Shubnikov-de Haas effect on conductance fluctuations in two-dimensional random magnetic fields

Conductance fluctuations in two-dimensional random magnetic fields are investigated numerically in the case where the mean and the fluctuation of the random magnetic fields are of the same order. The conductance is evaluated by means of the Landauer formula. It is found that for a system with edge states, the conductance fluctuation exhibits clearly a Shubnikov-de Haas type oscillation in the weak field regime.     

Ballistic transport and quantum interference in InSb nanowire devices

An experimental realization of a ballistic superconductor proximitized semiconductor nanowire device is a necessary step towards engineering topological quantum electronics. Here, we report on ballistic transport in In Sb nanowires grown by molecular-beam epitaxy contacted by superconductor electrodes. At an elevated temperature, clear conductance plateaus are observed at zero magnetic field and in agreement with calculations based on the Landauer formula. At lower temperature, we have observed characteristic Fabry–Pérot patterns which confirm the ballistic nature of charge transport.Furthermore, the magnetoconductance measurements in the ballistic regime reveal a periodic variation related to the Fabry–Pérot oscillations. The result can be reasonably explained by taking into account the impact of magnetic field on the phase of ballistic electron's wave function, which is further verified by our simulation. Our results pave the way for better understanding of the quantum interference effects on the transport properties of In Sb nanowires in the ballistic regime as well as developing of novel device for topological quantum computations.     

Quantum spin Hall effect in a square-lattice model under a uniform magnetic field

We study a toy square-lattice model under a uniform magnetic field. Using the Landauer-Bttiker formula, we calculate the transport properties of the system on a two-terminal, a four-terminal and a six-terminal device. We find that the quantum spin Hall (QSH) effect appears in energy ranges where the spin-up and spin-down subsystems have different filling factors. We also study the robustness of the resulting QSH effect and find that it is robust when the Fermi levels of both spin subsystems are far away from the energy plateaus but is fragile when the Fermi level of any spin subsystem is near the energy plateaus. These results provide an example of the QSH effect with a physical origin other than time-reversal (TR) preserving spin-orbit coupling (SOC).     

Kondo效应对磁杂质碳纳米管电输运特性的影响

从碳纳米管中Kondo效应的影响出发, 在有限温度下采用Anderson模型表征碳纳米管/磁杂质系统, 利用Landauer公式对磁杂质碳纳米管的电导和热电势进行研究, 得出和实验结果一致结论. 关键词： Kondo效应 碳纳米管 电输运特性     

Landauer–Büttiker and Thouless Conductance

In the independent electron approximation, the average (energy/charge/entropy) current flowing through a finite sample \({\mathcal{S}}\) connected to two electronic reservoirs can be computed by scattering theoretic arguments which lead to the famous Landauer–Büttiker formula. Another well known formula has been proposed by Thouless on the basis of a scaling argument. The Thouless formula relates the conductance of the sample to the width of the spectral bands of the infinite crystal obtained by periodic juxtaposition of \({\mathcal{S}}\). In this spirit, we define Landauer–Büttiker crystalline currents by extending the Landauer–Büttiker formula to a setup where the sample \({\mathcal{S}}\) is replaced by a periodic structure whose unit cell is \({\mathcal{S}}\). We argue that these crystalline currents are closely related to the Thouless currents. For example, the crystalline heat current is bounded above by the Thouless heat current, and this bound saturates iff the coupling between the reservoirs and the sample is reflectionless. Our analysis leads to a rigorous derivation of the Thouless formula from the first principles of quantum statistical mechanics.     

Theory of electronic transport in two-dimensional systems in the presence of magnetic fields

The series of three papers is focused on the Landauer-Büttiker approach to the study of transport in two-dimensional electron systems, with particular attention paid to the influence of an external magnetic field. In the present paper, various aspects of the Landauer formalism (relating conductances to transmission coefficients) are reviewed. The one-dimensional case is discussed in detail. Some views on its generalization to higher dimensionality are presented. The connection to the linear response theory is briefly discussed. A short account of the Büttiker formalism for systems with more than two probes is given. Further the Landauer formalism is generalized for two-dimensional systems in quantizing magnetic fields. Particular attention is paid to the role of ideal leads where edge states occur.The author wishes to thank Professors P. Steda and L. Smrka for their encouragement and discussion.     

