Abstract
The quantum crystal of electrons, predicted more than 80 years ago by Eugene Wigner, remains one of the most elusive states of matter. In this study, we observed the one-dimensional Wigner crystal directly by imaging its charge density in real space. To image, with minimal invasiveness, the many-body electronic density of a carbon nanotube, we used another nanotube as a scanning-charge perturbation. The images we obtained of a few electrons confined in one dimension match the theoretical predictions for strongly interacting crystals. The quantum nature of the crystal emerges in the observed collective tunneling through a potential barrier. These experiments provide the direct evidence for the formation of small Wigner crystals and open the way for studying other fragile interacting states by imaging their many-body density in real space.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 870-875 |
| Number of pages | 6 |
| Journal | Science |
| Volume | 364 |
| Issue number | 6443 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2019 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2017 The Authors.
Funding
We thank A. Stern and E. Berg for the stimulating discussions, J. Waissman for fabricating the devices, and D. Mahalu for the e-beam writing. Funding: C.P.M. acknowledges support from the UEFISCDI Romanian Grant PN-III-P4-ID-PCE-2016-0032. O.L. and G.Z. acknowledge support from the NKFIH (grants K120569 and SNN118028) and the Hungarian Quantum Technology National Excellence Program (grant 2017-1.2.1-NKP-2017-00001). S.I. acknowledges financial support by the ERC Cog grant (See-1D-Qmatter, 647413).
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| National Kidney Foundation of Illinois | SNN118028, K120569 |
| Horizon 2020 Framework Programme | |
| H2020 European Research Council | 647413 |
| Unitatea Executiva pentru Finantarea Invatamantului Superior, a Cercetarii, Dezvoltarii si Inovarii | PN-III-P4-ID-PCE-2016-0032 |
| Centre for Quantum Technologies | 2017-1.2.1-NKP-2017-00001 |