Electron--Electron Scattering in Quantum Wires and it's Possible Suppression due to Spin Effects

TL;DR

This paper introduces a microscopic model of electron-electron scattering in quantum wires that incorporates electron spin, revealing potential suppression of scattering and resulting in long coherence lengths and novel spin-related effects.

Contribution

It presents a new microscopic approach including spin effects, showing how zero-field spin splitting can suppress electron-electron scattering in quantum wires.

Findings

Spin splitting affects electron-electron scattering rates.

Suppression of scattering can lead to long electron coherence lengths.

Predicted new spin-related transport phenomena.

Abstract

A microscopic picture of electron-electron pair scattering in single mode quantum wires is introduced which includes electron spin. A new source of `excess' noise for hot carriers is presented. We show that zero magnetic field `spin' splitting in quantum wires can lead to a dramatic `spin'-subband dependence of electron--electron scattering, including the possibility of strong suppression. As a consequence extremely long electron coherence lengths and new spin-related phenomena are predicted. Since electron bands in III-V semiconductor quantum wires are in general spin-split in zero applied magnetic field, these new transport effects are of general importance.