Density-matrix functionals for pairing in mesoscopic superconductors

A functional theory based on single-particle occupation numbers is developed for pairing. This functional, that generalizes the BCS approach, directly incorporates corrections due to particle number conservation. The functional is benchmarked with the pairing Hamiltonian and reproduces perfectly the energy for any particle number and coupling.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, revised versio

Multiple Scales in the Fine Structure of the Isoscalar Giant Quadrupole Resonance in ^{208}Pb

The fine structure of the isoscalar giant quadrupole resonance in ^{208}Pb, observed in high-resolution (p,p') and (e,e') experiments, is studied using the entropy index method. In a novel way, it enables to determine the number of scales present in the spectra and their magnitude. We find intermediate scales of fluctuations around 1.1 MeV, 460 keV and 125 keV for an excitation energy region 0 - 12 MeV. A comparison with scales extracted from second RPA calculations, which are in good agreement with experiment, shows that they arise from the internal mixing of collective motion with two particle-two hole components of the nuclear wavefunction.Comment: 14 pages including 6 figures (to be published in Phys. Lett. B

Anomalous Hall Effect due to the spin chirality in the Kagom\'{e} lattice

We consider a model for a two dimensional electron gas moving on a kagom\'{e} lattice and locally coupled to a chiral magnetic texture. We show that the transverse conductivity $\sigma\_{xy}$ does not vanish even if spin-orbit coupling is not present and it may exhibit unusual behavior. Model parameters are the chirality, the number of conduction electrons and the amplitude of the local coupling. Upon varying these parameters, a topological transition characterized by change of the band Chern numbers occur. As a consequence, $\sigma\_{xy}$ can be quantized, proportional to the chirality or have a non monotonic behavior upon varying these parameters.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figure

Stochastic mean-field dynamics for fermions in the weak coupling limit

Assuming that the effect of the residual interaction beyond mean-field is weak and has a short memory time, two approximate treatments of correlation in fermionic systems by means of Markovian quantum jump are presented. A simplified scenario for the introduction of fluctuations beyond mean-field is first presented. In this theory, part of the quantum correlations between the residual interaction and the one-body density matrix are neglected and jumps occur between many-body densities formed of pairs of states $D=| \Phi_a > < \Phi_b |/$ where $| \Phi_a >$ and $| \Phi_b >$ are antisymmetrized products of single-particle states. The underlying Stochastic Mean-Field (SMF) theory is discussed and applied to the monopole vibration of a spherical $^{40}$Ca nucleus under the influence of a statistical ensemble of two-body contact interaction. This framework is however too simplistic to account for both fluctuation and dissipation. In the second part of this work, an alternative quantum jump method is obtained without making the approximation on quantum correlations. Restricting to two particles-two holes residual interaction, the evolution of the one-body density matrix of a correlated system is transformed into a Lindblad equation. The associated dissipative dynamics can be simulated by quantum jumps between densities written as $D = | \Phi >$ is a normalized Slater determinant. The associated stochastic Schroedinger equation for single-particle wave-functions is given.Comment: Enlarged version, 10 pages, 2 figure

Magnetoresistance and collective Coulomb blockade in super-lattices of ferromagnetic CoFe nanoparticles

We report on transport properties of millimetric super-lattices of CoFe nanoparticles surrounded by organic ligands. R(T)s follow R(T) = R_0.exp(T/T_0)^0.5 with T_0 ranging from 13 to 256 K. At low temperature I(V)s follow I=K[(V-V_T)/V_T]^ksi with ksi ranging 3.5 to 5.2. I(V) superpose on a universal curve when shifted by a voltage proportional to the temperature. Between 1.8 and 10 K a high-field magnetoresistance with large amplitude and a strong voltage-dependence is observed. Its amplitude only depends on the magnetic field/temperature ratio. Its origin is attributed to the presence of paramagnetic states present at the surface or between the nanoparticles. Below 1.8 K, this high-field magnetoresistance abruptly disappears and inverse tunnelling magnetoresistance is observed, the amplitude of which does not exceed 1%. At this low temperature, some samples display in their I(V) characteristics abrupt and hysteretic transitions between the Coulomb blockade regime and the conductive regime. The increase of the current during these transitions can be as high as a factor 30. The electrical noise increases when the sample is near the transition. The application of a magnetic field decreases the voltage at which these transitions occur so magnetic-field induced transitions are also observed. Depending on the applied voltage, the temperature and the amplitude of the magnetic field, the magnetic-field induced transitions are either reversible or irreversible. These abrupt and hysteretic transitions are also observed in resistance-temperature measurements. They could be the soliton avalanches predicted by Sverdlov et al. [Phys. Rev. B 64, 041302 (R), 2001] or could also be interpreted as a true phase transition between a Coulomb glass phase to a liquid phase of electrons

