@phdthesis{Grauer2018,
  author    = {Grauer, Stefan},
  title     = {Transport Phenomena in Bi\(_2\)Se\(_3\) and Related Compounds},
  publisher = {Verlag Dr. Hut GmbH},
  isbn      = {978-3-8439-3481-7},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-157666},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg},
  year      = {2018},
  abstract  = {One of the most significant technological advances in history was driven by the utilization of a new material class: semiconductors. Its most important application being the transistor, which is indispensable in our everyday life. The technological advance in the semiconductor industry, however, is about to slow down. Making transistors ever smaller to increase the performance and trying to reduce and deal with the dissipative heat will soon reach the limits dictated by quantum mechanics with Moore himself, predicting the death of his famous law in the next decade. A possible successor for semiconductor transistors is the recently discovered material class of topological insulators. A material which in its bulk is insulating but has topological protected metallic surface states or edge states at its boundary. Their electrical transport characteristics include forbidden backscattering and spin-momentum-locking with the spin of the electron being perpendicular to its momentum. Topological insulators therefore offer an opportunity for high performance devices with low dissipation, and applications in spintronic where data is stored and processed at the same point. The topological insulator Bi\(_2\)Se\(_3\) and related compounds offer relatively high energy band gaps and a rather simple band structure with a single dirac cone at the gamma point of the Brillouin zone. These characteritics make them ideal candidates to study the topological surface state in electrical transport experiments and explore its physics.},
  subject      = {Topologischer Isolator},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{Koenig2007,
  author    = {K{\"o}nig, Markus},
  title     = {Spin-related transport phenomena in HgTe-based quantum well structures},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-27301},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg},
  year      = {2007},
  abstract  = {Within the scope of this thesis, spin related transport phenomena have been investigated in HgTe/HgCdTe quantum well structures. This material exhibits peculiar band structure properties, which result in a strong spin-orbit interaction of the Rashba type. An inverted band structure, i.e., a reversed ordering of the energy states in comparison to common semiconductors, is obtained for quantum well layers above a critical thickness. Furthermore, the band structure properties can be controlled in the experiments by moderate gate voltages. Most prominently, the type of carriers in HgTe quantum wells can be changed from n to p due to the narrow energy gap. Along with the inverted band structure, this unique transition is the basis for the demonstration of the Quantum Spin Hall state, which is characterized by the existence of two one-dimensional spin-polarized edge states propagating in opposite directions, while the Fermi level in the bulk is in the energy gap. Since elastic scattering is suppressed by time reversal symmetry, a quantized conductance for charge and spin transport is predicted. Our experiments provide the first experimental demonstration of the QSH state. For samples with characteristic dimensions below the inelastic mean free path, charge conductance close to the expected value of 2e^2/h has been observed. Strong indication for the edge state transport was found in the experiments as well. For large samples, potential fluctuations lead to the appearance of local n-conducting regions which are considered to be the dominant source of backscattering. When time reversal symmetry is broken in a magnetic field, elastic scattering becomes possible and conductance is significantly suppressed. The suppression relies on a dominant orbital effect in a perpendicular field and a smaller Zeeman-like effect present for any field direction. For large perpendicular fields, a re-entrant quantum Hall state appears. This unique property is directly related to the non-trivial QSH insulator state. While clear evidence for the properties of charge transport was provided, the spin properties could not be addressed. This might be the goal of future experiments. In another set of experiments, the intrinsic spin Hall effect was studied. Its investigation was motivated by the possibility to create and to detect pure spin currents and spin