Directing transport by polarized radiation in presence of chaos and dissipation

We study numerically the dynamics of particles on the Galton board of semi-disk scatters in presence of monochromatic radiation and dissipation. It is shown that under certain conditions the radiation leads to appearance of directed transport linked to an underlining strange attractor. The direction of transport can be efficiently changed by radiation polarization. The experimental realization of this effect in asymmetric antidot superlattices is discussed.Comment: revtex, 4 pages, 6 fig

Nonequilibrium stationary states with ratchet effect

An ensemble of particles in thermal equilibrium at temperature $T$, modeled by Nos\`e-Hoover dynamics, moves on a triangular lattice of oriented semi-disk elastic scatterers. Despite the scatterer asymmetry a directed transport is clearly ruled out by the second law of thermodynamics. Introduction of a polarized zero mean monochromatic field creates a directed stationary flow with nontrivial dependence on temperature and field parameters. We give a theoretical estimate of directed current induced by a microwave field in an antidot superlattice in semiconductor heterostructures.Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures (small changes added

On surface plasmon polariton wavepacket dynamics in metal-dielectric heterostructures

The WKB equations for dynamics of the surface plasmon polariton (SPP) wavepacket are studied. The dispersion law for the SPP in the metal-dielectric heterostructure with varying thickness of a perforated dielectric layer is rigorously calculated and investigated using the scattering matrix method. Two channels of the SPP wavepacket optical losses related to the absorption in a metal and to the SPP leakage are analyzed. It is shown that change of the dielectric layer thickness acts on the SPP as an external force leading to evolution of its quasimomentum and to the wavepacket reversal or even to the optical Bloch oscillations (BO). Properties of these phenomena are investigated and discussed. Typical values of the BO amplitude are about tens of microns and the period is around tens or hundreds of femtoseconds.Comment: 12 pages, 5 figure

Photocurrent, Rectification, and Magnetic Field Symmetry of Induced Current Through Quantum Dots

We report mesoscopic dc current generation in an open chaotic quantum dot with ac excitation applied to one of the shape-defining gates. For excitation frequencies large compared to the inverse dwell time of electrons in the dot (i.e., GHz), we find mesoscopic fluctuations of induced current that are fully asymmetric in the applied perpendicular magnetic field, as predicted by recent theory. Conductance, measured simultaneously, is found to be symmetric in field. In the adiabatic (i.e., MHz) regime, in contrast, the induced current is always symmetric in field, suggesting its origin is mesoscopic rectification.Comment: related papers at http://marcuslab.harvard.ed

Semiclassical theory of a quantum pump

In a quantum charge pump, the periodic variation of two parameters that affect the phase of the electronic wavefunction causes the flow of a direct current. The operating mechanism of a quantum pump is based on quantum interference, the phases of interfering amplitudes being modulated by the external parameters. In a ballistic quantum dot, there is a minimum time before which quantum interference can not occur: the Ehrenfest time. Here we calculate the current pumped through a ballistic quantum dot when the Ehrenfest time is comparable to the mean dwell time. Remarkably, we find that the pumped current has a component that is not suppressed if the Ehrenfest time is much larger than the mean dwell time.Comment: 14 pages, 8 figures. Revised version, minor change

Matrix and vector models in the strong coupling limit

In this paper we consider matrix and vector models in the large N limit ($N \times N$ matrices and vectors with N^{2} components). For the case of zero-dimensional model (D=0) it is proved that in the strong coupling limit $g \to \infty$ statistical sums of both models coincide up to a coefficient. This is also true for D=1.Comment: 8 page

Synchnonization, zero-resistance states and rotating Wigner crystal

We show that rotational angles of electrons moving in two dimensions (2D) in a perpendicular magnetic field can be synchronized by an external microwave field which frequency is close to the Larmor frequency. The synchronization eliminates collisions between electrons and thus creates a regime with zero diffusion corresponding to the zero-resistance states observed in experiments with high mobility 2D electron gas (2DEG). For long range Coulomb interactions electrons form a rotating hexagonal Wigner crystal. Possible relevance of this effect for planetary rings is discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 4 fig

Nonlinear Diffusive Shock Acceleration with Magnetic Field Amplification

We introduce a Monte Carlo model of nonlinear diffusive shock acceleration allowing for the generation of large-amplitude magnetic turbulence. The model is the first to include strong wave generation, efficient particle acceleration to relativistic energies in nonrelativistic shocks, and thermal particle injection in an internally self-consistent manner. We find that the upstream magnetic field can be amplified by large factors and show that this amplification depends strongly on the ambient Alfven Mach number. We also show that in the nonlinear model large increases in the magnetic field do not necessarily translate into a large increase in the maximum particle momentum a particular shock can produce, a consequence of high momentum particles diffusing in the shock precursor where the large amplified field converges to the low ambient value. To deal with the field growth rate in the regime of strong fluctuations, we extend to strong turbulence a parameterization that is consistent with the resonant quasi-linear growth rate in the weak turbulence limit. We believe our parameterization spans the maximum and minimum range of the fluctuation growth and, within these limits, we show that the nonlinear shock structure, acceleration efficiency, and thermal particle injection rates depend strongly on the yet to be determined details of wave growth in strongly turbulent fields. The most direct application of our results will be to estimate magnetic fields amplified by strong cosmic-ray modified shocks in supernova remnants.Comment: Accepted in ApJ July 2006, typos corrected in this versio

Analysis of a Toy Model of Electron "Splitting"

We examine Maris' recent suggestion that the fission of electron-inhabited bubbles in liquid helium may give rise to a new form of electron fractionization. We introduce a one-dimensional toy-model--a simplified analogue of the helium system--which may be analyzed using the Born-Oppenheimer approximation. We find that none of the model's low-lying energy eigenstates have the form suggested by Maris' computations, in which the bubbles were treated completely classically. Instead, the eigenstates are quantum-mechanically entangled superposition states, which the classical treatment overlooks.Comment: 9 page

Photocurrent in nanostructures with asymmetric antidots

The steady current induced by electromagnetic field in a 2D system with asymmetric scatterers is studied. The scatterers are assumed to be oriented cuts with one diffusive and another specular sides. Besides, the existence of isotropic impurity scatterers is assumed. This simple model simulates the lattice of half-disk which have been studied numerically recently. The model allows the exact solution in the framework of the kinetic equation. The static current response in the second order of electric field is obtained. The photogalvanic tensor contains both responses to linear and circular polarization of electromagnetic field. The model possesses non-analyticity with regards to the rate of impurity scattering.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figure