An electron motion induced by magnetic field pulse in bi-layer quantum wire

TL;DR

This paper theoretically explores how short magnetic pulses can induce coherent electron motion in a bi-layer quantum wire with asymmetric confinement, revealing conditions for effective electron acceleration.

Contribution

It introduces a new theoretical model showing how magnetic pulses can drive coherent electron motion in bi-layer quantum wires with asymmetric confinement.

Findings

Magnetic pulses can induce electron acceleration in bi-layer quantum wires.

Asymmetric vertical confinement enables coherent wavepacket motion.

The dynamics depend on the magnetic pulse's time characteristics.

Abstract

We consider theoretically the possibility of an electron acceleration in quantum wire by short magnetic pulses lasted bewteen several to few tens of picoseconds. We show that such possibility exists provided that, the electron is initially localized in part of nanowire that consists of two vertically aligned layers which are tunnel coupled. When a horizontally directed magnetic field, changeable in time, is also perpendicular to the main axis of a wire, it generates a rotational electric field in it which pushes the upper and the lower parts of the electron wavepacket in opposite directions. We have found however, that for an asymmetric vertical confinement, the majority part of charge density starts to move in the direction of local electric field in its layer but it also drags the minority part in the same direction what results in coherent motion of an entire wavepacket. We discuss the dynamics of this motion in dependence on the time characteristics of the magnetic pulse.