Objective
The goal of the project is to reveal the role of the Coulomb interaction in electron tunneling in bulk and low- dimensional systems.
Single particle approach has been very successful in understanding a vast range of phenomena in condensed matter physics including the majority of tunneling experiments. However, in recent years there have been several new effects found which cannot be explained by a single particle theory. Among such phenomena it is worth mentioning the global Coulomb-blockade, the zero-bias tunneling anomaly, suppression of the tunneling conductance between two 2D electron systems by a magnetic field, a Fermi-edge singularity in the tunnel current between a 2DEG and a zero-dimensional localized state. The present understanding of the observed many-body phenomena is far from the clarity and this stimulates significant interest in the subject. Generally speaking, one would like to develop a concise language for many-electron effects similar to the one used in single-electron physics where for instance electrons are frequently described just in terms of microscopic billiards.
In the present project it is intended to study tunneling dynamics in low-dimensional semiconductor tunnel junctions with a particular emphasis on Coulomb interaction effects and so-called tunnel junction plasmons (TJP). The TJP have been recently predicted theoretically but not observed yet experimentally. The following studies are proposed: I) careful analysis of the tunneling conductance in 2D and 3D semiconductor structures and search for features which cannot be explained within the single particle approach; II) studies of the zero-bias tunneling anomalies in such structures; III) search for TJP features in semiconductor tunnel structures using FIR- spectroscopy; IV) investigations of the tunneling conductance between two 2DEGs in a high magnetic field; V) studies of vertical tunneling between 2D and 1D systems in magnetic field.
The program will be carried out in close collaboration between two western and two Russian research groups. Results of the collaborative research will be presented as scientific papers and talks.
Topic(s)
Call for proposal
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6525 ED Nijmegen
Netherlands