Breakdown of topological protection by cavity vacuum fields in the integer quantum Hall effect


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Date

2022-03-04

Publication Type

Journal Article

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Abstract

The prospect of controlling the electronic properties of materials via the vacuum fields of cavity electromagnetic resonators is emerging as one of the frontiers of condensed matter physics. We found that the enhancement of vacuum field fluctuations in subwavelength split-ring resonators strongly affects one of the most paradigmatic quantum protectorates, the quantum Hall electron transport in high-mobility two-dimensional electron gases. The observed breakdown of the topological protection of the integer quantum Hall effect is interpreted in terms of a long-range cavity-mediated electron hopping where the anti-resonant terms of the light-matter coupling Hamiltonian develop into a finite resistivity induced by the vacuum fluctuations. Our experimental platform can be used for any two-dimensional material and provides a route to manipulate electron phases in matter by means of vacuum-field engineering.

Publication status

published

Editor

Book title

Journal / series

Volume

375 (6584)

Pages / Article No.

1030 - 1034

Publisher

AAAS

Event

Edition / version

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Software

Geographic location

Date collected

Date created

Subject

Organisational unit

03833 - Wegscheider, Werner / Wegscheider, Werner check_circle
03759 - Faist, Jérôme / Faist, Jérôme check_circle
02205 - FIRST-Lab / FIRST Center for Micro- and Nanoscience check_circle

Notes

Funding

192330 - Engineering and probing Landau polaritons in the ultra-strong light-matter coupling regime (SNF)
340975 - Quantum Metamaterials in the Ultra Strong Coupling Regime. (EC)

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