Pairing dynamics in particle transport

We analyze the effect of pairing on particle transport in time-dependent theories based on the Hartree-Fock-Bogoliubov (HFB) or BCS approximations. The equations of motion for the HFB density matrices are unique and the theory respects the usual conservation laws defined by commutators of the conserved quantity with the Hamiltonian. In contrast, the theories based on the BCS approximation are more problematic. In the usual formulation of TDHF+BCS, the equation of continuity is violated and one sees unphysical oscillations in particle densities. This can be ameliorated by freezing the occupation numbers during the evolution in TDHF+BCS, but there are other problems with the BCS that make it doubtful for reaction dynamics. We also compare different numerical implementations of the time-dependent HFB equations. The equations of motion for the $U$ and $V$ Bogoliubov transformations are not unique, but it appears that the usual formulation is also the most efficient. Finally, we compare the time-dependent HFB solutions with numerically exact solutions of the two-particle Schrodinger equation. Depending on the treatment of the initial state, the HFB dynamics produces a particle emission rate at short times similar to that of the Schrodinger equation. At long times, the total particle emission can be quite different, due to inherent mean-field approximation of the HFB theory.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figure

Transport Model Simulations of Projectile Fragmentation Reactions at 140 MeV/nucleon

The collisions in four different reaction systems using $^{40,48}$Ca and $^{58,64}$Ni isotope beams and a Be target have been simulated using the Heavy Ion Phase Space Exploration and the Antisymmetrized Molecular Dynamics models. The present study mainly focuses on the model predictions for the excitation energies of the hot fragments and the cross sections of the final fragments produced in these reactions. The effects of various factors influencing the final fragment cross sections, such as the choice of the statistical decay code and its parameters have been explored. The predicted fragment cross sections are compared to the projectile fragmentation cross sections measured with the A1900 mass separator. At $E/A=140$ MeV, reaction dynamics can significantly modify the detection efficiencies for the fragments and make them different from the efficiencies applied to the measured data reported in the previous work. The effects of efficiency corrections on the validation of event generator codes are discussed in the context of the two models.Comment: 28 pages, 13 figure

Exact and approximate many-body dynamics with stochastic one-body density matrix evolution

We show that the dynamics of interacting fermions can be exactly replaced by a quantum jump theory in the many-body density matrix space. In this theory, jumps occur between densities formed of pairs of Slater determinants, $D_{ab}=| \Phi_a > < \Phi_b |$, where each state evolves according to the Stochastic Schr\"odinger Equation (SSE) given in ref. \cite{Jul02}. A stochastic Liouville-von Neumann equation is derived as well as the associated Bogolyubov-Born-Green-Kirwood-Yvon (BBGKY) hierarchy. Due to the specific form of the many-body density along the path, the presented theory is equivalent to a stochastic theory in one-body density matrix space, in which each density matrix evolves according to its own mean field augmented by a one-body noise. Guided by the exact reformulation, a stochastic mean field dynamics valid in the weak coupling approximation is proposed. This theory leads to an approximate treatment of two-body effects similar to the extended Time-Dependent Hartree-Fock (Extended TDHF) scheme. In this stochastic mean field dynamics, statistical mixing can be directly considered and jumps occur on a coarse-grained time scale. Accordingly, numerical effort is expected to be significantly reduced for applications.Comment: 12 pages, 1 figur

Description of Pairing correlation in Many-Body finite systems with density functional theory

Different steps leading to the new functional for pairing based on natural orbitals and occupancies proposed in ref. [D. Lacroix and G. Hupin, arXiv:1003.2860] are carefully analyzed. Properties of quasi-particle states projected onto good particle number are first reviewed. These properties are used (i) to prove the existence of such a functional (ii) to provide an explicit functional through a 1/N expansion starting from the BCS approach (iii) to give a compact form of the functional summing up all orders in the expansion. The functional is benchmarked in the case of the picked fence pairing Hamiltonian where even and odd systems, using blocking technique are studied, at various particle number and coupling strength, with uniform and random single-particle level spacing. In all cases, a very good agreement is found with a deviation inferior to 1% compared to the exact energy.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figure

Self-consistent spin-wave theory for a frustrated Heisenberg model with biquadratic exchange in the columnar phase and its application to iron pnictides

Recent neutron scattering studies revealed the three dimensional character of the magnetism in the iron pnictides and a strong anisotropy between the exchange perpendicular and parallel to the spin stripes. We extend studies of the J1-J2-Jc Heisenberg model with S = 1 using self-consistent spin-wave theory. A discussion of two scenarios for the instability of the columnar phase is provided. The relevance of a biquadratic exchange term between in-plane nearest neighbors is discussed. We introduce mean-field decouplings for biquadratic terms using the Dyson-Maleev and the Schwinger boson representation. Remarkably their respective mean-field theories do not lead to the same results, even at zero temperature. They are gauged in the N'eel phase in comparison to exact diagonalization and series expansion. The J1-J2-Jc model is analyzed under the influence of the biquadratic exchange Jbq and a detailed description of the staggered magnetization and of the magnetic excitations is given. The biquadratic exchange increases the renormalization of the in-plane exchange constants which enhances the anisotropy between the exchange parallel and perpendicular to the spin stripes. Applying the model to iron pnictides, it is possible to reproduce the spin-wave dispersion for CaFe2As2 in the direction perpendicular to the spin stripes and perpendicular to the planes. Discrepancies remain in the direction parallel to the spin stripes which can be resolved by passing from S = 1 to S = 2. In addition, results for the dynamical structure factor within the self-consistent spin-wave theory are provided.Comment: 18 pages, 12 figures. Updated version, several references adde