Probing the Sensitivity of Electron Wave Interference to Disorder-Induced Scattering in Solid-State Devices

TL;DR

This paper investigates how disorder-induced scattering affects electron wave interference in semiconductor billiards, revealing that charge displacement significantly alters quantum interference patterns, challenging previous assumptions.

Contribution

It demonstrates that ionized donor charge displacement can drastically change quantum interference effects, questioning the conventional view of minor perturbations from donors.

Findings

Magnetoconductance fluctuations are highly sensitive to disorder changes.

Thermally-induced charge displacement alters electron interference patterns.

Results challenge the assumption that donors only cause minor perturbations.

Abstract

The study of electron motion in semiconductor billiards has elucidated our understanding of quantum interference and quantum chaos. The central assumption is that ionized donors generate only minor perturbations to the electron trajectories, which are determined by scattering from billiard walls. We use magnetoconductance fluctuations as a probe of the quantum interference and show that these fluctuations change radically when the scattering landscape is modified by thermally-induced charge displacement between donor sites. Our results challenge the accepted understanding of quantum interference effects in nanostructures.