Physics and Technology of Semiconductor Quantum Nanostructures
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
We are accustomed to the use of electricity in every day life, this is based on the flow of electrons through materials which have a high conductivity such as metals. At low temperatures the laws of quantum mechanics prevail and now an electron does not behave as a particle but rather as a wave, which reflects the probability of finding an electron in a particular place. An entirely new range of phenomena flow from this change in the physics and this is most pronounced in very small devices, called nanostructures. The purpose of this grant is to enable the most advanced nanostructures to be fabricated and new physical phenomena to be sought in them. In addition to the new physics that will be found, new methods of transmitting and handling data will emerge, which will be of great benefit to both existing and future industries yet to be born.
Publications
Ferrus T
(2010)
Disorder and electron interaction control in low-doped silicon metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistors
in Applied Physics Letters
Giblin S
(2010)
An accurate high-speed single-electron quantum dot pump
in New Journal of Physics
Goswami S
(2009)
Highly enhanced thermopower in two-dimensional electron systems at millikelvin temperatures.
in Physical review letters
Goswami S
(2011)
Signatures of an anomalous Nernst effect in a mesoscopic two-dimensional electron system
in Physical Review B
Goswami S
(2010)
Thermoelectric properties of electrostatically tunable antidot lattices
in Applied Physics Letters
Graham A
(2007)
Energy-level pinning and the 0.7 spin state in one dimension: GaAs quantum wires studied using finite-bias spectroscopy
in Physical Review B
Graham AC
(2008)
Anticrossing of spin-split subbands in quasi-one-dimensional wires.
in Physical review letters
Hew WK
(2009)
Incipient formation of an electron lattice in a weakly confined quantum wire.
in Physical review letters
Hickey M
(2007)
Strongly bias-dependent spin injection from Fe into n -type GaAs
in Physical Review B
Ho L
(2008)
Effect of screening long-range Coulomb interactions on the metallic behavior in two-dimensional hole systems
in Physical Review B
Huang D
(2008)
Effects of inelastic capture, tunneling escape, and quantum confinement on surface acoustic wave-dragged photocurrents in quantum wells
in Journal of Applied Physics
Kataoka M
(2007)
Single-Electron Population and Depopulation of an Isolated Quantum Dot Using a Surface-Acoustic-Wave Pulse
in Physical Review Letters
Kataoka M
(2008)
Investigation of single-electron dynamics in tunnelling between zero- and one-dimensional states
in Physica E: Low-dimensional Systems and Nanostructures
Kataoka M
(2006)
Experimental investigation of the surface acoustic wave electron capture mechanism
in Physical Review B
Kataoka M
(2006)
The effect of pulse-modulated surface acoustic waves on acoustoelectric current quantization
in Journal of Applied Physics
Kataoka M
(2009)
Coherent time evolution of a single-electron wave function.
in Physical review letters
Kataoka M
(2006)
Single-electron transfer between double quantum dots defined by surface acoustic waves
in Physica E: Low-dimensional Systems and Nanostructures
Kataoka M
(2008)
Electron population control of a highly isolated quantum dot using surface-acoustic waves
in Physica E: Low-dimensional Systems and Nanostructures
Keogh J
(2006)
Closely spaced, independently contacted electron-hole bilayers in GaAs-AlGaAs heterostructures
in Physica E: Low-dimensional Systems and Nanostructures
Koushik R
(2011)
Evidence of gate-tunable topological excitations in two-dimensional electron systems
in Physical Review B
McNeil RP
(2010)
Localized magnetic fields in arbitrary directions using patterned nanomagnets.
