Quantized acoustoelectric current in the presence of large tunneling counterflow

A surface acoustic wave drives an electrical current through a short quantum wire. A second tunneling current is injected by biasing one side of the quantum wire. These two contributions to the total current, which flow in opposite directions, are controlled almost independently by the gate and the bias voltage, respectively. We have observed the quantization of the acoustoelectric current at up to ten times larger counterflowing tunneling currents. At large tunneling currents the acoustoelectric current can be strongly suppressed. However, this does not seem to be due to an electrostatic interaction between the two currents, but is probably caused by the complex potential landscape in the narrow channel of the quantum wire.