Magnetoresistance and transistor-like behavior of double quantum dots connected to ferromagnetic and superconductor leads

The electric current and the magnetoresistance effect are studied in a double quantum-dot system, where one of the dots QDa is coupled to two ferromagnetic electrodes (F1,F2), while the second QDb is connected to a superconductor S. For energy scales within the superconductor gap, electric conduction is allowed by Andreev reflection processes. Due to the presence of two ferromagnetic leads, non-local crossed Andreev reflections are possible. We found that the magnetoresistance sign can be changed by tuning the external potential applied to the ferromagnets. In addition, it is possible to control the current of the first ferromagnet (F1) through the potential applied to the second one (F2). We have also included intradot interaction and gate voltages at each quantum dot and analyzed their influence through a mean field approximation. The interaction reduces the current amplitudes with respect to the non-interacting case, but the switching effect still remains as a manifestation of quantum coherence, in scales of the order of the superconductor coherence length.

Andreev tunneling through a double quantum-dot system coupled to a ferromagnet and a superconductor: effects of mean field electronic correlations

We study the transport properties of a hybrid nanostructure composed of a ferromagnet, two quantum dots, and a superconductor connected in series. By using the non-equilibrium Greens function approach, we have calculated the electric current, the differential conductance and the transmittance for energies within the superconductor gap. In this regime, the mechanism of charge transmission is the Andreev reflection, which allows for a control of the current through the ferromagnet polarization. We have also included interdot and intradot interactions, and have analyzed their influence through a mean field approximation. In the presence of interactions, Coulomb blockade tend to localized the electrons at the double-dot system, leading to an asymmetric pattern for the density of states at the dots, and thus reducing the transmission probability through the device. In particular, for non-zero polarization, the intradot interaction splits the spin degeneracy, reducing the maximum value of the current due to different spin-up and spin-down densities of states. Negative differential conductance (NDC) appears for some regions of the voltage bias, as a result of the interplay of the Andreev scattering with electronic correlations. By applying a gate voltage at the dots, one can tune the effect, changing the voltage region where this novel phenomenon appears. This mechanism to control the current may be of importance in technological applications.