accumulation. A non-local charging attributed to the SHE has been observed in a p-type H-shaped structure with large SO interaction, providing the first purely electrical demonstration of the SHE in a semiconductor system. A possibly more direct way to study the spin Hall effects opens up when the spin properties of the QSH edge states are taken into account. Then, the QSH edge states can be used either as an injector or a detector of spin polarization, depending on the actual configuration of the device. The experimental results indicate the existence of both intrinsic SHE and the inverse SHE independently of each other. If a spin-polarized current is injected from the QSH states into a region with Rashba SO interaction, the precession of the spin can been observed via the SHE. Both the spin injection and precession might be used for the realization of a spin-FET similar to the one proposed by Datta and Das. Another approach for the realization of a spin-based FET relies on a spin-interference device, in which the transmission is controlled via the Aharonov-Casher phase and the Berry phase, both due to the SO interaction. In the presented experiments, ring structures with tuneable SO coupling were studied. A complex interference pattern is observed as a function of external magnetic field and gate voltage. The dependence on the Rashba splitting is attributed to the Aharonov-Casher phase, whereas effects due to the Berry phase remain unresolved. This interpretation is confirmed by theoretical calculations, where multi-channel transport through the device has been assumed in agreement with the experimental results. Thus, our experiments provide the first direct observation of the AC effect in semiconductor structures. In conclusion, HgTe quantum well structures have proven to be an excellent template for studying spin-related transport phenomena: The QSHE relies on the peculiar band structure of the material and the existence of both the SHE and the AC effect is a consequence of the substantial spin-orbit interaction. While convincing results have been obtained for the various effects, several questions can not be fully answered yet. Some of them may be addressed by more extensive studies on devices already available. Other issues, however, ask, e.g., for further advances in sample fabrication or new approaches by different measurements techniques. Thus, future experiments may provide new, compelling insights for both the effects discussed in this thesis and, more generally, other spin-orbit related transport properties.},
  subject      = {Spin-Bahn-Wechselwirkung},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{Manger2008,
  author    = {Manger, Matthias},
  title     = {Spektroskopie kollektiver Zyklotron- und Intersubband-Resonanzen von Quanten-Hall-Systemen in GaAs},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-37684},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg},
  year      = {2008},
  abstract  = {Im Mittelpunkt der vorliegenden Arbeit stand das Studium der langwelligen Magneto-Kollektivmoden quasi-zweidimensionaler Elektronengase (Q2DEG) in GaAs. Diese Anregungen, die sich in Zyklotronresonanzen und Magneto-Intersubband-Resonanzen untergliedern, wurden mittels der Ferninfrarot-Fourierspektroskopie in einem Magnetfeldregime 0 T \&\#8804; B \&\#8804; 17 T untersucht. Die Zyklotronresonanz wurde {\"u}ber einen sehr weiten und umfassenden Dichtebereich von 1x10^11 cm^-2 bis 1.2x10^12 cm^-2 im Temperaturintervall 0.3 K < T < 80 K vermessen. Dabei kamen grundlegend unterschiedliche Proben-Strukturen mit Elektronenbeweglichkeiten im Bereich 5x10^5 cm^2/Vs bis 7x10^6 cm^2/Vs zum Einsatz, die unter unterschiedlichen Optimierungsgesichtspunkten hergestellt wurden. Mit den verf{\"u}gbaren Proben und Parametern konnten mittels der Zyklotronresonanz die Regimes des Integralen (IQHE) und des Fraktionalen Quanten-Hall-Effektes (FQHE) abgedeckt und die bei hohen Temperaturen dominierenden Polaron-Renormierungen grundlegend charakterisiert werden. Zur Analyse und Interpretation der experimentellen Daten wurden theoretische Modelle zur mehrkomponentigen Zyklotronresonanz unte r den Aspekten der Polaron-Renormierung, der Leitungsband-Nichtparabolizit{\"a}t, der Streuung an St{\"o}rstellen, der Abschirmung, sowie der Elektron-Elektron-Wechselwirkung und den mit ihr zusammenh{\"a}ngenden Grundzust{\"a}nden entwickelt und mit diesen numerische Modell- und Anpassungsrechnungen durchgef{\"u}hrt. Die Magneto-Intersubband-Resonanzen wurden im Regime des IQHE experimentell untersucht. Dabei wurde die Gitterkopplertechnik zur Ankopplung des Lichtfeldes an diese Anregungen eingesetzt. Zum Verst{\"a}ndnis und zur Interpretation der Messergebnisse wurden die selbstkonsistenten Gleichungen zur Berechnung der Magneto-Landau-Subband-Struktur und der dazu kompatiblen Dichteantwort im Rahmen der Hartree-Fock- (HFA) bzw. der zeitabh{\"a}ngigen Hartree-Fock-N{\"a}herung (TDHFA) aufgestellt und der numerische L{\"o}sungsweg dargelegt. Anhand von Anpassungsrechnungen wurde daraufhin die Magnetfeldabh{\"a}ngigkeit der Intersubband-Resonanzen analysiert.},
