Quantum Transport Studies of InAs Based Nanowire Devices

Experiments and analysis reported in this thesis advance the understanding of quantum transport in nanowire transistors. Indium Arsenide nanowires grown by molecular beam epitaxy were incorporated into numerous back-gated field effect transistors and electronic measurements confirm electron transport is occurring in a regime where ballistic transmission and quantum confinement effects are significant. Quantum interference phenomena are investigated through electrostatic manipulation of interface charge configurations and interference quenching is demonstrated in a nanowire device. Elimination of interference distortions reveal perfect quantization of the conductance and provide direct insight into the one-dimensional quantum-electronic bandstructure which displays strong divergence from cylindrical hard-wall confinement. Numerical simulations investigating morphological variations demonstrate a strong influence on electronic sub-band structure, prompting characterization of the cross-sectional morphology via focused ion beam micro-sampling and transmission electron microscopy. Adoption of hard-wall confinement potentials consistent with the characterized morphology indicates significant electrostatic influence of interface charges on the sub-band structure.M.A.S.2019-11-03 00:00:0