in Nano letters
Narayan V
(2012)
Evidence of Novel Quasiparticles in a Strongly Interacting Two-Dimensional Electron System: Giant Thermopower and Metallic Behaviour
in Journal of Low Temperature Physics
Pfaendler S
(2008)
Stable conductance plateaus from ridge wires grown on a patterned substrate
in Applied Physics Letters
Rushforth A
(2006)
Fano effect and Kondo effect in quantum dots formed in strongly coupled quantum wells
in Physical Review B
Description | The work discovered a number of unexpected features of spin polarisation and difference in energy between the different spin directions. It was found possible to induce a coincidence in energy between the spin directions by means of a magnetic field which produced a number of spin instabilities. We developed an electron pump which delivered a quantised current near nanoamps which is within range of highly accurate measurements of electron charge by standards laboratories. |
Exploitation Route | Many groups worldwide are using the patterned gate techniques which we developed. The electron pump has been taken up by standards laboratories including NPL with whom we have a good collaboration. |
Sectors | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Electronics,Energy |
URL | http://www.electronicsweekly.com/news/research-news/device-rd/cambridge-team-closer-to-working-quantum-computer-2007-04/ |
Description | Theory of Electron Transport in Semiconductor Nanostructures and Collaborative Experiments |
Organisation | University of Liverpool |
Department | Department of Physics |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaboration and explanation of experiments as well as suggestions of new experiments. These collaborations started before this award but are ongoing and have contributed to the work in the award. |
Collaborator Contribution | Many ideas and experimental contributions. Allocation of a Dilution Refrigerator in Cape Town for the experimental programme. Dr Blumenthal who is now in CapeTown took a Ph.D in Cambridge and was supervised by Pepper, he is now a lecturer there and has allocated a dilution refrigerator to our collaboration on electron pumps. We have an excellent collaboration with the Taiwan group which has provided new insights into spin-orbit coupling. The Bar Ilan and CUNY collaborations are in the area of theory and have produced some important insights into the behaviour of electrons in nanostructures which is continuing. |
Impact | 4 good publications |
Description | Theory of Electron Transport in Semiconductor Nanostructures and Collaborative Experiments |
Organisation | University of Liverpool |
Department | Department of Physics |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaboration and explanation of experiments as well as suggestions of new experiments. These collaborations started before this award but are ongoing and have contributed to the work in the award. |
Collaborator Contribution | Many ideas and experimental contributions. Allocation of a Dilution Refrigerator in Cape Town for the experimental programme. Dr Blumenthal who is now in CapeTown took a Ph.D in Cambridge and was supervised by Pepper, he is now a lecturer there and has allocated a dilution refrigerator to our collaboration on electron pumps. We have an excellent collaboration with the Taiwan group which has provided new insights into spin-orbit coupling. The Bar Ilan and CUNY collaborations are in the area of theory and have produced some important insights into the behaviour of electrons in nanostructures which is continuing. |
Impact | 4 good publications |
Description | Theory of Electron Transport in Semiconductor Nanostructures and Collaborative Experiments |
Organisation | University of the Balearic Islands |
Department | Physics |
Country | Spain |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaboration and explanation of experiments as well as suggestions of new experiments. These collaborations started before this award but are ongoing and have contributed to the work in the award. |
Collaborator Contribution | Many ideas and experimental contributions. Allocation of a Dilution Refrigerator in Cape Town for the experimental programme. Dr Blumenthal who is now in CapeTown took a Ph.D in Cambridge and was supervised by Pepper, he is now a lecturer there and has allocated a dilution refrigerator to our collaboration on electron pumps. We have an excellent collaboration with the Taiwan group which has provided new insights into spin-orbit coupling. The Bar Ilan and CUNY collaborations are in the area of theory and have produced some important insights into the behaviour of electrons in nanostructures which is continuing. |
Impact | 4 good publications |
Description | Theory of Electron Transport in Semiconductor Nanostructures and Collaborative Experiments |
Organisation | University of the Balearic Islands |
Department | Physics |
Country | Spain |
Sector | Academic/University |
PI Contribution | Collaboration and explanation of experiments as well as suggestions of new experiments. These collaborations started before this award but are ongoing and have contributed to the work in the award. |
Collaborator Contribution | Many ideas and experimental contributions. Allocation of a Dilution Refrigerator in Cape Town for the experimental programme. Dr Blumenthal who is now in CapeTown took a Ph.D in Cambridge and was supervised by Pepper, he is now a lecturer there and has allocated a dilution refrigerator to our collaboration on electron pumps. We have an excellent collaboration with the Taiwan group which has provided new insights into spin-orbit coupling. The Bar Ilan and CUNY collaborations are in the area of theory and have produced some important insights into the behaviour of electrons in nanostructures which is continuing. |
Impact | 4 good publications |