Spin-flip effect on electrical transport in magnetic quantum wire systems

We investigate the spin-flip effect on electronic transport in a nanostructure composed of two nonmagnetic (NM) leads separated by a periodic spacer. The spacer is composed of one-dimensional heterostructure formed by a sequence of magnetic (A) and nonmagnetic (B) sites periodically juxtaposed (as in a typical periodic quantum dot (QD)). The calculations are based on the tight-binding model and transfer matrix method, which compute the current–voltage characteristic within the Landauer–Büttiker formalism. Our main goal is to assess the contribution of the spin-flip scattering to the transport properties of such systems. The spin-dependent transport behavior can be controlled via a gate magnetic field and an applied voltage in the ballistic regime. Our results show that the conductance strongly depends on the configurations of the magnetic QD. The application of the predicted results may be useful in designing spin-valve devices, such as spin-polarized molecular transistors.     

Persistent currents in mesoscopic rings: A stochastic model

A stochastic model, proposed first by Landauer and Büttiker to explain the phenomenon of persistent currents in submicrometer normal metal rings, is developed quantitatively by determining the relevant relaxation time scales. The current excited by a periodically modulated magnetic field threading the ring is computed as the sum of two clear-cut components: a persistent current and a driven current. The latter component provides a notable example of astochastic resonance mechanism in solid-state physics.     

A resistance formula for coherent multi-barrier structures

Using the Landauer formula and the quantum S-matrix scattering theory, we derive a resistance formula for multi-barrier structure under phase coherent transmission condition. This formula shows that when the transport is coherent, the potential wells of the structure are just like conductors contributing to the overall resistance. And because the resistance formula is derived based on the scattering theory, the barrier resistance will change with the number of scattering centres (i.e. the number of barriers) in the structure.     

Landauer conductance of tunnel junctions: strong impact from boundary conditions

We present model calculations for the Landauer conductance of tunnel junctions. The tunnelling of free electrons through a rectangular potential barrier is considered. The conductance of a finite number of barriers was calculated using a transfer matrix method. The periodic arrangement of the same barriers was described by a Kronig–Penney model to calculate the band structure and, from that, the conductance of a point contact in the ballistic limit. Comparison of the results showed the importance of the boundary conditions. Caused by resonant scattering in the superlattice, the conductance is overestimated by an order of 1/t, the transmission coefficient of the single barrier. In the case of metallic multilayers, these interferences are of minor importance. In conclusion, the application of the Landauer formula to periodic lattices to describe the tunnelling conductance of a single barrier is not appropriate.     

Electron ratchet effect in semiconductor devices and artificial materials with broken centrosymmetry

Studies on nonlinear electron transport in nanometer-sized semiconductor devices with broken centrosymmetry are reviewed. In these devices, an applied alternating (rocking) electric field induces a net flow of electrons in the direction perpendicular to that of the applied field. Such an electron ratchet effect has been observed in a number of differently designed devices, fabricated from two types of semiconductor material systems. The functionality is interpreted with an extended Büttiker–Landauer formula. We show that the devices operate at both cryogenic and room temperatures and at frequencies up to at least 50 GHz. Based on a similar microscopic mechanism, we have also constructed, to the best of our knowledge, the first artificial electronic nanomaterial that operates at room temperature. The promising possibilities for practical applications, such as rectification, microwave detection, second-harmonic generation, etc., are also discussed. Received: 16 January 2002 / Accepted: 11 February 2002 / Published online: 22 April 2002     

Landauer-like formula for dissipative tunneling

The Landauer formula for electrical conductance is simple but works remarkably well in mesoscopic systems. We propose a Landauer-like formula for calculating an escape rate out of a dissipative metastable well, the quantum Kramers rate. The proposed formula works well in the current–voltage characteristic of a single Josephson junction.     

