Current-direction-induced rectification effect on (integer) quantized Hall plateaus

Abstract

Current distribution across narrow Hall bars in out of linear response regime is studied within a self-consistent Hartree-type mean-field approximation for samples which are equally and unequally depleted laterally. The existence of the current-carrying incompressible strips and their influence on magneto-transport properties are investigated. We predict that, the extent and the presence of the quantized Hall plateaus strongly depend on the current direction, in the out of linear response regime, when considering unequally depleted samples. Our magneto-transport results are in contrast to the ones of the conventional theories of the integer quantized Hall effect. We propose certain experimental conditions to test our theoretical predictions at high-mobility, narrow samples. Copyright (C) EPLA, 2009