Coherent electron transparent tunneling through a single barrier within a Fabry-Perot cavity

•Electron transparent tunneling through a single barrier in a Fabry-Perot cavity.•For a specific resonant energy, cavity length is related to the resonant DeBroglie wavelength.•For a specific resonant energy, barrier location is also related to the resonant DeBroglie wavelength.•Possible applications in resonant tunneling diode and scanning tunneling microscope.

Electromagnetic wave and quantum DeBroglie wave have many parallels between each other. We investigate the quantum mechanical counterpart of electromagnetic resonant tunneling through a non-absorbing metal layer. It is confirmed that an electron also has transparent transmission through a single barrier within a Fabry-Perot like cavity. This tunneling structure is actually a distortion of the Fabry-Perot echelon. We find that for a specific resonant electron energy, the cavity length is related to the electron’s DeBroglie wavelength; and the single barrier can be located at a series positions with an interval equal to a half of the DeBroglie wavelength, not just at the center of the cavity. This tunneling phenomenon will have novel applications in quantum devices such as the resonant tunneling diode and scanning tunneling microscope. The results of this paper should also have impact on related electromagnetic research and application.