Dynamics of quantum dissipation systems interacting with fermion and boson grand canonical bath ensembles: hierarchical equations of motion approach

A hierarchical equations of motion formalism for a quantum dissipation system in a grand canonical bath ensemble surrounding is constructed on the basis of the calculus-on-path-integral algorithm, together with the parametrization of arbitrary non-Markovian bath that satisfies fluctuation-dissipation theorem. The influence functionals for both the fermion or boson bath interaction are found to be of the same path integral expression as the canonical bath, assuming they all satisfy the Gaussian statistics. However, the equation of motion formalism is different due to the fluctuation-dissipation theories that are distinct and used explicitly. The implications of the present work to quantum transport through molecular wires and electron transfer in complex molecular systems are discussed.     

量子耗散与量子输运的级联方程组方法

级联方程已成为研究量子开放系统的稳态性质和动力学过程的重要方法。本文旨在系统综述量子耗散和量子输运的级联方程组方法的建立、发展以及在理论、算法和应用方面的一些最新进展。级联方程形式理论的建立以影响泛函路径积分为基础,并具有数值上的高效性和应用上的灵活性,可用于研究分子体系的复杂动力学过程以及强关联电子体系中的量子输运。其级联耦合结构以非微扰的方式揭示了多体相互作用、体系-环境耦合、非马尔可夫记忆等的综合效应。作为应用示例,我们采用级联方程模拟了生物光富集体系的二维相干动力学光谱以及含时电子输运过程中的动态近藤效应。     

Non-adiabatic quantum molecular dynamics: basic formalism and case study

A general formalism is presented that treats selfconsistently and simultaneously classical atomic motion and quantum electronic excitations in dynamical processes of atomic many-body systems (non-adiabatic quantum molecular dynamics). On the basis of time-dependent density functional theory, coupled highly non-linear equations of motion are derived for arbitrary basis sets for the time-dependent Kohn-Sham orbitals. Possible approximations to make the approach practical for large atomic cluster systems are discussed. As a first application of the still exact equations of motion, non-adiabatic effects in the scattering of H⁺+H, as a case study, are investigated.     

Super-fermion representation of quantum kinetic equations for the electron transport problem

We discuss the use of super-fermion formalism to represent and solve quantum kinetic equations for the electron transport problem. Starting with the Lindblad master equation for the molecule connected to two metal electrodes, we convert the problem of finding the nonequilibrium steady state to the many-body problem with non-hermitian liouvillian in super-Fock space. We transform the liouvillian to the normal ordered form, introduce nonequilibrium quasiparticles by a set of canonical nonunitary transformations and develop general many-body theory for the electron transport through the interacting region. The approach is applied to the electron transport through a single level. We consider a minimal basis hydrogen atom attached to two metal leads in Coulomb blockade regime (out of equilibrium Anderson model) within the nonequilibrium Hartree-Fock approximation as an example of the system with electron interaction. Our approach agrees with exact results given by the Landauer theory for the considered models.     

Vibrational effects in laser-driven molecular wires

The influence of an electron-vibrational coupling on the laser control of electron transport through a molecular wire that is attached to several electronic leads is investigated. These molecular vibrational modes induce an effective electron-electron interaction. In the regime where the wire electrons couple weakly to both the external leads and the vibrational modes, we derive within a Hartree-Fock approximation a nonlinear set of quantum kinetic equations. The quantum kinetic theory is then used to evaluate the laser driven, time-averaged electron current through the wire-leads contacts. This formalism is applied to two archetypical situations in the presence of electron-vibrational effects, namely, (i) the generation of a ratchet or pump current in a symmetrical molecule by a harmonic mixing field and (ii) the laser switching of the current through the molecule.     

Kinetics and thermodynamics of electron transfer in Debye solvents: an analytical and nonperturbative reduced density matrix theory

A nonperturbative electron transfer rate theory is developed on the basis of reduced density matrix dynamics, which can be evaluated readily for the Debye solvent model without further approximation. Not only does it recover for reaction rates the celebrated Marcus' inversion and Kramers' turnover behaviors, but the present theory also predicts reaction thermodynamics, such as equilibrium Gibbs free energy and entropy, some interesting solvent-dependent features that are calling for experimental verification. Moreover, a continued fraction Green's function formalism is also constructed, which can be used together with the Dyson equation technique for efficient evaluation of nonperturbative reduced density matrix dynamics.     

