Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 6, 2026

Spatial Separation of Molecular Conformers and Clusters
Published on: January 9, 2014
Splitting of the Fermi Contour of Quasi-2D Electrons in Parallel Magnetic Fields
M A Mueed1, D Kamburov1, M Shayegan1
1Department of Electrical Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA.
Abstract:
In a quasi-two-dimensional electron system with nonzero layer thickness, a parallel magnetic field can couple to the out-of-plane electron motion and lead to a severe distortion and eventual splitting of the Fermi contour. Here we directly and quantitatively probe this evolution through commensurability and Shubnikov-de Haas measurements on electrons confined to a 40-nm-wide GaAs (001) quantum well. We are able to observe the Fermi contour splitting phenomenon, in good agreement with the results of semiclassical calculations. Experimentally, we also observe intriguing features, suggesting magnetic-breakdown-type behavior when the Fermi contour splits.
More Related Videos
09:06Visualizing Uniaxial-strain Manipulation of Antiferromagnetic Domains in Fe1+YTe Using a Spin-polarized Scanning Tunneling Microscope
Published on: March 24, 2019
05:39Scalable Quantum Integrated Circuits on Superconducting Two-Dimensional Electron Gas Platform
Published on: August 2, 2019
Related Concept Videos
Magnetic Fields
A magnetic field is defined by the force that a charged particle experiences...
Magnetostatic Boundary Conditions
Divergence and Curl of Magnetic Field
Electric Field of Parallel Conducting Plates
Consider a cross-section of a thin, infinite conducting plate having a positive charge. For such a large thin plate, as the thickness of the plate tends to zero, the positive charges lie on the plate's two large faces. Without an external electric field, the...
Magnetic Field Due to Two Straight Wires
Magnetic Force Between Two Parallel Currents
The force exerted by the magnetic field due to the first conductor over a finite length of the second conductor is given as the product of the current in the second conductor and the vector product of the length vector along the current element and the field due to the first conductor. According to the...