Probing the sensitivity of electron wave interference to disorder-induced scattering in solid-state devices

Abstract

The study of electron motion in semiconductor billiards has elucidated our understanding of quantum interference and quantum chaos. The central assumption is that ionized donors generate only minor perturbations to the electron trajectories, which are determined by scattering from billiard walls. We use magnetoconductance fluctuations as a probe of the quantum interference and show that these fluctuations change radically when the scattering landscape is modified by thermally induced charge displacement between donor sites. Our results challenge the accepted understanding of quantum interference effects in nanostructures. © 2012 American Physical Society.