Majorana fermions manifested as interface states in semiconductor hybrid structures

Abstract

Motivated by recent proposals for the generation of Majorana fermions in semiconducting hybrid structures, we examine possible experimental fingerprints of such excitations. Whereas previous works mainly have focused on zero-energy states in vortex cores in this context, we demonstrate analytically an alternative route to detection of Majorana excitations in semiconducting hybrid structures: interface-bound states that may be probed directly via conductance spectroscopy or scanning tunnel microscope measurements. We estimate the necessary experimental parameters required for observation of our predictions. © 2010 The American Physical Society