Analysis of the metallic phase of two-dimensional holes in SiGe in terms of temperature dependent screening

Coherent backscattering in quasi-ballistic ultra-high mobility GaAs/AlGaAs 2DES

A small and narrow negative-magnetoresistance (MR) effect that appears about null magnetic field over the interval −0.025 ≤ B ≤ 0.025 T in magnetotransport studies of the GaAs/AlGaAs 2D system with μ ≈ 10⁷cm²/Vs is experimentally examined as a function of the sample temperature, T. The temperature dependent magnetoresistance data were fit using the Hikami et al. theory, without including the spin-orbit correction, to extract the inelastic length, l_i, which decreases rapidly with increasing temperature. It turns out that l_i < l_e, where l_e is the elastic length, for all T. Thus, we measured the single particle lifetime, τ_s, and the single particle mean free path l_s = v_Fτ_s. A comparison between l_i and l_s indicates that l_i > l_s. The results suggest that the observed small and narrow magnetoresistance effect about null magnetic field could be a manifestation of coherent backscattering due to small angle scattering from remote ionized donors in the high mobility GaAs/AlGaAs 2DES.

TRANSPORT PROPERTIES OF 2D ELECTRON GAS IN AN n-InGaAs/GaAs DQW IN A VICINITY OF LOW MAGNETIC-FIELD-INDUCED HALL INSULATOR–QUANTUM HALL LIQUID TRANSITION

The resistivity (ρ) of low mobility dilute 2D electron gas in an n- InGaAs / GaAs double quantum well (DQW) exhibits the monotonic "insulating-like" temperature dependence (dρ/dT < 0) at T = 1.8–70 K in zero magnetic field. This temperature interval corresponds to a ballistic regime (kBTτ/ħ > 0.1–3.5) for our samples, and the electron density is on an "insulating" side of the so-called B = 0 2D metal–insulator transition. We show that the observed features of localization and Landau quantization in a vicinity of the low magnetic-field-induced insulator–quantum Hall liquid transition is due to the σxy(T) anomalous T-dependence.

Temperature dependent weak field Hall resistance in two-dimensional carrier systems

Using the Drude-Boltzmann semiclassical transport theory, we calculate the weak-field Hall resistance of a two-dimensional system at low densities and temperatures, assuming carrier scattering by screened random charged impurity centers. The temperature-dependent 2D Hall coefficient shows striking nonmonotonicity in strongly screened systems, and, in particular, we qualitatively explain the recent puzzling experimental observation of a decreasing Hall resistance with increasing temperature in a dilute 2D hole system. We predict that the impurity scattering limited Hall coefficient will eventually increase with temperature at higher temperatures.

Coherent backscattering near the two-dimensional metal-insulator transition

We have studied corrections to conductivity due to the coherent backscattering in low-disordered two-dimensional electron systems in silicon for a range of electron densities including the vicinity of the metal-insulator transition, where the dramatic increase of the spin susceptibility has been observed earlier. We show that the corrections, which exist deeper in the metallic phase, weaken upon approaching the transition and practically vanish at the critical density, thus suggesting that the localization is suppressed near and at the transition even in zero field.

Resistance noise scaling in a dilute two-dimensional hole system in GaAs

We have measured the resistance noise of a two-dimensional (2D) hole system in a high mobility GaAs quantum well, around the 2D metal-insulator transition (MIT) at zero magnetic field. The normalized noise power S(R)/R(2) increases strongly when the hole density p(s) is decreased, increases slightly with temperature (T) at the largest densities, and decreases strongly with T at low p(s). The noise scales with the resistance, S(R)/R(2) approximately R2.4, as for a second order phase transition such as a percolation transition. The p(s) dependence of the conductivity is consistent with a critical behavior for such a transition, near a density p(*) which is lower than the observed MIT critical density p(c).

Exclusion of quantum coherence as the origin of the 2D metallic state in high-mobility silicon inversion layers

The temperature and density dependence of the phase coherence time tau(phi) in high-mobility silicon inversion layers was determined from the magnetoresistivity due to weak localization. The upper temperature limit for single-electron quantum interference effects was delineated by comparing tau(phi) with the momentum relaxation time tau. A comparison between the density dependence of the borders for quantum interference effects and the strong resistivity drop reveals that these effects are not related to each other. As the strong resistivity drop occurs in the Drude regime, the apparent metallic behavior cannot be caused by quantum coherent effects.

Fermi-liquid behavior of the low-density 2D hole gas in a GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructure at large values of r(s)

We examine the validity of the Fermi-liquid description of the dilute 2D hole gas in the crossover from "metallic"-to-"insulating" behavior of rho(T). It has been established that, at r(s) as large as 29, negative magnetoresistance does exist and is well described by weak localization theory. The dephasing time, extracted from the magnetoresistance, is dominated by the T2 term due to hole-hole scattering in the clean limit. The effect of hole-hole interactions, however, is suppressed when compared with the theory derived for small r(s).