Anisotropic spin-blockade leakage current in a Ge hole double quantum dot

Abstract: Group IV quantum dot hole spin systems, exhibiting strong spin-orbit coupling, provide platforms for various qubit architectures. The rapid advancement of solid-state technologies has significantly improved qubit quality, including the time scales characterizing electrical operation, relaxation, and dephasing. At this stage of development, understanding the relations between the underlying spin-orbit coupling and experimental parameters, such as quantum dot geometry and external electric and magnetic fields, has become a priority. Here we focus on a Ge hole double quantum dot in the Pauli spin blockade regime and present a complete analysis of the leakage current under an out-of-plane magnetic field. By considering a model of anisotropic in-plane confinement and $k^3$-Rashba spin-orbit coupling, we determine the behaviour of the leakage current as a function of detuning, magnetic field magnitude, interdot distance, and individual dot ellipticities. We identify regions in which the leakage current can be suppressed by quantum dot geometry designs. Most importantly, by rotating one of the quantum dots, we observe that the quantum dot shape induces a strongly anisotropic leakage current. These findings provide guidelines for probing the spin-orbit coupling, enhancing the signal-to-noise ratio, and improving the precision of Pauli spin blockade readout in hole qubit architectures.