Effective mass anisotropy of f electrons in GaAs/AlGaAs quantum wells

Resonant magnetotunneling in GaAs/Al(0.28)Ga0.72As double barrier structures is used to demonstrate that the effective mass of confined Gamma conduction electrons becomes anisotropic when an electric field is applied perpendicular to the interfaces. Although several authors have previously reported Gamma-related optical anisotropy, this is the first example of a corresponding electrical anisotropy. The results are explained using a quantum mechanical model involving interface band mixing that contains additional features not found in the optical case.