The effect of electron--hole scattering on the transport properties of a 2D semimetal in a HgTe quantum well

TL;DR

This paper investigates how electron-hole scattering affects the transport properties of a 2D semimetal in HgTe quantum wells, revealing that short-range interactions dominate over long-range Coulomb forces.

Contribution

It provides both theoretical and experimental evidence that short-range electron-hole interactions significantly influence transport in 2D HgTe semimetals, challenging previous Coulomb-based models.

Findings

Electron-hole scattering causes temperature-dependent transport effects.

Short-range interactions better explain experimental data than Coulomb models.

The electron-hole friction coefficient was quantitatively determined.

Abstract

The influence of e-h scattering on the conductivity and magnetotransport of 2D semimetallic HgTe is studied both theoretically and experimentally. The presence of e-h scattering leads to the friction between electron and holes resulting in a large temperature-dependent contribution to the transport coefficients. The coefficient of friction between electrons and holes is determined. The comparison of experimental data with the theory shows that the interaction between electrons and holes based on the long - range Coulomb potential strongly underestimates the e-h friction. The experimental results are in agreement with the model of strong short-range e-h interaction.