Electron-optics using negative refraction in two-dimensional inverted-band pn junctions

ORAL

Abstract

Electron optics deals with condensed matter platforms for manipulating and guiding electron beams with high efficiency and robustness. Common devices rely on the spatial confinement of the electrons into one-dimensional (1D) channels. Recently, there is growing interest in electron optics applications in two dimensions, which heretofore are almost exclusively based on graphene devices. In this work, we study band-inverted systems resulting from particle-hole hybridization and demonstrate their potential for electron optics applications. We develop the theory of interface scattering in an inverted-band $pn$ junction using a scattering matrix formalism and observe negative refraction conditions as well as transmission filtering akin to graphene's Klein tunneling but at finite angles. Based on these findings, we provide a comprehensive protocol for constructing electron optic components, such as focusing and bifurcating lenses, polarizers, and mirrors. We numerically test the robustness of our designs to disorder and finite temperatures, and motivate the feasibility of experimental realization. Our work opens avenues for electron optics in two dimensions beyond graphene-based devices, where a plethora of inverted-band materials in contemporary experiments can be harnessed.

* This work was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (A.Š. Grant No. 199969), the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) through project number 449653034, and ETH research grant ETH-28 23-1.

Presenters

  • Yuhao Zhao

    ETH Zurich

Authors

  • Yuhao Zhao

    ETH Zurich