Magnetotransport in wide parabolic PbTe quantum wells

TL;DR

This paper investigates the magnetotransport properties of wide parabolic PbTe quantum wells, combining theoretical modeling and experimental measurements to understand 2D and 3D behaviors at very low temperatures and high magnetic fields.

Contribution

It introduces a simple model that combines 2D subband levels with 3D Landau levels to analyze density of states in magnetic fields for wide PbTe quantum wells.

Findings

Observation of simultaneous 2D and 3D behavior at ~300nm channel width.

Experimental data collected at temperatures down to 50 mK and magnetic fields up to 17 T.

Theoretical model successfully explains the coexistence of 2D and 3D magnetotransport phenomena.

Abstract

The 3D- and 2D- behaviour of wide parabolic PbTe single quantum wells, which consist of PbTe p-n-p-structures, are studied theoretically and experimentally. A simple model combines the 2D- subband levels and the 3D-Landau levels in order to calculate the density of states in a magnetic field perpendicular to the 2D plane. It is shown that at a channel width of about 300nm on can expect to observe 3D- and 2D-behaviour at the same time. Magnetotransport experiments in selectively contacted Hall bar samples are performed at temperatures down to T = 50 mK and at magnetic fields up to B = 17 T.