Evidence for correlated electron pairs and triplets in quantum Hall interferometers

Abstract

Abstract The pairing of electrons is ubiquitous in electronic systems featuring attractive inter–electron interactions, as exemplified in superconductors. Counterintuitively, it can also be mediated in certain circumstances by the repulsive Coulomb interaction alone. Quantum Hall (QH) Fabry–Pérot interferometers (FPIs) tailored in a two–dimensional electron gas under a perpendicular magnetic field have been argued to exhibit such an unusual electron pairing, seemingly without attractive interactions. Here, we show evidence in graphene QH FPIs, revealing not only a similar electron pairing at bulk filling factor ν B = 2, but also an unforeseen emergence of electron tripling characterized by a fractional Aharonov–Bohm flux period of h/3e (h is the Planck constant and e the electron charge) at ν B = 3. Leveraging plunger–gate spectroscopy, we demonstrate that electron pairing (tripling) involves correlated charge transport on two (three) entangled QH edge channels. This spectroscopy indicates a quantum interference flux periodicity determined by the sum of the phases acquired by the distinct QH edge channels having slightly different interfering areas. Phase jumps observed in the pajama maps can be accounted for by the frequency beating between pairing/tripling modes and the outer interfering edge.