Observation of quantum Hall interferometer phase jumps due to changing quasiparticle number

TL;DR

This study observes phase jumps in a quantum Hall interferometer linked to changes in quasiparticle number, revealing insights into charge dynamics and phase behavior in quantum Hall systems.

Contribution

It demonstrates the connection between phase jumps and quasiparticle number changes in a quantum Hall interferometer, bridging Coulomb blockade and interference regimes.

Findings

Phase jumps correspond to quasiparticle number changes.

Interference patterns resemble Coulomb blockade charge stability diagrams.

Empirical model relates phase shifts to bulk quasiparticle dynamics.

Abstract

We measure the magneto-conductance through a micron-sized quantum dot hosting about 500 electrons in the quantum Hall regime. In the Coulomb blockade, when the island is weakly coupled to source and drain contacts, edge reconstruction at filling factors between one and two in the dot leads to the formation of two compressible regions tunnel coupled via an incompressible region of filling factor $\nu=1$. We interpret the resulting conductance pattern in terms of a phase diagram of stable charge in the two compressible regions. Increasing the coupling of the dot to source and drain, we realize a Fabry-P\'{e}rot quantum Hall interferometer, which shows an interference pattern strikingly similar to the phase diagram in the Coulomb blockade regime. We interpret this experimental finding using an empirical model adapted from the Coulomb blockaded to the interferometer case. The model allows us to relate the observed abrupt jumps of the Fabry-P\'{e}rot interferometer phase to a change in the number of bulk quasiparticles. This opens up an avenue for the investigation of phase shifts due to (fractional) charge redistributions in future experiments on similar devices.