English

Quantum third-order nonlinear Hall effect of a four-terminal device with time-reversal symmetry

Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics 2022-07-26 v1

Abstract

The third-order nonlinear Hall effect induced by Berry-connection polarizability tensor has been observed in Weyl semimetals Td_d-MoTe2_2 as well as Td_d-TaIrTe4_4. The experiments were performed on bulk samples, and the results were interpreted with the semiclassical Boltzmann approach. Beyond the bulk limit, we develop a quantum nonlinear transport theory to investigate the third-order Hall response of a four-terminal setup with time-reversal symmetry in quantum regime. The quantum nonlinear theory is verified on a model system of monolayer MoTe2_2, and numerical results on the angle-resolved Hall currents are qualitatively consistent with the experiment. More importantly, quantum signatures of the third-order Hall effect are revealed, which are independent of the system symmetry. The first quantum signature is quantum enhancement of the third-order Hall current, which is characterized by sharp current peaks whose magnitudes are three orders larger than the first-order Hall current. Such quantum enhancement originates from quantum interference in coherent transport, and it can be easily destroyed by dephasing effect. The second quantum signature is disorder-induced enhancement of the third-order Hall current for weak disorders. Our findings reveal quantum characteristics of the third-order Hall effect, and we propose feasible ways to enhance it in nanoscale systems. The quantum third-order theory developed in this work provides a general formalism for describing nonlinear coherent transport properties in multi-terminal devices, regardless of the system symmetry.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2207.11394,
  title  = {Quantum third-order nonlinear Hall effect of a four-terminal device with time-reversal symmetry},
  author = {Miaomiao Wei and Longjun Xiang and Luyang Wang and Fuming Xu and Jian Wang},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2207.11394},
  year   = {2022}
}