Effect of localized spins in coherent transport through quantum dots

The effect of localized spins on the quantum coherence in solids is discussed. A quantum dot with an odd number of electrons can be a model system for a localized spin. It is experimentally shown that a spin flip scattering by a quantum dot pulls the trigger of quantum decoherence. On the other hand, spin flip scattering is the basic process to construct the Kondo singlet state around a magnetic impurity. Through an interference effect of the Kondo state (the Fano–Kondo effect) in a side-coupled dot system, we show experimentally that the Kondo singlet state is quantum mechanically coherent. The analysis of the Fano–Kondo lineshape indicates the locking of the phase shift to π/2, which is in agreement with theoretical predictions. The Fano–Kondo effect is also observed in an Aharonov–Bohm ring, in which a quantum dot is embedded, and also indicates the phase shift locking to π/2.     

Josephson effect through an isotropic magnetic molecule

We study the Josephson effect through a quantum dot magnet whose spin is isotropic and which is coupled to the dot electron spin via exchange coupling. We calculate the Andreev levels and the supercurrent and examine the intertwined effect of the exchange coupling, Kondo correlation, and superconductivity. The former suppresses Kondo correlations, which triggers phase transitions from the 0 to the pi state, but strong antiferromagnetic coupling restores the 0 state. The asymmetric phase diagram in the exchange coupling suggests that the coupling sign could be determined in experiments.     

Quantum dots with even number of electrons: kondo effect in a finite magnetic field

We show that the Kondo effect can be induced by an external magnetic field in quantum dots with an even number of electrons. If the Zeeman energy B is close to the single-particle level spacing Delta in the dot, the scattering of the conduction electrons from the dot is dominated by an anisotropic exchange interaction. A Kondo resonance then occurs despite the fact that B exceeds by far the Kondo temperature T(K). As a result, at low temperatures T相似文献   

Transmission phase shift of a quantum dot with kondo correlations

We study the effects of Kondo correlations on the transmission phase shift of a quantum dot in an Aharonov-Bohm ring. We predict in detail how the development of a Kondo resonance should affect the dependence of the phase shift on transport voltage, gate voltage, and temperature. This system should allow the first direct observation of the well-known scattering phase shift of pi/2 expected (but not directly measurable in bulk systems) at zero temperature for an electron scattering off a spin- 1 / 2 impurity that is screened into a singlet.     

Evolution of the Kondo effect in a quantum dot probed by shot noise

We measure the current and shot noise in a quantum dot in the Kondo regime to address the nonequilibrium properties of the Kondo effect. By systematically tuning the temperature and gate voltages to define the level positions in the quantum dot, we observe an enhancement of the shot noise as temperature decreases below the Kondo temperature, which indicates that the two-particle scattering process grows as the Kondo state evolves. Below the Kondo temperature, the Fano factor defined at finite temperature is found to exceed the expected value of unity from the noninteracting model, reaching 1.8±0.2.     

Interacting quantum dot coupled to a kondo spin: a universal Hamiltonian study

We study a Kondo spin coupled to a mesoscopic interacting quantum dot that is described by the "universal Hamiltonian." The problem is solved numerically by diagonalizing the system Hamiltonian in a good-spin basis and analytically in the weak and strong Kondo coupling limits. The ferromagnetic exchange interaction within the dot leads to a stepwise increase of the ground-state spin (Stoner staircase), which is modified nontrivially by the Kondo interaction. We find that the spin-transition steps move to lower values of the exchange coupling for weak Kondo interaction, but shift back up for sufficiently strong Kondo coupling. The interplay between Kondo and ferromagnetic exchange correlations can be probed with experimentally tunable parameters.     

Fano and Kondo resonance in electronic current through nanodevices

Electronic transport through a quantum dot strongly coupled to electrodes is studied within a model with two conduction channels. It is shown that multiple scattering and interference of transmitted waves through both channels lead to Fano resonance associated with Kondo resonance. Interference effects are also pronouncedly seen in transport through the Aharonov-Bohm ring with the Kondo dot, where the current characteristics continuously evolve with the magnetic flux.     

