On the Magnetic Nature of Quantum Point Contacts

We present results for a model that describes a quantum point contact. We show how electron-electron correlations, within the unrestricted Hartree-Fock approximation, generate a magnetic moment in the point contact. Having characterized the magnetic structure of the contact, we map the problem onto a simple one-channel model and calculate the temperature dependence of the conductance for different gate voltages. Our results are in good agreement with experimental results obtained in GaAs devices and support the idea of Kondo effect in these systems.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure

Theory of Core-Level Photoemission and the X-ray Edge Singularity Across the Mott Transition

The zero temperature core-level photoemission spectrum is studied across the metal to Mott insulator transition using dynamical mean-field theory and Wilson's numerical renormalization group. An asymmetric power-law divergence is obtained in the metallic phase with an exponent alpha(U,Q)-1 which depends on the strength of both the Hubbard interaction U and the core-hole potential Q. For Q <~ U_c/2 alpha decreases with increasing U and vanishes at the transition (U -> U_c) leading to a symmetric peak in the insulating phase. For Q >~ U_c/2, alpha remains finite close to the transition, but the integrated intensity of the power-law vanishes and there is no associated peak in the insulator. The weight and position of the remaining peaks in the spectra can be understood within a molecular orbital approach.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figure

Partial preservation of chiral symmetry and colossal magnetoresistance in adatom doped graphene

We analyze the electronic properties of adatom doped graphene in the low impurity concentration regime. We focus on the Anderson localized regime and calculate the localization length ($\xi$) as a function of the electron doping and an external magnetic field. The impurity states hybridize with carbon's $p_z$ states and form a partially filled band close to the Dirac point. Near the impurity band center, the chiral symmetry of the system's effective Hamiltonian is partially preserved which leads to a large enhancement of $\xi$. The sensitivity of transport properties, namely Mott's variable range hopping scale $T_0$, to an external magnetic field perpendicular to the graphene sheet leads to a colossal magnetoresistance effect, as observed in recent experiments.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figs. Few comments and references added. To appear in PR

Transport through side-coupled multilevel double quantum dots in the Kondo regime

We analyze the transport properties of a double quantum dot device in the side-coupled configuration. A small quantum dot (QD), having a single relevant electronic level, is coupled to source and drain electrodes. A larger QD, whose multilevel nature is considered, is tunnel-coupled to the small QD. A Fermi liquid analysis shows that the low temperature conductance of the device is determined by the total electronic occupation of the double QD. When the small dot is in the Kondo regime, an even number of electrons in the large dot leads to a conductance that reaches the unitary limit, while for an odd number of electrons a two stage Kondo effect is observed and the conductance is strongly suppressed. The Kondo temperature of the second stage Kondo effect is strongly affected by the multilevel structure of the large QD. For increasing level spacing, a crossover from a large Kondo temperature regime to a small Kondo temperature regime is obtained when the level spacing becomes of the order of the large Kondo temperature.Comment: 13 pages, 11 figures, minor change

On the nature of the Mott transition in multiorbital systems

We analyze the nature of Mott metal-insulator transition in multiorbital systems using dynamical mean-field theory (DMFT). The auxiliary multiorbital quantum impurity problem is solved using continuous time quantum Monte Carlo (CTQMC) and the rotationally invariant slave-boson (RISB) mean field approximation. We focus our analysis on the Kanamori Hamiltonian and find that there are two markedly different regimes determined by the nature of the lowest energy excitations of the atomic Hamiltonian. The RISB results at $T\to0$ suggest the following rule of thumb for the order of the transition at zero temperature: a second order transition is to be expected if the lowest lying excitations of the atomic Hamiltonian are charge excitations, while the transition tends to be first order if the lowest lying excitations are in the same charge sector as the atomic ground state. At finite temperatures the transition is first order and its strength, as measured e.g. by the jump in the quasiparticle weight at the transition, is stronger in the parameter regime where the RISB method predicts a first order transition at zero temperature. Interestingly, these results seem to apply to a wide variety of models and parameter regimes.Comment: Accepted for publication in Physical Review

Localized Spins on Graphene

The problem of a magnetic impurity, atomic or molecular, absorbed on top of a carbon atom in otherwise clean graphene is studied using the numerical renormalization group. The spectral, thermodynamic, and scattering properties of the impurity are described in detail. In the presence of a small magnetic field, the low energy electronic features of graphene make possible to inject spin polarized currents through the impurity using a scanning tunneling microscope (STM). Furthermore, the impurity scattering becomes strongly spin dependent and for a finite impurity concentration it leads to spin polarized bulk currents and a large magnetoresistance. In gated graphene the impurity spin is Kondo screened at low temperatures. However, at temperatures larger than the Kondo temperature, the anomalous magnetotransport properties are recovered.Comment: 4+ pages, 4 figures. Added reference

Transport through quantum dots in mesoscopic circuits

We study the transport through a quantum dot, in the Kondo Coulomb blockade valley, embedded in a mesoscopic device with finite wires. The quantization of states in the circuit that hosts the quantum dot gives rise to finite size effects. These effects make the conductance sensitive to the ratio of the Kondo screening length to the wires length and provide a way of measuring the Kondo cloud. We present results obtained with the numerical renormalization group for a wide range of physically accessible parameters.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figure

Tunable Charge and Spin Seebeck Effects in Magnetic Molecular Junctions

We study the charge and spin Seebeck effects in a spin-1 molecular junction as a function of temperature (T), applied magnetic field (H), and magnetic anisotropy (D) using Wilson's numerical renormalization group. A hard-axis magnetic anisotropy produces a large enhancement of the charge Seebeck coefficient Sc (\sim k_B/|e|) whose value only depends on the residual interaction between quasiparticles in the low temperature Fermi-liquid regime. In the underscreened spin-1 Kondo regime, the high sensitivity of the system to magnetic fields makes it possible to observe a sizable value for the spin Seebeck coefficient even for magnetic fields much smaller than the Kondo temperature. Similar effects can be obtain in C60 junctions where the control parameter is the gap between a singlet and a triplet molecular state.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure