Buckley Prize: Direct Observation of Anyonic Braiding Statistics

ORAL  · Invited

Abstract

While theoretical predictions of excitations in the fractional quantum Hall effect (FQHE) obeying anyonic braiding statistics were established in the early 1980’s, conclusive experimental demonstrations of anyons have only occurred in the past few years. I will discuss the experimental challenges associated with probing anyon physics in electronic Fabry-Pérot interferometers operating in the FQHE regime at high magnetic field and low temperature. Building on the important contributions of several experimental groups, I will describe our multi-year effort to engineer solutions to overcome these experimental challenges in AlGaAs/GaAs heterostructures. I will emphasize the critical role of an integrated approach to materials and device design that was necessary to overcome two key challenges: mesoscopic Coulomb charging effects and soft confining potential for edge modes. I will conclude this presentation with speculations how electronic interferometry may be extended to probe putative non-abelian anyons in the FQHE and to probe topological order in systems beyond the FQHE.

*This research is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, under award number DE-SC0020138.

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Publication: 1) R. Guerrero-Suarez, A. Suresh, T. Maiti, S. Liang, J. Nakamura, G. C. Gardner, C. Chamon, and M. J. Manfra, "Universal Anyon Tunneling in a Chiral Luttinger Liquid," Nature Physics 21, 1787-1793 (2025)
2) S. Liang, J. Nakamura, G. C. Gardner, and M. J. Manfra, "Single electron interference and capacitive edge mode coupling generates  flux periodicity in Fabry-Perot interferometers in the integer quantum Hall regime," Nature Communications 16, 7586 (2025)
3) James Nakamura, Shuang Liang, Geoffrey C Gardner, Michael J. Manfra, "Fabry-Perot interferometry at the = 2/5 fractional quantum Hall state," Physical Review X 13, 041012 (2023)
4) J. Nakamura, S. Liang, G. C. Gardner, and M. J. Manfra, "Half-integer conductance plateau at the =2/3 fractional quantum Hall state in a quantum point contact," Physical Review Letters, 130, 076205 (2023)
5) J. Nakamura, S. Liang, G. C. Gardner, and M. J. Manfra, "Impact of bulk-edge coupling on observation of anyonic braiding statistics in quantum Hall interferometers," Nature Communications 13, 344 (2022)
6) J. Nakamura, S. Liang, G. C. Gardner, and M. J. Manfra, "Direct observation of anyonic braiding statistics," Nature Physics 16, 931-936 (2020)
7) J. Nakamura, S. Fallahi, H. Sahasrabudhe, R. Rahman, S. Liang, G. C. Gardner, and M. J. Manfra, "Aharonov-Bohm interference of fractional quantum Hall edge modes," Nature Physics 15, 563-569 (2019)

Presenters

  • Michael J Manfra

    • Purdue University

Authors

  • Michael J Manfra

    • Purdue University