Exact quantum master equation via the calculus on path integrals

An exact quantum master equation formalism is constructed for the efficient evaluation of quantum non-Markovian dissipation beyond the weak system-bath interaction regime in the presence of time-dependent external field. A novel truncation scheme is further proposed and compared with other approaches to close the resulting hierarchically coupled equations of motion. The interplay between system-bath interaction strength, non-Markovian property, and required level of hierarchy is also demonstrated with the aid of simple spin-boson systems.     

Dissipaton equation of motion for system-and-bath interference dynamics

In this review we give a comprehensive account on the dissipaton equation of motion(DEOM) approach to quantum mechanics of open systems. This approach provides a statistical quasi-particle(dissipaton) picture for the environment, as it participates in the correlated system-and-bath dynamics. The underlying dissipaton algebra is de facto established via a close comparison with the celebrated hierarchical equations of motion formalism that is rooted at the Feynman-Vernon influence functional path integral formalism. As a quasi-particle generalization, DEOM identifies unambiguously the physical meanings of all involving dynamical variables as many-dissipaton configurations. It addresses the dynamics of not only systems but also hybridizing bath degrees of freedom. We demonstrate these features of DEOM via its real-time evaluation of the Fano interference of an analytically solvable model system, with the highlight that the statistical quasi-particle picture is ubiquitous, implied even in those commonly used quantum master equations.     

Optimizing hierarchical equations of motion for quantum dissipation and quantifying quantum bath effects on quantum transfer mechanisms

We present an optimized hierarchical equations of motion theory for quantum dissipation in multiple Brownian oscillators bath environment, followed by a mechanistic study on a model donor-bridge-acceptor system. We show that the optimal hierarchy construction, via the memory-frequency decomposition for any specified Brownian oscillators bath, is generally achievable through a universal pre-screening search. The algorithm goes by identifying the candidates for the best be just some selected Padé spectrum decomposition based schemes, together with a priori accuracy control criterions on the sole approximation, the white-noise residue ansatz, involved in the hierarchical construction. Beside the universal screening search, we also analytically identify the best for the case of Drude dissipation and that for the Brownian oscillators environment without strongly underdamped bath vibrations. For the mechanistic study, we quantify the quantum nature of bath influence and further address the issue of localization versus delocalization. Proposed are a reduced system entropy measure and a state-resolved constructive versus destructive interference measure. Their performances on quantifying the correlated system-environment coherence are exemplified in conjunction with the optimized hierarchical equations of motion evaluation of the model system dynamics, at some representing bath parameters and temperatures. Analysis also reveals the localization to delocalization transition as temperature decreases.     

Electron transport through an extended nano-ring in presence of magnetic field: An analytical approach

We analytically describe the influence of magnetic field on the electronic transport properties of an extended nano-ring by using Green's function technique in the nearest neighbor tight-binding approximation. We obtain exact analytic formulas for the electronic transmission coefficient, the total and local contact density of states as functions of incident electron energy, magnetic flux crossing over the ring and all the system parameters. Our formalism gives the ability to study the extended nano-rings of any size under certain conditions which provides useful tools to analyze electronic transport of these systems, much faster and more easily. The results show that the electronic transport quantities of a system consisting of a nano-ring are strongly sensitive to incoming electron energy, magnetic flux and contact hopping energies. The present approach may be useful to design nano-devices measuring magnetic field and magnetic based nano-switches.     

Electron trajectories in molecular orbitals

The time-dependent Schrödinger equation can be rewritten so that its interpretation is no longer probabilistic. Two well-known and related reformulations are Bohmian mechanics and quantum hydrodynamics. In these formulations, quantum particles follow real, deterministic trajectories influenced by a quantum force. Generally, trajectory methods are not applied to electronic structure calculations as they predict that the electrons in a ground-state, real, molecular wavefunction are motionless. However, a spin-dependent momentum can be recovered from the nonrelativistic limit of the Dirac equation. Therefore, we developed new, spin-dependent equations of motion for the quantum hydrodynamics of electrons in molecular orbitals. The equations are based on a Lagrange multiplier, which constrains each electron to an isosurface of its molecular orbital, as required by the spin-dependent momentum. Both the momentum and the Lagrange multiplier provide a unique perspective on the properties of electrons in molecules.     

