Erik Henriksen

Infrared Spectroscopy of Landau Levels of Graphene

We report infrared studies of the Landau level (LL) transitions in single layer graphene. Our specimens are density tunable and show in situ half-integer quantum Hall plateaus. Infrared transmission is measured in magnetic fields up to B=18 T at selected LL fillings. Resonances between hole LLs and electron LLs, as well as resonances between hole and electron LLs, are resolved. Their transition energies are proportional to sqrt[B], and the deduced band velocity is (-)c approximately equal to 1.1 x 10(6) m/s. The lack of precise scaling between different LL transitions indicates considerable contributions of many-particle effects to the infrared transition energies.

Observation of anomalous phonon softening in bilayer graphene.

The interaction of electron-hole pairs with lattice vibrations exhibits a wealth of intriguing physical phenomena such as the renowned Kohn anomaly. Here we report the observation in bilayer graphene of an unusual phonon softening that provides the first experimental proof for another type of phonon anomaly. Similar to the Kohn anomaly, which is a logarithmic singularity in the phonon group velocity [W. Kohn, Phys. Rev. Lett. 2, 393 (1959)], the observed phonon anomaly exhibits a logarithmic singularity in the optical-phonon energy. Arising from a resonant electron-phonon coupling effect, the anomaly was also expected, albeit not observed, in monolayer graphene. We propose an explanation for why it is easier to observe in bilayer samples.

Band Structure Asymmetry of Bilayer Graphene Revealed by Infrared Spectroscopy

We report on infrared spectroscopy of bilayer graphene integrated in gated structures. We observe a significant asymmetry in the optical conductivity upon electrostatic doping of electrons and holes. We show that this finding arises from a marked asymmetry between the valence and conduction bands, which is mainly due to the inequivalence of the two sublattices within the graphene layer and the next-nearest-neighbor interlayer coupling. From the conductivity data, the energy difference of the two sublattices and the interlayer coupling energy are directly determined.

Cyclotron resonance in bilayer graphene.

We present the first measurements of cyclotron resonance of electrons and holes in bilayer graphene. In magnetic fields up to B=18 T, we observe four distinct intraband transitions in both the conduction and valence bands. The transition energies are roughly linear in B between the lowest Landau levels, whereas they follow square root[B] for the higher transitions. This highly unusual behavior represents a change from a parabolic to a linear energy dispersion. The density of states derived from our data generally agrees with the existing lowest order tight binding calculation for bilayer graphene. However, in comparing data to theory, a single set of fitting parameters fails to describe the experimental results.

Interaction-Induced Shift of the Cyclotron Resonance of Graphene Using Infrared Spectroscopy

We report a study of the cyclotron resonance (CR) transitions to and from the unusual n=0 Landau level (LL) in monolayer graphene. Unexpectedly, we find the CR transition energy exhibits large (up to 10%) and nonmonotonic shifts as a function of the LL filling factor, with the energy being largest at half filling of the n=0 level. The magnitude of these shifts, and their magnetic field dependence, suggests that an interaction-enhanced energy gap opens in the n=0 level at high magnetic fields. Such interaction effects normally have a limited impact on the CR due to Kohns theorem [W. Kohn, Phys. Rev. 123, 1242 (1961)], which does not apply in graphene as a consequence of the underlying linear band structure.

Measurement of the electronic compressibility of bilayer graphene

We present measurements of the electronic compressibility, K, of bilayer graphene in both zero and finite magnetic fields up to 14 T, and as a function of both the carrier density and electric field perpendicular to the graphene sheet. The low-energy hyperbolic band structure of bilayer graphene is clearly revealed in the data, as well as a sizable asymmetry between the conduction and valence bands. A sharp increase in K^(−1) near zero density is observed for increasing electric field strength, signaling the controlled opening of a gap between these bands. At high magnetic fields, broad Landau level (LL) oscillations are observed, directly revealing the doubled degeneracy of the lowest LL and allowing for a determination of the disorder broadening of the levels.

Quantum Hall Effect and Semimetallic Behavior of Dual-Gated ABA-Stacked Trilayer Graphene

The electronic structure of multilayer graphenes depends strongly on the number of layers as well as the stacking order. Here we explore the electronic transport of purely ABA-stacked trilayer graphenes in a dual-gated field-effect device configuration. We find both that the zero-magnetic-field transport and the quantum Hall effect at high magnetic fields are distinctly different from the monolayer and bilayer graphenes, and that they show electron-hole asymmetries that are strongly suggestive of a semimetallic band overlap. When the ABA trilayers are subjected to an electric field perpendicular to the sheet, Landau-level splittings due to a lifting of the valley degeneracy are clearly observed.

Transport in indium-decorated graphene

The electronic transport properties of single layer graphene having a dilute coating of indium adatoms has been investigated. Our studies establish that isolated indium atoms donate electrons to graphene and become a source of charged impurity scattering, affecting the conductivity as well as magnetotransport properties of the pristine graphene. Notably, a positive magnetoresistance is observed over a wide density range after In doping. The low field magnetoresistance carries signatures of quantum interference effects which are significantly altered by the adatoms.

Quantized thermal conductance: measurements in nanostructures

We are performing experiments to probe directly the thermal conductance of suspended nanostructures with lateral dimensions ≈100 nm. It has been recently predicted that at low temperatures, thermal conductance in such a structure approaches a universal value of π^2k_B^2T/3h for each massless, ballistic phonon channel, independent of material characteristics. We have developed ultra-sensitive, low dissipation DC-SQUID-based noise thermometry, and extreme isolation from the electronic environment in order to perform this measurement at temperatures below 70 mK.

Acoustic phonon scattering in a low density, high mobility AlGaN∕GaN field-effect transistor

We report on the temperature dependence of the mobility μ of the two-dimensional (2D) electron gas in a variable density AlGaN∕GaN field-effect transistor, with carrier densities ranging from 0.4×1012to3.0×1012cm−2 and a peak mobility of 80000cm2∕Vs. Between 20 and 50K we observe a linear dependence μac−1=αT, indicating that acoustic phonon scattering dominates the temperature dependence of the mobility, with α being a monotonically increasing function of decreasing 2D electron density. This behavior is contrary to predictions of scattering in a degenerate electron gas, but consistent with calculations that account for thermal broadening and the temperature dependence of the electron screening. Our data imply a deformation potential D=12–15eV.