  subject      = {Galliumarsenid-Bauelement},
  language  = {de}
}
@phdthesis{Bendias2018,
  author    = {Bendias, Michel Kalle},
  title     = {Quantum Spin Hall Effect - A new generation of microstructures},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-168214},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg},
  year      = {2018},
  abstract  = {The presented thesis summarizes the results from four and a half years of intense lithography development on (Cd,Hg)Te/HgTe/(Cd,Hg)Te quantum well structures. The effort was motivated by the unique properties of this topological insulator. Previous work from Molenkamp at al.\ has proven that the transport through such a 2D TI is carried by electrons with opposite spin, counter-propagating in 1D channels along the sample edge. However, up to this thesis, the length of quantized spin Hall channels has never been reported to exceed 4 µm. Therefore, the main focus was put on a reproducible and easy-to-handle fabrication process that reveals the intrinsic material parameters. Every single lithography step in macro as well as microscopic sample fabrication has been re-evaluated. In the Development, the process changes have been presented along SEM pictures, microgaphs and, whenever possible, measurement responses. We have proven the conventional ion milling etch method to damage the remaining mesa and result in drastically lower electron mobilities in samples of microscopic size. The novel KI:I2:HBr wet etch method for macro and microstructure mesa fabrication has been shown to leave the crystalline structure intact and result in unprecedented mobilities, as high as in macroscopic characterization Hall bars. Difficulties, such as an irregular etch start and slower etching of the conductive QW have been overcome by concentration, design and etch flow adaptations. In consideration of the diffusive regime, a frame around the EBL write field electrically decouples the structure mesa from the outside wafer. As the smallest structure, the frame is etched first and guarantees a non-different etching of the conductive layer during the redox reaction. A tube-pump method assures reproducible etch results with mesa heights below 300 nm. The PMMA etch mask is easy to strip and leaves a clean mesa with no redeposition. From the very first attempts, to the final etch process, the reader has been provided with the characteristics and design requirements necessary to enable the fabrication of nearly any mesa shape within an EBL write field of 200 µm. Magneto resistance measurement of feed-back samples have been presented along the development chronology of wet etch method and subsequent lithography steps. With increasing feature quality, more and more physics has been revealed enabling detailed evaluation of smallest disturbances. The following lithography improvements have been implemented. They represent a tool-box for high quality macro and microstructure fabrication on (CdHg)Te/HgTe of almost any kind. The optical positive resist ECI 3027 can be used as wet and as dry etch mask for structure sizes larger than 1 µm. It serves to etch mesa structures larger than the EBL write field. The double layer PMMA is used for ohmic contact fabrication within the EBL write field. Its thickness allows to first dry etch the (Cd,Hg)Te cap layer and then evaporate the AuGe contact, in situ and self-aligned. Because of an undercut, up to 300 nm can be metalized without any sidewalls after the lift-off. An edge channel mismatch within the contact leads can be avoided, if the ohmic contacts are designed to reach close to the sample and beneath the later gate electrode. The MIBK cleaning step prior to the gate application removes PMMA residuals and thereby improves gate and potential homogeneity. The novel low HfO2-ALD process enables insulator growth into optical and EBL lift-off masks of any resolvable shape. Directly metalized after the insulator growth, the self-aligned method results in thin and homogeneous gate electrode reproducibly withholding gate voltages to +-10 V. The optical negative resist ARN 4340 exhibits an undercut when developed. Usable