Anomalous Kondo-Switching Effect of a Spin-Flip Quantum Dot Embedded in an Aharonov-Bohm Ring

We theoretically investigate the Kondo effect of a quantum dot embedded in a mesoscopic Aharonov-Bohm （AIR） ring in the presence of the spin flip processes by means of the one-impurity Anderson Hamiltonian. Based on the slave-boson mean-field theory, we find that in this system the persistent current （PC） sensitively depends on the parity and size of the AB ring and can be tuned by the spin-flip scattering （R）. In the small AB ring, the PC is suppressed due to the enhancing R weakening the Kondo resonance. On the contrary, in the large AB ring, with R increasing, the peak of PC firstly moves up to max-peak and then down. Especially, the PC phase shift of π appears suddenly with the proper value of R, implying the existence of the anomalous Kondo effect in this system. Thus this system may be a carldidate for quantum switch.     

Theoretical analysis of the transmission phase shift of a quantum dot in the presence of Kondo correlations

We study the effects of Kondo correlations on the transmission phase shift of a quantum dot coupled to two leads in comparison with the experimental determinations made by Aharonov-Bohm (AB) quantum interferometry. We propose here a theoretical interpretation of these results based on scattering theory combined with Bethe ansatz calculations. We show that there is a factor of 2 difference between the phase of the S-matrix responsible for the shift in the AB oscillations and the one controlling the conductance. Quantitative agreement is obtained with experimental results for two different values of the coupling to the leads.     

Transport properties of a single-quantum dot Aharonov-Bohm interferometer

We consider a two-terminal Aharonov-Bohm (AB) interferometer with a quantum dot inserted in one path of the AB ring. We investigate the transport properties of this system in and out of the Kondo regime. We utilize perturbation theory to calculate the electron self-energy of the quantum dot with respect to the intradot Coulomb interaction. We show the expression of the Kondo temperature as a function of the AB phase together with its dependence on other characteristics such as the linewidth of the ring and the finite Coulomb interaction and the energy levels of the quantum dot. The current oscillates periodically as a function of the AB phase. The amplitude of the current oscillation decreases with increasing Coulomb interaction. For a given temperature, the electron transport through the AB interferometer can be selected to be in or out of the Kondo regime by changing the magnetic flux threading perpendicular to the AB ring of the system.     

Transmission phase of a quantum dot with Kondo correlation near the unitary limit

The complex transmission amplitude of a quantum dot (QD) with Kondo correlation was measured near the unitary limit. The transmission phase was observed to evolve almost linearly over a range of about 1.5 pi when the Fermi energy was scanned through a spin degenerate energy level of the QD. Surprisingly, the phase in the Coulomb Blockade regime, with one more electron entering the dot, was strongly affected by a preexistence of Kondo correlation. These results suggest that a full explanation of the Kondo effect may go beyond the framework of the Anderson model.     

Two-channel Kondo physics in two-impurity Kondo models

We consider the non-Fermi-liquid quantum critical state of the spin-S two-impurity Kondo model and its potential realization in a quantum dot device. Using conformal field theory and the numerical renormalization group, we show the critical point to be identical to that of the two-channel Kondo model with additional potential scattering, for any spin S. Distinct conductance signatures are shown to arise as a function of device asymmetry, with the square-root behavior commonly believed to arise at low-energies dominant only in certain regimes.     

Two-stage Kondo effect in a quantum dot at a high magnetic field

We report a strong Kondo effect (Kondo temperature approximately 4 K) at high magnetic field in a selective area growth semiconductor quantum dot. The Kondo effect is ascribed to a singlet-triplet transition in the ground state of the dot. At the transition, the low-temperature conductance approaches the unitary limit. Away from the transition, for low bias voltages and temperatures, the conductance is sharply reduced. The observed behavior is compared to predictions for a two-stage Kondo effect in quantum dots coupled to single-channel leads.     

Nonequilibrium spintronic transport through an artificial Kondo impurity: conductance,magnetoresistance, and shot noise

We investigate the nonequilibrium transport properties of a quantum dot when spin flip processes compete with the formation of a Kondo resonance in the presence of ferromagnetic leads. Based upon the Anderson Hamiltonian in the strongly interacting limit, we predict a splitting of the differential conductance when the spin flip scattering amplitude is of the order of the Kondo temperature. We discuss how the relative orientation of the lead magnetizations strongly influences the electronic current and the shot noise in a nontrivial way. Furthermore, we find that the zero-bias tunneling magnetoresistance becomes negative with increasing spin flip scattering amplitude.     

