Demonstration of magnetic-field-induced rectification using circular ballistic channels with a rough boundary

Abstract

Diffuse boundary reflection of electrons in the presence of a magnetic field is demonstrated to induce a rectification effect in circular-shaped ballistic nano-channels. The effect is robust as the rectification is associated with a transmission asymmetry in the equilibrium transmission predicted by the billiard model, which is possible as the time reversal symmetry is broken by the magnetic field. The rectified current exhibits antisymmetric dependence on the magnetic field despite the two-terminal geometry due to the inherent nonlinearity of the rectification. Unambiguous identification of the origin of the current based on this antisymmetric dependence reveals the rectification effect being sensitive to the extent that extraction of electrical energy out of environmental non-equilibrium noises is achieved.