Distributed Current Injection into a One-Dimensional Ballistic Edge Channel

Physical Review Letters, vol. 135, pp. 186301

Abstract

We generalize Landauer's theory of ballistic transport in a one-dimensional (1D) conductor to situations where charge carrier injection and extraction are not any more confined to electrodes at either end of the channel, but may occur along its whole length. This type of distributed injection is expected to occur from the two-dimensional (2D) bulk of, e.g., a quantum spin (or anomalous) Hall insulator to its topologically protected edge states. We apply our conceptual solution to the case of two metal electrodes contacting the 2D bulk, enabling us to derive criteria that discriminate ballistic from resistive edge channels in multiterminal transport experiments.

Authors 6

1. Kristof Moors corresponding

   Forschungszentrum Jülich · Jülich Aachen Research Alliance

   Affiliation as printed

   Forschungszentrum Jülich

   Jülich Aachen Research Alliance (JARA)

2. Christian Wagner

   Forschungszentrum Jülich

   Affiliation as printed

   Forschungszentrum Jülich

3. Helmut Soltner

   Forschungszentrum Jülich

   Affiliation as printed

   Forschungszentrum Jülich

4. Felix Lüpke

   Forschungszentrum Jülich · University of Cologne · Jülich Aachen Research Alliance

   Affiliation as printed

   Forschungszentrum Jülich

   Jülich Aachen Research Alliance (JARA)

   Universität zu Köln

5. Frank Stefan Tautz Aachen

   Forschungszentrum Jülich · Jülich Aachen Research Alliance · RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Forschungszentrum Jülich

   Jülich Aachen Research Alliance (JARA)

   RWTH Aachen University

6. Bert Voigtländer Aachen

   Forschungszentrum Jülich · Jülich Aachen Research Alliance · RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Forschungszentrum Jülich

   Jülich Aachen Research Alliance (JARA)

   RWTH Aachen University