Circular-Polarization-Dependent Study of the Microwave Photoconductivity in a Two-Dimensional Electron System

The polarization dependence of the low field microwave photoconductivity and absorption of a two-dimensional electron system has been investigated in a quasioptical setup in which linear and any circular polarization can be produced in situ. The microwave induced resistance oscillations and the zero resistance regions are notably immune to the sense of circular polarization. This observation is discrepant with a number of proposed theories. Deviations between different polarizations occur only near the cyclotron resonance where an unprecedented large resistance response is observed.