Quantum-Classical Crossover and Apparent Metal-Insulator Transition in a Weakly Interacting 2D Fermi Liquid

Xiaoqing Zhou, B. Schmidt, C. Proust, G. Gervais, L. N. Pfeiffer, K. W. West, and S. Das Sarma
Phys. Rev. Lett. 107, 086804 – Published 16 August 2011

Abstract

We report the observation of an apparent parallel magnetic-field-induced metal-insulator transition in a high-mobility two-dimensional electron gas for which spin and localization physics most likely play no major role. The high-mobility metallic phase at low field is consistent with the established Fermi liquid transport theory including phonon scattering, whereas the phase at higher field shows a large insulatinglike negative temperature dependence at resistances much smaller than the quantum of resistance h/e2. We argue that this observation is a direct manifestation of a quantum-classical crossover arising predominantly from the magneto-orbital coupling between the finite width of the two-dimensional electron gas and the in-plane magnetic field.

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  • Received 19 March 2011

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.107.086804

© 2011 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Xiaoqing Zhou1, B. Schmidt1, C. Proust2, G. Gervais1, L. N. Pfeiffer3, K. W. West3, and S. Das Sarma4

  • 1Department of Physics, McGill University, Montreal, H3A 2T8, Canada
  • 2Laboratoire National des Champs Magnétiques Intenses, CNRS-INSA-UJF-UPS, Toulouse, 31400, France
  • 3Department of Electrical Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
  • 4Condensed Matter Theory Center, Department of Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, USA

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Issue

Vol. 107, Iss. 8 — 19 August 2011

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