Precise implementation of cluster transfer matrix method in the single electron box

The partition function of the single electron box (SEB), a small metallic island connected by a tunnel junction to the source lead and by a gate capacitor to the gate, can be expressed in path-integral form, which contains the effective action of the collective variable, phase, after integrating out the background electron degrees of freedom. The cluster transfer matrix method (CTM) is applied to the SEB. By using an improved numerical algorithm and more intensive calculations with larger cluster size, we obtained a highly accurate result for the effective charging energy of SEB up to a large barrier conductance. With a clear converging tendency and the fact that we do not use any approximation in calculation of the partition function, our CTM calculation is systematic and exact. The result is in excellent agreement with the real time renormalization group method of König and Schoeller.