title: Anisotropic metal-insulator transition in epitaxial thin films.
abstract: By comparing the properties of In and Pb quantum wells in a scanning tunneling microscopy subsurface imaging experiment, we found the existence of lateral bound states, a 2D Mott-Hubbard correlation gap, induced by transverse confinement. Its formation is attributed to spin or charge overscreening of quasi-2D excitations. The signature of the 2D confinement-deconfinement transition is also experimentally observed, with the correlation gap being pinned in the middle of the conduction band. A self-organized 2D Anderson lattice is suggested as a new ground state.
authors.affiliation: Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.
authors.forename: I B
authors.initials: IB
authors.lastname: Altfeder
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liang
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Narayanamurti