Probing the Electrostatics of Integer Quantum Hall Edges with Momentum-Resolved Tunnel Spectroscopy

We present measurements of momentum-resolved magneto-tunneling from a perpendicular two-dimensional (2D) contact into integer quantum Hall (QH) edges at a sharp edge potential created by cleaved edge overgrowth. Resonances in the tunnel conductance correspond to coincidences of electronic states of the QH edge and the 2D contact in energy-momentum space. With this dispersion relation reflecting the potential distribution at the edge we can directly measure the band bending at our cleaved edge under the influence of an external voltage bias. At finite bias we observe significant deviations from the flat-band condition in agreement with self-consistent calculations of the edge potential

The structure of a single sharp quantum Hall edge probed by momentum-resolved tunneling

Momentum resolved magneto-tunnelling spectroscopy is performed at a single sharp quantum Hall edge. We directly probe the structure of individual integer quantum Hall (QH) edge modes, and find that an epitaxially overgrown cleaved edge realizes the sharp edge limit, where the Chklovskii picture relevant for soft etched or gated edges is no longer valid. The Fermi wavevector in the probe quantum well probes the real-space position of the QH edge modes, and reveals inter-channel distances smaller than both the magnetic length and the Bohr radius. We quantitatively describe the lineshape of principal conductance peaks and deduce an edge filling factor from their position consistent with the bulk value. We observe features in the dispersion which are attributed to fluctuations in the ground energy of the quantum Hall system.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Dynamics of Nucleation in the Ising Model

Reactive pathways to nucleation in a three-dimensional Ising model at 60% of the critical temperature are studied using transition path sampling of single spin flip Monte Carlo dynamics. Analysis of the transition state ensemble (TSE) indicates that the critical nuclei are rough and anisotropic. The TSE, projected onto the free energy surface characterized by cluster size, N, and surface area, S, indicates the significance of other variables in addition to these two traditional reaction coordinates for nucleation. The transmission coefficient along N is ~ 0.35, and this reduction of the transmission coefficient from unity is explained in terms of the stochastic nature of the dynamic model.Comment: In press at the Journal of Physical Chemistry B, 7 pages, 8 figure

Acute idiopathic heart failure following laparoscopic myotomy for achalasia of the esophagus

Background: Stress-induced cardiomyopathy, also known as takotsubo cardiomyopathy, is not fully understood. It is thought to occur in patients who have signs and symptoms consistent with acute myocardial infarction but display no obstructive coronary lesions during heart catheterization. Characteristics include transient left ventricular dysfunction, wall motion abnormalities on echocardiogram, new electrocardiographic ST-segment changes, and the occurrence of a precipitating stressor. Case Report: We present a patient who underwent Heller myotomy and suffered acute heart failure in the immediate postoperative period. Left heart catheterization revealed clean coronary arteries, and the patient fully recovered days later. While difficult to fully exclude drug-related causes, we believe this case to be consistent with takotsubo cardiomyopathy. Conclusion: This unusual postoperative complication following uneventful laparoscopic surgery should be kept in mind when unsuspected cardiovascular compromise is seen in the early perioperative recovery period. In addition to the rare occurrence of acute coronary ischemia syndromes and possible perioperative pulmonary embolic events, cardiovascular decompensation related to acute stress syndromes or idiopathic pharmacologic responses must be considered. Even patients who seem most healthy can have complications that warrant immediate attention and treatment

Dynamics of Dissipative Quantum Hall Edges

We examine the influence of the edge electronic density profile and of dissipation on edge magnetoplasmons in the quantum Hall regime, in a semiclassical calculation. The equilibrium electron density on the edge, obtained using a Thomas-Fermi approach, has incompressible stripes produced by energy gaps responsible for the quantum Hall effect. We find that these stripes have an unobservably small effect on the edge magnetoplasmons. But dissipation, included phenomenologically in the local conductivity, proves to produce significant oscillations in the strength and speed of edge magnetoplasmons in the quantum Hall regime.Comment: 23 pages including 10 figure

Fermi liquid to Luttinger liquid transition at the edge of a two-dimensional electron gas

We present experimental results on the tunneling into the edge of a two dimensional electron gas (2DEG) obtained with a GaAs/AlGaAs cleaved edge overgrown structure in a strong perpendicular magnetic field. While the 2DEG exhibits typical fractional quantum Hall features of a very high mobility sample, we observe the onset of a non-linear current-voltage characteristic in the vicinity of nu=1. For filling factor nu<1 the system is consistent with a non-Fermi liquid behavior, such as a Luttinger liquid, whereas for nu>1 we observe an Ohmic tunneling resistance between the edge and a three dimensional contact, typical for a Fermi liquid. Hence, at the edge, there is a transition from a Luttinger liquid to a Fermi liquid. Finally, we show that the Luttinger liquid exponent at a given filling factor is not universal but depends on sample parameters.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

The visibility of IQHE at sharp edges: Experimental proposals based on interactions and edge electrostatics

The influence of the incompressible strips on the integer quantized Hall effect (IQHE) is investigated, considering a cleaved-edge overgrown (CEO) sample as an experimentally realizable sharp edge system. We propose a set of experiments to clarify the distinction between the large-sample limit when bulk disorder defines the IQHE plateau width and the small-sample limit smaller than the disorder correlation length, when self-consistent edge electrostatics define the IQHE plateau width. The large-sample or bulk QH regime is described by the usual localization picture, whereas the small-sample or edge regime is discussed within the compressible/incompressible strips picture, known as the screening theory of QH edges. Utilizing the unusually sharp edge profiles of the CEO samples, a Hall bar design is proposed to manipulate the edge potential profile from smooth to extremely sharp. By making use of a side-gate perpendicular to the two dimensional electron system, it is shown that the plateau widths can be changed or even eliminated altogether. Hence, the visibility of IQHE is strongly influenced when adjusting the edge potential profile and/or changing the dc current direction under high currents in the non-linear transport regime. As a second investigation, we consider two different types of ohmic contacts, namely highly transmitting (ideal) and highly reflecting (non-ideal) contacts. We show that if the injection contacts are non-ideal, however still ohmic, it is possible to measure directly the non-quantized transport taking place at the bulk of the CEO samples. The results of the experiments we propose will clarify the influence of the edge potential profile and the quality of the contacts, under quantized Hall conditions.Comment: Substantially revised version of manuscript arXiv:0906.3796v1, including new figures et

Infrared Hall effect in high Tc superconductors: Evidence for non-Fermi liquid Hall scattering

Infrared (20-120 cm-1 and 900-1100 cm-1) Faraday rotation and circular dichroism are measured in high Tc superconductors using sensitive polarization modulation techniques. Optimally doped YBCO thin films are studied at temperatures down to 15 K and magnetic fields up to 8 T. At 1000 cm-1 the Hall conductivity varies strongly with temperature in contrast to the longitudinal conductivity which is nearly independent of temperature. The Hall scattering rate has a T^2 temperature dependence but, unlike a Fermi liquid, depends only weakly on frequency. The experiment puts severe constraints on theories of transport in the normal state of high Tc superconductors.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figure

Assessing small area estimates via artificial populations from KBAABB: a kNN-based approximation to ABB

Comparing and evaluating small area estimation (SAE) models for a given application is inherently difficult. Typically, we do not have enough data in many areas to check unit-level modeling assumptions or to assess unit-level predictions empirically; and there is no ground truth available for checking area-level estimates. Design-based simulation from artificial populations can help with each of these issues, but only if the artificial populations (a) realistically represent the application at hand and (b) are not built using assumptions that could inherently favor one SAE model over another. In this paper, we borrow ideas from random hot deck, approximate Bayesian bootstrap (ABB), and k nearest neighbor (kNN) imputation methods, which are often used for multiple imputation of missing data. We propose a kNN-based approximation to ABB (KBAABB) for a different purpose: generating an artificial population when rich unit-level auxiliary data is available. We introduce diagnostic checks on the process of building the artificial population itself, and we demonstrate how to use such an artificial population for design-based simulation studies to compare and evaluate SAE models, using real data from the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program of the US Forest Service. We illustrate how such simulation studies may be disseminated and explored interactively through an online R Shiny application

Mid-infrared Hall effect in thin-film metals: Probing the Fermi surface anisotropy in Au and Cu

A sensitive mid-infrared (MIR, 900-1100 cm-1, 112-136 meV) photo-elastic polarization modulation technique is used to measure simultaneously Faraday rotation and circular dichroism in thin metal films. These two quantities determine the complex AC Hall conductivity. This novel technique is applied to study Au and Cu thin films at temperatures down to 20 K and magnetic fields up to 8 T. The Hall frequency is consistent with band theory predictions. We report the first measurement of the MIR Hall scattering rate, which is significantly lower than that derived from Drude analysis of zero magnetic field MIR transmission measurements. This difference is qualitatively explained in terms of the anisotropy of the Fermi surface in Au and Cu.Comment: 14 pages of text, 5 figure