
such that in a time scale of 2ps between successive
frames an electron would move the distance
indicated by the arrow.
The dot initially holds 28 electrons but after only 4ps
the rearmost electron is forced to leave at the dot
becomes smaller.
If the rear most electron leaves immediately a hole
would be left such that the remaining electrons
would rush to fill the hole to minimise the increase
in potential energy.
The kinetic of the electrons would therefore increase
and the electrons could be regarded as heating up.
The speed at which the electrons are lifted up out of
the Fermi sea of electrons will have a direct impact
on the heating of the electrons in the dot
This heating effect is a primary cause of the slope in
the quantised current shown on the previous slide.

Quantum Computing

Qbits forming a quantum processor.

The spin of each electron could be used as the required two-state system .
A series of long channels carrying the electron Qbits would constitute a quantum register.\
The channels could interact with localised magnetic fields to change the spin state of the
electron.
Tunnelling barriers between adjacent channels could cause pairs of electrons to interact and
hence entangle their spins.

Read-out of the bits could happened through the recombination of electrons and hole pairs. The
SAW could deliver the processed electron to a hole channel where on recombination a photon
with the spin information of the original electron would be emitted.