Quantum electronic transport: Linear and nonlinear conductance from the Keldysh approach

This is a review of the derivation of the Landauer conductance using the Keldysh non-equilibrium Green's function (NEGF) formalism and the equations-of-motion (EOM) method. We consider the elastic quantum electronic transport through a multi-lead device and treat the conductor in the mean-field approximation. This is suitable for open quantum dots as well as for several molecular systems where charging effects are negligible. The focus of the presentation is to unveil the technical issues involved in the formalism. We show how the Landauer conductance emerges as a linear term in the current-voltage I-V characteristics and indicate how to go beyond this regime. We address the connection of the NEGF approach to recent developments in molecular transport and discuss the problems that arise when one tries to include interaction effects beyond the mean field.     

Generalized Landauer formula

The Landauer formula, which relates the conductance G of a 1D elastic scatterer to its transmission coefficient, is derived for arbitrary dimensionality. In the general case G depends on the transmission coefficient and the relations of the transmitted particle density to the density of incident particles.     

Barrier penetration in Kane type semiconductor nanostructures

Particle penetration through a square potential and a step potential barrier are studied with the eight-band Kane Hamiltonians. It has found expressions for transmission probability and reflection coefficients of electrons for both potentials. It is shown in the Kane model that the transmission probability will have a finite value that is different from the one-band model at the state where the barrier height is infinite. The Landauer formula for resistance is applied to the Kane type semiconductor heterostructures.     

两个量子窄区串联时的绝热输运和欧姆输运

利用Landauer公式的多通道推广形式,研究了两个不相等的量子窄区在串联情形下的绝热输运和欧姆输运。这两个窄区以一个密闭的空腔相连接,计算结果表明绝热输运导致窄区电阻的非相加性,而非绝热输运服从欧姆相加规则。这与实验定性一致。 关键词：     

感生电场与动生电场的等效性探究

本文认为在感生电场的情况下,磁场的强弱变化可以引起磁场自身的横向运动,使得线圈中电子相对于磁场发生运动,从而等效为一个动生电场,受到洛伦兹力的作用.借助磁感线模拟磁场的运动方式,得到圆形回路中任意一点与磁场相对运动速度的表达式,进而推得该＂等效动生电场＂中的洛伦兹力.以螺线管为例,验证该方法可以解释感生电场所满足的规律.将感生电场与动生电场的产生原因统一为导体中电子与磁场的相对运动,相应电动势的非静电力统一为洛伦兹力.     

Self-Diffusion Imaging by Spin Echo in Earth's Magnetic Field

The NMR of the Earth's magnetic field is used for diffusion-weighted imaging of phantoms. Due to a weak Larmor field, care needs to be taken regarding the use of the usual high field assumption in calculating the effect of the applied inhomogeneous magnetic field. The usual definition of the magnetic field gradient must be replaced by a generalized formula valid when the strength of a nonuniform magnetic field and a Larmor field are comparable (J. Stepišnik,Z. Phys. Chem.190, 51–62 (1995)). It turns out that the expression for spin echo attenuation is identical to the well-known Torrey formula only when the applied nonuniform field has a proper symmetry. This kind of problem may occur in a strong Larmor field as well as when the slow diffusion rate of particles needs an extremely strong gradient to be applied. The measurements of the geomagnetic field NMR demonstrate the usefulness of the method for diffusion and flow-weighted imaging.     

Semiclassical theory of chaotic conductors

We calculate the Landauer conductance through chaotic ballistic devices in the semiclassical limit, to all orders in the inverse number of scattering channels without and with a magnetic field. Families of pairs of entrance-to-exit trajectories contribute, similarly to the pairs of periodic orbits making up the small-time expansion of the spectral form factor of chaotic dynamics. As a clue to the exact result we find that close self-encounters slightly hinder the escape of trajectories into leads. Our result explains why the energy-averaged conductance of individual chaotic cavities, with disorder or "clean," agrees with predictions of random-matrix theory.     

Effects of disorder on tunnel magnetoresistance in Fe/MgO/Fe junctions

Effects of lattice distortion and oxygen vacancy on tunnel magnetoresistance in Fe/MgO/Fe junctions are theoretically investigated. By treating the distortion in MgO as the random potential and performing numerical simulations based on the Kubo–Landauer formula, it is shown that the magnetoresistance ratio decreases with increasing randomness. Moreover, first-principles calculations within the density functional theory show that the defect states in the Fe/MgO cluster containing an oxygen vacancy induce no significant shift in the Fermi level.