as dry etch mask and lift-off resist, it enables an in-situ application of ohmic contacts first etching close to the QW, then metalizing AuGe. Up to 500 nm thickness, the undercut guarantees an a clean lift-off with no sidewalls. The undertaken efforts have led to micro Hall bar measurements with Hall plateaus and SdH-oszillations in up to now unseen levels of detail. The gap resistance of several micro Hall bars with a clear QSH signal have been presented in Quantum Spin Hall. The first to exhibit longitudinal resistances close to the expected h/2e2 since years, they reveal unprecedented details in features and characteristics. It has been shown that their protection against backscattering through time reversal symmetry is not as rigid as previously claimed. Values below and above 12.9 kΩ been explained, introducing backscattering within the Landauer-B{\"u}ttiker formalism of edge channel transport. Possible reasons have been discussed. Kondo, interaction and Rashba-backscattering arising from density inhomogeneities close to the edge are most plausible to explain features on and deviations from a quantized value. Interaction, tunneling and dephasing mechanisms as well as puddle size, density of states and Rashba Fields are gate voltage dependent. Therefore, features in the QSH signal are fingerprints of the characteristic potential landscape. Stable up to 11 K, two distinct but clear power laws have been found in the higher temperature dependence of the QSH in two samples. However, with ΔR = Tα, α = ¼ in one (QC0285) and α = 2 in the other (Q2745), none of the predicted dependencies could be confirmed. Whereas, the gap resistances of QC0285 remains QSH channel dominated up to 3.9 T and thereby confirmed the calculated lifting of the band inversion in magnetic field. The gate-dependent oscillating features in the QSH signal of Q2745 immediately increase in magnetic field. The distinct field dependencies allowed the assumption of two different dominant backscattering mechanisms. Resulting in undisturbed magneto transport and unprecedented QSH measurements The Novel Micro Hall Bar Process has proven to enable the fabrication of a new generation of microstructures.},
  subject      = {Quecksilbertellurid},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{Thienel2015,
  author    = {Thienel, Cornelius},
  title     = {Exploring the transport properties of the three-dimensional topological insulator material HgTe},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-122031},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg},
  year      = {2015},
  abstract  = {In der vorliegenden Dissertation werden die Transporteigenschaften von verspannten HgTe-Volumenkristallen untersucht. Verspanntes HgTe stellt einen dreidimensionalen topologischen Isolator dar und ist zur Erkundung von topologischen Oberfl{\"a}chenzust{\"a}nden von speziellem Interesse, da es mit Hilfe von Molekularstrahlepitaxie in hoher Kristallqualit{\"a}t gewachsen werden kann. Die niedrige Defektdichte f{\"u}hrt zu beachtlichen Ladungstr{\"a}gerbeweglichkeiten, die deutlich {\"u}ber denen anderer topologischer Isolatoren liegen. Verspanntes HgTe hat jedoch eine kleine Energiel{\"u}cke von ca. 20 meV. Deshalb ist es f{\"u}r eine m{\"o}gliche Verwendung des Materials ein wichtiger Aspekt, in welchem Parameterbereich Oberfl{\"a}chentransport stattfindet. Um dieser Frage nachzugehen, werden die HgTe-Proben bei tiefen Temperaturen (T < 100 mK) und unter dem Einfluss hoher Magnetfelder in verschiedenen Orientierungen untersucht. Der Einfluss von Gate-Elektroden ober- und unterhalb der Struktur sowie von Deckschichten, die die Oberfl{\"a}chen sch{\"u}tzen, wird diskutiert. Basierend auf einer Analyse des Quanten-Hall-Effekts wird gezeigt, dass der Transport in diesem Material von topologischen Oberfl{\"a}chenzust{\"a}nden dominiert ist. Die Abh{\"a}ngigkeit der topologischen Oberfl{\"a}chenzust{\"a}nde von der Gate-Spannung wird dargestellt. Durch diese Abh{\"a}ngigkeit ist es zum ersten Mal m{\"o}glich, eine ungerade ganzzahlige Quanten-Hall-Plateau Sequenz nachzuweisen, die von den Oberfl{\"a}chen senkrecht zum Magnetfeld stammt. Des Weiteren wird im Rahmen dieser Arbeit in Proben hoher Oberfl{\"a}chenqualit{\"a}t zum ersten Mal f{\"u}r einen 3D TI der p-Typ QHE der Oberfl{\"a}chenzust{\"a}nde beobachtet. Aus der Gate-Abh{\"a}ngigkeit der Messungen wird geschlossen, dass das Abschirmverhalten in 3D TIs nicht trivial ist. Die Transportdaten werden mit Hilfe von intuitiven theoretischen Modellen auf qualitative Weise analysiert.},
  subject      = {Topologischer Isolator},
  language  = {en}
}