Abstract
We have determined the phase coherence time, τφ, frommagnetoresistance measurements of long, narrow wires ofAu, Ag, and Cu, over the temperature range40 mK-6 K. In the Cu and Au wires, τφsaturates at low temperature. In the Ag wire,τφ continues to increase down to the lowesttemperatures measured; moreover, its temperature dependencebelow about 1 K is consistent with theoreticalpredictions of Altshuler, Aronov and Khmelnitskii published in1982. These results cast doubt on recent assertions thatsaturation of τφ at low temperature is a universalphenomenon in metal wires. We compare these results with thoseof recent experiments on energy relaxation in similar metallicwires. The results of the two experiments are stronglycorrelated, suggesting that a single (unknown) mechanism isthe cause of the enhanced phase and energy relaxation observedin some samples.
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Gougam, A.B., Pierre, F., Pothier, H. et al. Comparison of energy and phase relaxation in metallic wires. Journal of Low Temperature Physics 118, 447–456 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004658404535
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004658404535