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Myers, S. A.

Publications and source records attributed to Myers, S. A..

Thermal activation signatures of the Anderson insulator and the Wigner solid forming near ν = 1

When interactions overcome disorder, integer quantum Hall plateaus support topological phases with different bulk insulators. In the center of the ν = 1 plateau the bulk is an Anderson-type insulator, while in the flanks of the plateau the bulk is the integer quantum Hall Wigner solid. We find that the activation energy along the ν = 1 plateau exhibits a very dramatic nonmonotonic dependence on the magnetic field, a dependence that is strongly correlated with the stability regions of the two phases. Furthermore, the activation energy has an unexpected minimum at the boundary between the Anderson insulator and the Wigner solid. Our findings constrain the theory of the integer quantum Hall Wigner solid, determine its thermodynamic properties, and reveal unusual behavior at the boundary between the Anderson insulator and the Wigner solid. Published by the American Physical Society 2024

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗

Evidence for Topological Protection Derived from Six-Flux Composite Fermions

The composite fermion theory opened a new chapter in understanding many-body correlations through the formation of emergent particles. The formation of two-flux and four-flux composite fermions is well established. While there are limited data linked to the formation of six-flux composite fermions, topological protection associated with them is conspicuously lacking. Here we report evidence for the formation of a quantized and gapped fractional quantum Hall state at the filling factor ν = 9/11, which we associate with the formation of six-flux composite fermions. Our result provides evidence for the most intricate composite fermion with six fluxes and expands the already diverse family of highly correlated topological phases with a new member that cannot be characterized by correlations present in other known members. Our observations pave the way towards the study of higher order correlations in the fractional quantum Hall regime.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Breakdown of the $v=1$ integer quantum Hall effect in the single particle and collective localization regimes

We report large signal current–voltage characteristics measurements near the $v=1$ integer quantum Hall plateau in a high mobility GaAs/AlGaAs sample that exhibits both single particle and collective localization. According to prior results, the central part of the $v=1$ plateau corresponds to single particle localization and hence an Anderson insulator. In contrast, the two regions in the flanks of this Anderson insulator were associated with collective localization and were identified with the integer quantum Hall Wigner solid. We find that, at low temperatures and under large bias currents, both the Anderson insulator and integer quantum Hall Wigner solid have a sharp onset of conduction above a threshold. Furthermore, this threshold shows an approximately monotonic dependence on the filling factor across the boundary between the two localized phases. Finally, to our surprise, we find that these large signal characteristics do not clearly distinguish between the Anderson insulator and the integer quantum Hall Wigner solid.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

The effect of composition and cooling rate on the structure of rapidly solidified (Fe, Ni)3Al-C alloy

The quench rate-metastable structure dependence in the Fe-20Ni-8Al-2C wt pct alloy has been experimentally studied. The nonequilibrium gamma-prime and gamma phases were noted in foils 65-100 microns thick, while at higher quench rates (thinner samples) the matrix was found to be in a disordered fcc gamma phase with kappa carbide precipitates. With the addition of silicon to the alloys, the nonequilibrium gamma-prime and gamma structures are observed at higher cooling rates.

Myers, S. A.↗