Quantum Spin Hall Insulator State in HgTe Quantum Wells

dc.creatorKoenig, Markus
dc.creatorWiedmann, Steffen
dc.creatorBruene, Christoph
dc.creatorRoth, Andreas
dc.creatorBuhmann, Hartmut
dc.creatorMolenkamp, Laurens W.
dc.creatorQi, Xiao-Liang
dc.creatorZhang, Shou-Cheng
dc.date2007-10-02
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-07T08:33:35Z
dc.date.available2026-07-07T08:33:35Z
dc.descriptionRecent theory predicted that the Quantum Spin Hall Effect, a fundamentally novel quantum state of matter that exists at zero external magnetic field, may be realized in HgTe/(Hg,Cd)Te quantum wells. We have fabricated such sample structures with low density and high mobility in which we can tune, through an external gate voltage, the carrier conduction from n-type to the p-type, passing through an insulating regime. For thin quantum wells with well width d < 6.3 nm, the insulating regime shows the conventional behavior of vanishingly small conductance at low temperature. However, for thicker quantum wells (d > 6.3 nm), the nominally insulating regime shows a plateau of residual conductance close to 2e^2/h. The residual conductance is independent of the sample width, indicating that it is caused by edge states. Furthermore, the residual conductance is destroyed by a small external magnetic field. The quantum phase transition at the critical thickness, d = 6.3 nm, is also independently determined from the magnetic field induced insulator to metal transition. These observations provide experimental evidence of the quantum spin Hall effect.
dc.description16 pages, 5 figures
dc.identifierhttps://arxiv.org/abs/0710.0582
dc.identifierhttp://arxiv.org/abs/0710.0582
dc.identifierScience, Sciencexpress 20 September 2007
dc.identifierdoi:10.1126/science.1148047
dc.identifier.urihttp://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/139181
dc.subjectMesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
dc.titleQuantum Spin Hall Insulator State in HgTe Quantum Wells
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