Confined magnetic guiding orbit states

We show snake-orbit states which run along a magnetic edge can be confined electrically. We consider a two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) confined into a quantum wire, subjected to a strong perpendicular and steplike magnetic field B /-B. Close to this magnetic step, new, spatially confined bound states arise as a result of the lateral confinement and the magnetic-field step. The number of states, with energy below the first Landau level, increases as B becomes stronger or as the wire width becomes larger. These bound states can be understood as an interference between two counter-propagating one-dimensional snake-orbit states.