Parallel magnetic field induced strong negative magnetoresistance in a wide p-Ge_{1-x}Si_x/Ge/p-Ge_{1-x}Si_x quantum well

Abstract

A negative magnetoresistance under the in-plane magnetic field, reaching maximum 30-40% of its zero-field value in fields higher than ~12 T, has been found in wide Ge_{1-x}Si_x/Ge/p-Ge_{1-x}Si_x quantum wells (QW) containing the quasi-two-dimensional hole gas. In the QWs of intermediate widths and hole densities, this negative magnetoresistance may be explained as being caused by suppression of the intersubband scattering due to the upper subband depopulation. For the widest QWs with the highest hole densities, in which the hole gas is divided into two sublayers, similar negative magnetoresistance was observed and tentatively interpreted as also been due to suppression of the intersubband scattering, but subbands are the lowest symmetric and antisymmetric states of the double quantum well structure. These subbands shift under the in-plane magnetic field not vertically in energy, but horizontally along the wave vector.