Zero-field thermopower of a thin heterostructure membrane with a 2D electron gas

We study the low-temperature thermopower of micron sized, free-standing membranes containing a two-dimensional electron system. Suspended membranes of 320 nm thickness including a high electron mobility structure in Hall bar geometry of 34 μm length are prepared from GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures grown by molecular beam epitaxy. Joule heating on the central region of the membrane generates a thermal gradient with respect to the suspension points where the membrane is attached to cold reservoirs. Temperature measurements on the membrane reveal strong thermal gradients due to the low thermal conductivity. We measure the zero-field thermopower and find that the phonon-drag contribution is suppressed at low temperatures up to 7 K.

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