Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mphil-in-micro-and-nanotechnology-enterprise-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2021/paper-2/section-b/20/vi/solution
Past exam of the MPhil in micro- and nanotechnology enterprise course of the University of Cambridge 2021 Paper 2 Section B 20 vi Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-20
The highest-field plateau is labelled , so it is the plateau in the filling factor, with the longitudinal resistivity returning to approximately zero after the transition near 10 T. The odd integer indicates a resolved spin branch at these fields; assuming a permanent twofold spin degeneracy for every orbital Landau level would misidentify the plotted sequence.
For a nominal exactly filled state at a chosen field , the density target is . Combining this with the same gate capacitor model gives the required gate-voltage change relative to the original ungated-density reference:Taking as the graph's onset-scale estimate gives andRelative to the positive 0.2 V setting in part (v), this is an additional change of approximately . An absolute laboratory gate voltage cannot be obtained without its initial offset or threshold; the calculated quantities are voltage changes.
There is a graphical/model qualification: a quantum Hall plateau occupies a finite field interval, and its onset is not an exact statement that at that edge. The plot identifies from about 10 T onward but does not specify a unique plateau-centre field or the gate setting at which the trace was recorded. The boxed formula gives the result for any selected target field. For comparison, the nominal exact-filling fields are 12.39 T at the original density and 18.34 T at the unchanged positive 0.2 V density. Thus the graph must not be combined silently with the latter density as if its onset uniquely fixed the same gate bias.
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