Scanning Gate Microscopy of a Nanostructure where Electrons Interact

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that scanning gate microscopy can effectively probe electron-electron interactions within a nanostructure by analyzing conductance fringes influenced by a charged tip.

Contribution

It introduces a simple model combining non-interacting and interacting regions to show how local potential variations reveal electron interactions through conductance fringes.

Findings

Scanning gate microscopy detects interaction effects via conductance fringes.

Electrostatic potential changes induce measurable corrections in the nanosystem.

Fringe patterns are spaced by half the Fermi wavelength, indicating quantum interference.

Abstract

We show that scanning gate microscopy can be used for probing electron-electron interactions inside a nanostructure. We assume a simple model made of two non-interacting strips attached to an interacting nanosystem. In one of the strips, the electrostatic potential can be locally varied by a charged tip. This change induces corrections upon the nanosystem Hartree-Fock self-energies which enhance the fringes spaced by half the Fermi wavelength in the images giving the quantum conductance as a function of the tip position.