Based on numerical renormalization group calculations, we demonstrate that experimentally realized double quantum dots constitute a minimal thermoelectric generator. In the Kondo regime, one quantum dot acts as an n-type and the other one as a p-type
thermoelectric device. Properly connected the double quantum dot provides a miniature power supply utilizing the thermal energy of the environment.
We present a novel scheme for an unbiased and non-perturbative treatment of strongly correlated fermions. The proposed approach combines two of the most successful many-body methods, i.e., the dynamical mean field theory (DMFT) and the functional ren
ormalization group (fRG). Physically, this allows for a systematic inclusion of non-local correlations via the flow equations of the fRG, after the local correlations are taken into account non-perturbatively by the DMFT. To demonstrate the feasibility of the approach, we present numerical results for the two-dimensional Hubbard model at half-filling.
We study electron transport through a multi-level quantum dot with Rashba spin-orbit interaction in the presence of local Coulomb repulsion. Motivated by recent experiments, we compute the level splitting induced by the spin-orbit interaction at fini
te Zeeman fields $B$, which provides a measure of the renormalized spin-orbit energy. This level splitting is responsible for the suppression of the Kondo ridges at finite $B$ characteristic for the multi-level structure. In addition, the dependence of renormalized $g$-factors on the relative orientation of the applied $B$ field and the spin-orbit direction following two different protocols used in experiments is investigated.
Motivated by recent scanning tunneling and photoemission spectroscopy measurements on self-organized gold chains on a germanium surface we reinvestigate the local single-particle spectral properties of Luttinger liquids. In the first part we use the
bosonization approach to exactly compute the local spectral function of a simplified field theoretical low-energy model and take a closer look at scaling properties as a function of the ratio of energy and temperature. Translational invariant Luttinger liquids as well as those with an open boundary (cut chain geometry) are considered. We explicitly show that the scaling functions of both setups have the same analytic form. The scaling behavior suggests a variety of consistency checks which can be performed on measured data to experimentally verify Luttinger liquid behavior. In a second part we approximately compute the local spectral function of a microscopic lattice model---the extended Hubbard model---close to an open boundary using the functional renormalization group. We show that as a function of energy and temperature it follows the field theoretical prediction in the low-energy regime and point out the importance of nonuniversal energy scales inherent to any microscopic model. The spatial dependence of this spectral function is characterized by oscillatory behavior and an envelope function which follows a power law both in accordance with the field theoretical continuum model. Interestingly, for the lattice model we find a phase shift which is proportional to the two-particle interaction and not accounted for in the standard bosonization approach to Luttinger liquids with an open boundary. We briefly comment on the effects of several one-dimensional branches cutting the Fermi energy and Rashba spin-orbit interaction.
We investigate two serially-aligned quantum dots in the molecular regime of large tunnel couplings t. A Zeeman field B is used to tune the energy difference of singlet and triplet spin configurations. Attaching this geometry to BCS source and drain l
eads with gap Delta and phase difference phi gives rise to an equilibrium supercurrent J. To compute J in presence of Coulomb interactions U between the dot electrons, we employ the functional renormalization group (FRG). For Bsimt -- where the singlet and lowest-lying triplet spin states are equal in energy -- the current exhibits characteristics of a 0-pi transition similar to a single impurity. Its magnitude in the pi phase, however, jumps discontinuously at B=t, being smaller on the triplet side. Exploiting the flexibility of the FRG, we demonstrate that this effect is generic and calculate J for realistic experimental parameters Delta, U, and gate voltages epsilon. To obtain a more thorough understanding of the discontinuity, we analytically treat the limit Delta=infty where one can access the exact many-particle states. Finally, carrying out perturbation theory in the dot-lead couplings substantiates the intuitive picture that Cooper pair tunneling is favored by a singlet spin configuration while inhibited by a triplet one.
We investigate with the aid of numerical renormalization group techniques the thermoelectric properties of a molecular quantum dot described by the negative-U Anderson model. We show that the charge Kondo effect provides a mechanism for enhanced ther
moelectric power via a correlation induced asymmetry in the spectral function close to the Fermi level. We show that this effect results in a dramatic enhancement of the Kondo induced peak in the thermopower of negative-U systems with Seebeck coefficients exceeding 50$mu V/K$ over a wide range of gate voltages.
We compare two fermionic renormalization group methods which have been used to investigate the electronic transport properties of one-dimensional metals with two-particle interaction (Luttinger liquids) and local inhomogeneities. The first one is a p
oor mans method setup to resum ``leading-log divergences of the effective transmission at the Fermi momentum. Generically the resulting equations can be solved analytically. The second approach is based on the functional renormalization group method and leads to a set of differential equations which can only for certain setups and in limiting cases be solved analytically, while in general it must be integrated numerically. Both methods are claimed to be applicable for inhomogeneities of arbitrary strength and to capture effects of the two-particle interaction, such as interaction dependent exponents, up to leading order. We critically review this for the simplest case of a single impurity. While on first glance the poor mans approach seems to describe the crossover from the ``perfect to the ``open chain fixed point we collect evidence that difficulties may arise close to the ``perfect chain fixed point. Due to a subtle relation between the scaling dimensions of the two fixed points this becomes apparent only in a detailed analysis. In the functional renormalization group method the coupling of the different scattering channels is kept which leads to a better description of the underlying physics.
Carbon nanotube (CNT) Josephson junctions in the open quantum dot limit exhibit superconducting switching currents which can be controlled with a gate electrode. Shapiro voltage steps can be observed under radiofrequency current excitations, with a d
amping of the phase dynamics that strongly depends on the gate voltage. These measurements are described by a standard RCSJ model showing that the switching currents from the superconducting to the normal state are close to the critical current of the junction. The effective dynamical capacitance of the nanotube junction is found to be strongly gate-dependent, suggesting a diffusive contact of the nanotube.
