On-chip microwave circulators using quantum Hall plasmonics

ORAL

Abstract

Circulators are directional circuit elements integral to technologies including radar systems, microwave communication transceivers and the readout of quantum information devices. Their non-reciprocity commonly arises from the interference of microwaves over the centimetre-scale of the signal wavelength in the presence of bulky magnetic media that breaks time-reversal symmetry. We present a completely passive on-chip microwave circulator with size 1/1000th the wavelength by exploiting the chiral, `slow-light' response of a GaAs/AlGaAs 2-dimensional electron gas in the quantum Hall regime. Further, by implementing this circulator design on a thin film of a magnetic topological insulator (Cr$_{0.12}$(Bi$_{0.26}$Sb$_{0.62}$)$_2$Te$_3$), we show that similar non-reciprocity can be achieved at zero magnetic field. This additional mode of operation serves as a non-invasive probe of edge states in the quantum anomalous Hall effect, while also extending the possibility for integration with superconducting devices.

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Authors

  • Alice Mahoney

    • ARC Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems, School of Physics, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

  • James Colless

    • ARC Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems, School of Physics, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

  • Sebastian Pauka

    • ARC Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems, School of Physics, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

  • John Hornibrook

    • ARC Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems, School of Physics, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

  • Andrew Doherty

    • ARC Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems, School of Physics, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

  • David Reilly

    • ARC Centre of Excellence for Engineered Quantum Systems, School of Physics, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

  • Lucas Peeters

    • Department of Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA.

  • Eli Fox

    • Department of Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA.

  • David Goldhaber-Gordon

    • Department of Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA.

  • Xuefeng Kou

    • Department of Electrical Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.

  • Lei Pan

    • Department of Electrical Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.

  • Kang Wang

    • Department of Electrical Engineering, University of California, Los Angeles, California 90095, USA.

  • John Watson

    • Department of Physics and Astronomy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA.

  • Geoffrey Gardner

    • Department of Physics and Astronomy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA.

  • Michael Manfra

    • Department of Physics and Astronomy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA.