NER: Nanoelectromechanical Single-Electron Transistors Operating at GHz

本研究项目的目的是通过实验证明一种机械可控的单电子晶体管是由库仑封锁解决的。该方法包括一系列活动，包括：(1)利用电子束光刻，湿法和干法蚀刻，金属化和沉积等一系列加工技术，开发纳米级AlGaAs/InGaAs光束谐振器，其末端具有电隔离的金属量子点，并在光束中嵌入二维电子气体；(2)研究了高频交流信号电容耦合、压电效应增强的梁谐振激励；(3)利用改进的射频测试技术演示了在GHz频率范围内制造的机电单电子晶体管的库仑阻塞。所提出的纳米机械电子穿梭器件有望成为传感器和通信应用中极快和超高灵敏度的器件，并且是纳米机电系统中电子-声子耦合基础研究的理想候选者。这种新型纳米机电器件将允许量子有限位移传感，以及电荷和质量检测。这些设备将在未来的通信、量子计算机、精密测量和标准、DNA解码等应用领域带来一场革命。此外，拟议研究的跨学科性质为研究生和本科生提供了在纳米结构加工，射频和微波频率下的设备测试以及基于量子力学的理论建模和仿真方面的良好培训机会。研究成果和发现将被纳入首席研究员的课程“纳米结构与器件”中，以完善和丰富该课程。

The objective of this research project is to experimentally demonstrate a mechanically-controllable single-electron transistor which is resolved by Coulomb blockade. The approach consists of a set of activities involving: (1) developing a nanoscale AlGaAs/InGaAs beam resonator with an electrically isolated metallic quantum dot at the end and a two dimensional electron gas embedded in the beam by utilizing a series of processing technologies including electron beam lithography, wet and dry etching, metallization and deposition; (2) investigating the beam resonant excitation capacitively coupled by high frequency AC signals and enhanced by piezoelectric effects; (3) demonstrating Coulomb blockade on the fabricated electromechanical single electron transistors at the GHz frequency range using improved RF testing technologies. The proposed nanomechanical electron shuttle devices promise to be extremely fast and ultrahighly sensitive devices for sensor and communication applications and are ideal candidates for fundamental research in electron-phonon coupling in nanoelectromechnical systems. This new class of nanoelectromechanical devices will allow quantum limited displacement sensing, as well as charge and mass detection. The devices will provide a revolution in applications in future communications, quantum computers, precision measurement and standard, and DNA decoding. Moreover, the interdisciplinary nature of the proposed research offers graduate and undergraduate students a great training opportunity in nanostructure processing, device testing at RF and microwave frequencies, and quantum mechanics-based theoretical modeling and simulation. Research findings and discoveries will be incorporated into the principle investigator's course, "Nano-scale Structures and Devices" to improve and enrich the course.