Observation of Aharonov-Bohm effect in PbTe nanowire networks

Abstract

We report phase coherent electron transport in PbTe nanowire networks with a loop geometry. Magnetoconductance shows Aharonov-Bohm (AB) oscillations with periods of $h/e$ and $h/2e$ in flux. The amplitudes of $h/2e$ oscillations are enhanced near zero magnetic field, possibly due to interference between time-reversal paths. Temperature dependence of the AB amplitudes suggests a phase coherence length $\ensuremath{\sim}8\text{}12\phantom{\rule{4pt}{0ex}}\ensuremath{\mu}\mathrm{m}$ at 50 mK. This length scale is larger than the typical geometry of PbTe-based hybrid semiconductor-superconductor nanowire devices.