Observation of momentum space semi-localization in Si-doped $\beta$-Ga$_2$O$_3$

Abstract

We performed an angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy study of Si-doped $\beta$-Ga$_2$O$_3$. We observed very small photoemission intensity near the Fermi level corresponding to non-dispersive states assigned to Si impurities. We show evidence for a quantization of these states that is accompanied by a confinement in the momentum space consistent with a real-space finite confinement observed in a previous scanning tunneling microscopy study. Our results suggest that this semi-localization in the conjugate spaces plays a crucial role in the electronic conduction of this material.