Attosecond coherent manipulation of electrons in tunneling microscopy

Nanoelectronic devices operating in the quantum regime require coherent manipulation and control over electrons at atomic length and time scales. We demonstrate coherent control over electrons in a tunnel junction of a scanning tunneling microscope by means of precise tuning of the carrier-envelope phase of two-cycle long (<6-femtosecond) optical pulses. We explore photon and field-driven tunneling, two different regimes of interaction of optical pulses with the tunnel junction, and demonstrate a transition from one regime to the other. Our results show that it is possible to induce, track, and control electronic current at atomic scales with subfemtosecond resolution, providing a route to develop petahertz coherent nanoelectronics and microscopy.