Influences of molecular packing on the charge mobility of organic semiconductors: from quantum charge transfer rate theory beyond the first-order perturbation

The electronic coupling between adjacent molecules is an important parameter for the charge transport properties of organic semiconductors. In a previous paper, a semiclassical generalized nonadiabatic transition state theory was used to investigate the nonperturbative effect of the electronic coupling on the charge transport properties, but it is not applicable at low temperatures due to the presence of high-frequency modes from the intramolecular conjugated carbon-carbon stretching vibrations [G. J. Nan et al., J. Chem. Phys., 2009, 130, 024704]. In the present paper, we apply a quantum charge transfer rate formula based on the imaginary-time flux-flux correlation function without the weak electronic coupling approximation. The imaginary-time flux-flux correlation function is then expressed in terms of the vibrational-mode path average and is evaluated by the path integral approach. All parameters are computed by quantum chemical approaches, and the mobility is obtained by kinetic Monte-Carlo simulation. We evaluate the intra-layer mobility of sexithiophene crystal structures in high- and low-temperature phases for a wide range of temperatures. In the case of strong coupling, the quantum charge transfer rates were found to be significantly smaller than those calculated using the weak electronic coupling approximation, which leads to reduced mobility especially at low temperatures. As a consequence, the mobility becomes less dependent on temperature when the molecular packing leads to strong electronic coupling in some charge transport directions. The temperature-independent charge mobility in organic thin-film transistors from experimental measurements may be explained from the present model with the grain boundaries considered. In addition, we point out that the widely used Marcus equation is invalid in calculating charge carrier transfer rates in sexithiophene crystals.     

Nonadiabatic electron wavepacket dynamics of molecules in an intense optical field: an ab initio electronic state study

A theory of quantum electron wavepacket dynamics that nonadiabatically couples with classical nuclear motions in intense optical fields is studied. The formalism is intended to track the laser-driven electron wavepackets in terms of the linear combination of configuration-state functions generated with ab initio molecular orbitals. Beginning with the total quantum Hamiltonian for electrons and nuclei in the vector potential of classical electromagnetic field, we reduce the Hamiltonian into a mixed quantum-classical representation by replacing the quantum nuclear momentum operators with the classical counterparts. This framework gives equations of motion for electron wavepackets in an intense laser field through the time dependent variational principle. On the other hand, a generalization of the Newtonian equations provides a matrix form of forces acting on the nuclei for nonadiabatic dynamics. A mean-field approximation to the force matrix reduces this higher order formalism to the semiclassical Ehrenfest theory in intense optical fields. To bring these theories into a practical quantum chemical package for general molecules, we have implemented the relevant ab initio algorithms in it. Some numerical results in the level of the semiclassical Ehrenfest-type theory with explicit use of the nuclear kinematic (derivative) coupling and the velocity form for the optical interaction are presented.     

Molecular rectification in triangularly shaped graphene nanoribbons

We present a theoretical study of electron transport in tailored zigzag graphene nanoribbons (ZGNRs) with triangular structure using density functional theory together with the nonequilibrium Green's function formalism. We find significant rectification with a favorite electron transfer direction from the vertex to the right edge. The triangular ZGNR connecting to the electrode with one thiol group at each terminal shows an average rectification ratio of 8.4 over the bias range from ?1.0 to 1.0 V. This asymmetric electron transport property originates from nearly zero band gap of triangular ZGNR under negative bias, whereas a band gap opens under positive bias. When the molecule is connected to the electrode by multithiol groups, the current is enhanced due to strong interfacial coupling; however, the rectification ratio decreases. The simulation results indicate that the unique electronic states of triangular ZGNR are responsible for rectification, rather than the asymmetric anchoring groups. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.