Non-reciprocity in drag between quasi-1D quantum wires

We report 1D drag measurements in laterally coupled single layer GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wires. The drag resistance R_D exhibits the standard modulation as the wires’ subband occupancy is varied, and the temperature dependence of the drag signal is non-monotonic. In contrast to previous Coulomb drag studies in one-dimensional GaAs systems, the drag signal is found to break Onsager relations, resulting in a symmetric and asymmetric drag signal. The anti-symmetric results are compared with theories for momentum transfer-induced drag while the symmetric contribution is interpreted in terms of a rectification of energy fluctuations. These results highlight the interplay between rectification and Luttinger liquid physics in mesoscopic quasi-1D quantum wires.

This work was performed, in part, at the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies, an Office of Science User Facility operated for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) OoS. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by NTESS LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International, Inc., for the U.S. DOE’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA-0003525. The views expressed in the article do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. DOE or the United States Government.