Phase transition and charge transport through a triple dot device beyond the Kondo regime

Semiconductor quantum dot structure provides a promising basis for quantum information processing, within which to reveal the quantum phase and charge transport is one of the most important issues. In this paper, by means of the numerical renormalization group technique, we study the quantum phase transition and the charge transport for a parallel triple dot device in the strongly correlated limit, focusing on the effect of inter-dot hopping t beyond the Kondo regime. We find the quantum behaviors depend closely on the initial electron number on the dots, and the present model may map to single,double, and side-coupled impurity models in different parameter spaces. An orbital spin-1/2 Kondo effect between the conduction leads and the bonding orbital, and several magnetic-frustration phases are demonstrated when t is adjusted to different regimes. To understand these phenomena, a canonical transformation of the energy levels is given, and important physical quantities with respect to increasing t and necessary theoretical discussions are shown.     

Quantum transport across multilevel quantum dot

The conductance across a quantum dot can be influenced by levels localized in the dot and having little hybridization with the conduction channel. Fano lineshapes arising in resonant transmission measurements, imply interference between the localized and extended states. By applying a magnetic orthogonal field, the total spin of a quantum dot can be tuned. Electron correlations drive the dot through level crossings to higher spin states. Such crossings can give rise to Kondo conductance when the dot is at Coulomb blockade close to a magnetic field induced level degeneracy. In a previous work [P. Stefański, A. Tagliacozzo, B.R. Bulka, Phys. Rev. Lett. 93 (2004) 186805] we have shown that a Fano-like pattern also appears when the continuum of the conduction states originates from a broad Kondo resonance. A bunch of localized core levels, weakly coupled to the Kondo resonance, imprints the broad Kondo peak with Fano lineshapes. A signature of the presence of correlations in the quantum dot is discussed.     

Multipeak Kondo effect in one- and two-electron quantum dots

We have fabricated a few-electron quantum dot that can be tuned down to zero electrons while maintaining strong coupling to the leads. Using a nearby quantum point contact as a charge sensor, we can determine the absolute number of electrons in the quantum dot. We find several sharp peaks in the differential conductance, occurring at both zero and finite source-drain bias, for the one- and two-electron quantum dot. We attribute the peaks at finite bias to a Kondo effect through excited states of the quantum dot and investigate the magnetic field dependence of these Kondo resonances.     

Scattering theory of Kondo mirages and observation of single Kondo atom phase shift

We explain the origin of the Kondo mirage seen in recent quantum corral scanning tunneling microscope experiments with a scattering theory of electrons on the surfaces of metals. Our theory, combined with experimental data, provides a direct observation of a single Kondo atom phase shift. The Kondo mirage observed at the empty focus of an elliptical quantum corral is shown to arise from multiple electron bounces off the corral wall adatoms. We demonstrate our theory with direct quantitive comparison to experimental data.     

Quantum dot in the Kondo regime coupled to superconductors

The Kondo effect and superconductivity are both prime examples of many-body phenomena. Here we report transport measurements on a carbon nanotube quantum dot coupled to superconducting leads that show a delicate interplay between both effects. We demonstrate that the superconductivity of the leads does not destroy the Kondo correlations on the quantum dot when the Kondo temperature, which varies for different single-electron states, exceeds the superconducting gap energy.     

Interplay between the mesoscopic Stoner and Kondo effects in quantum dots

We consider electrons confined to a quantum dot interacting antiferromagnetically with a spin-1 / 2 Kondo impurity. The electrons also interact among themselves ferromagnetically with a dimensionless coupling J , where J =1 denotes the bulk Stoner transition. We show that as J approaches 1 there is a regime with enhanced Kondo correlations, followed by one where the Kondo effect is destroyed and impurity is spin polarized opposite to the dot electrons. The most striking signature of the first, Stoner-enhanced Kondo regime is that a Zeeman field increases the Kondo scale, in contrast to the case for noninteracting dot electrons. Implications for experiments are discussed.