Order of the X conduction-band valleys in type-II GaAs/AlAs quantum wells

Ballistic electron transport in AlAs quantum wells

We report the observation of commensurability oscillations in an AlAs two-dimensional electron system where two conduction-band valleys with elliptical in-plane Fermi contours are occupied. The Fourier power spectrum of the oscillations shows two frequency components consistent with those expected for the Fermi contours of the two valleys. From an analysis of the spectra we deduce m(l)/m(t)=5.2+/-0.5 for the ratio of the longitudinal and transverse electron effective masses, a fundamental parameter that cannot be directly measured from other transport experiments.

Dependence of spin susceptibility of a two-dimensional electron system on the valley degree of freedom

We report measurements of the spin susceptibility, chi proportional, variant g(v)g*m*, in an AlAs two-dimensional electron system where, via the application of in-plane stress, we transfer electrons from one ellipsoidal conduction-band valley to another (g(v) is the valley degeneracy, and m* and g* are the electron effective mass and g factor). At a given density, when the two valleys are equally populated (g(v)=2), the measured g*m* is smaller than when only one valley is occupied (g(v)=1). This observation counters the common assumption that a two-valley two-dimensional system is effectively more dilute than a single-valley system because of its smaller Fermi energy.

Spin susceptibility of two-dimensional electrons in narrow AlAs quantum wells

We report measurements of the spin susceptibility in dilute two-dimensional electrons confined to a 45 A wide AlAs quantum well. The electrons in this well occupy an out-of-plane conduction-band valley, rendering a system similar to two-dimensional electrons in Si-MOSFETs but with only one valley occupied. We observe an enhancement of the spin susceptibility over the band value that increases as the density is decreased, following closely the prediction of quantum Monte Carlo calculations and continuing at finite values through the metal-insulator transition.

Realization of an interacting two-valley AlAs bilayer system

By using different widths for two AlAs quantum wells comprising a bilayer system, we force the X-point conduction-band electrons in the two layers to occupy valleys with different Fermi contours, electron effective masses, and g factors. Since the occupied valleys are at different X points of the Brillouin zone, the interlayer tunneling is negligibly small despite the close electron layer spacing. We demonstrate the realization of this system via magnetotransport measurements and the observation of a phase-coherent, bilayer nu=1 quantum Hall state flanked by a reentrant insulating phase.

Critical resistance in the AlAs quantum Hall ferromagnet

Magnetic transitions in AlAs two-dimensional electrons give rise to sharp resistance spikes within the quantum Hall effect. Such spikes are likely caused by carrier scattering at magnetic domain walls below the Curie temperature. We report a critical behavior in the temperature dependence of the spike width and amplitude, from which we deduce the Curie temperature of the quantum Hall ferromagnet. Our data also reveal that the Curie temperature increases monotonically with carrier density.