  The fractional charge of quasiparticles is a fundamental feature of quantum
Hall effect (QHE) States. The charge has long been measured via shot-noise at
moderate temperatures ($T$>30mK), with the Fano factor $F=e^*/e$ revealing the
charge $e^*$ of the quasiparticles. However, at sufficiently low temperatures
($T\approx$10mK), we consistently find $F$ being equal to the bulk filling
factor, $\nu_b$. Surprisingly, noise with $F=\nu_b$ is also observed on
intermediate conductance plateaus in the transmission of the quantum point
contact (QPC), where shot noise is not expected. We attribute the unexpected
Fano factor to upstream neutral modes, which proliferate at the lowest spinless
Landau level. The universality of the Fano factor is also confirmed when the
edge modes do not conform to the bulk. For this, the ubiquitous edge modes at
the periphery of the sample are replaced by artificially constructed 'interface
modes', propagating at the interface between two adjoined QHE states: the
tested state and a different state. We present a new theoretical paradigm based
on an interplay between charge and neutral modes, explaining the origin of the
universal Fano factor.
