Interband Scattering and the “Metallic Phase” of Two-Dimensional Holes in GaAs<mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><mml:mi>/</mml:mi></mml:math>AlGaAs

Abstract

The "metallic" characteristics of high density holes in GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures are attributed to inelastic scattering between the two split heavy hole bands. Landau fan diagrams and weak field magnetoresistance are employed to measure the interband scattering rate. The inelastic rate is found to depend on temperature with an activation energy similar to that characterizing the longitudinal resistance. It is argued that acoustic plasmon mediated Coulomb scattering might be responsible for the Arrhenius dependence on temperature. The absence of standard Coulomb scattering characterized by a power-law dependence upon temperature is pointed out.