700 research outputs found
Entanglement probe of two-impurity Kondo physics in a spin chain
We propose that real-space properties of the two-impurity Kondo model can be
obtained from an effective spin model where two single-impurity Kondo spin
chains are joined via an RKKY interaction between the two impurity spins. We
then use a DMRG approach, valid in all ranges of parameters, to study its
features using two complementary quantum-entanglement measures, the negativity
and the von Neumann entropy. This non-perturbative approach enables us to
uncover the precise dependence of the spatial extent of the Kondo
screening cloud with the Kondo and RKKY couplings. Our results reveal an
exponential suppression of the Kondo temperature with the
size of the effective impurity spin in the limit of large ferromagnetic RKKY
coupling, a striking display of "Kondo resonance narrowing" in the two-impurity
Kondo model. We also show how the antiferromagnetic RKKY interaction produces
an effective decoupling of the impurities from the bulk already for
intermediate strengths of this interaction, and, furthermore, exhibit how the
non-Fermi liquid quantum critical point is signaled in the quantum entanglement
between various parts of the system.Comment: 5 pages, 5 figure
Edge Dynamics in a Quantum Spin Hall State: Effects from Rashba Spin-Orbit Interaction
We analyze the dynamics of the helical edge modes of a quantum spin Hall
state in the presence of a spatially non-uniform Rashba spin-orbit (SO)
interaction. A randomly fluctuating Rashba SO coupling is found to open a
scattering channel which causes localization of the edge modes for a weakly
screened electron-electron (e-e) interaction. A periodic modulation of the SO
coupling, with a wave number commensurate with the Fermi momentum, makes the
edge insulating already at intermediate strengths of the e-e interaction. We
discuss implications for experiments on edge state transport in a HgTe quantum
well.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures; published versio
Common attentional constraints in visual foraging
Predators are known to select food of the same type in non-random sequences or “runs” that are longer than would be expected by chance. If prey are conspicuous, predators will switch between available sources, interleaving runs of different prey types. However, when prey are cryptic, predators tend to focus on one food type at a time, effectively ignoring equally available sources. This latter finding is regarded as a key indicator that animal foraging is strongly constrained by attention. It is unknown whether human foraging is equally constrained. Here, using a novel iPad task, we demonstrate for the first time that it is. Participants were required to locate and touch 40 targets from 2 different categories embedded within a dense field of distractors. When individual target items “popped-out” search was organized into multiple runs, with frequent switching between target categories. In contrast, as soon as focused attention was required to identify individual targets, participants typically exhausted one entire category before beginning to search for the other. This commonality in animal and human foraging is compelling given the additional cognitive tools available to humans, and suggests that attention constrains search behavior in a similar way across a broad range of species.peer-reviewe
Corrections to scaling in entanglement entropy from boundary perturbations
We investigate the corrections to scaling of the Renyi entropies of a region
of size l at the end of a semi-infinite one-dimensional system described by a
conformal field theory when the corrections come from irrelevant boundary
operators. The corrections from irrelevant bulk operators with scaling
dimension x have been studied by Cardy and Calabrese (2010), and they found not
only the expected corrections of the form l^(4-2x) but also unusual corrections
that could not have been anticipated by finite-size scaling arguments alone.
However, for the case of perturbations from irrelevant boundary operators we
find that the only corrections that can occur to leading order are of the form
l^(2-2x_b) for boundary operators with scaling dimension x_b < 3/2, and l^(-1)
when x_b > 3/2. When x_b=3/2 they are of the form l^(-1)log(l). A marginally
irrelevant boundary perturbation will give leading corrections going as
log(l)^(-3). No unusual corrections occur when perturbing with a boundary
operator.Comment: 8 pages. Minor improvements and updated references. Published versio
Entanglement Scaling in the One-Dimensional Hubbard Model at Criticality
We derive exact expressions for the local entanglement entropy E in the
ground state of the one-dimensional Hubbard model at a quantum phase transition
driven by a change in magnetic field h or chemical potential u. The leading
divergences of dE/dh and dE/du are shown to be directly related to those of the
zero-temperature spin and charge susceptibilities. Logarithmic corrections to
scaling signal a change in the number of local states accessible to the system
as it undergoes the transition.Comment: 4+ pages, 2 figures. Fig. 2 and minor typos correcte
Modulated Rashba interaction in a quantum wire: Spin and charge dynamics
It was recently shown that a spatially modulated Rashba spin-orbit coupling
in a quantum wire drives a transition from a metallic to an insulating state
when the wave number of the modulation becomes commensurate with the Fermi wave
length of the electrons in the wire. It was suggested that the effect may be
put to practical use in a future spin transistor design. In the present article
we revisit the problem and present a detailed analysis of the underlying
physics. First, we explore how the build-up of charge density wave correlations
in the quantum wire due to the periodic gate configuration that produces the
Rashba modulation influences the transition to the insulating state. The
interplay between the modulations of the charge density and that of the
spin-orbit coupling turns out to be quite subtle: Depending on the relative
phase between the two modulations, the joint action of the Rashba interaction
and charge density wave correlations may either enhance or reduce the Rashba
current blockade effect. Secondly, we inquire about the role of the Dresselhaus
spin-orbit coupling that is generically present in a quantum wire embedded in
semiconductor heterostructure. While the Dresselhaus coupling is found to work
against the current blockade of the insulating state, the effect is small in
most materials. Using an effective field theory approach, we also carry out an
analysis of effects from electron- electron interactions, and show how the
single-particle gap in the insulating state can be extracted from the more
easily accessible collective charge and spin excitation thresholds. The
smallness of the single-particle gap together with the anti-phase relation
between the Rashba and chemical potential modulations pose serious difficulties
for realizing a Rashba-controlled current switch in an InAs-based device. Some
alternative designs are discussed.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figure
Measuring Luttinger Liquid Correlations from Charge Fluctuations in a Nanoscale Structure
We suggest an experiment to study Luttinger liquid behavior in a
one-dimensional nanostructure, avoiding the usual complications associated with
transport measurements. The proposed setup consists of a quantum box, biased by
a gate voltage, and side-coupled to a quantum wire by a point contact. Close to
the degeneracy points of the Coulomb blockaded box, and in the presence of a
magnetic field sufficiently strong to spin polarize the electrons, the setup
can be described as a Luttinger liquid interacting with an effective Kondo
impurity. Using exact nonperturbative techniques we predict that the
differential capacitance of the box will exhibit distinctive Luttinger liquid
scaling with temperature and gate voltage.Comment: REVTeX, 4 pages, 1 figure included. Final version, two references
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