Transport in nanoscale systems: the microcanonical versus grand-canonical picture

We analyse a picture of transport in which two large but finite charged electrodes discharge across a nanoscale junction. We identify a functional whose minimisation, within the space of all bound many-body wavefunctions, defines an instantaneous steady state. We also discuss factors that favour the onset of steady-state conduction in such systems, make a connection with the notion of entropy, and suggest a novel source of steady-state noise. Finally, we prove that the true many-body total current in this closed system is given exactly by the one-electron total current, obtained from time-dependent density-functional theory.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figur

Rationality of conformally invariant local correlation functions on compactified Minkowski space

Rationality of the Wightman functions is proven to follow from energy positivity, locality and a natural condition of global conformal invariance (GCI) in any number D of space-time dimensions. The GCI condition allows to treat correlation functions as generalized sections of a vector bundle over the compactification of Minkowski space and yields a strong form of locality valid for all non-isotropic intervals if assumed true for space-like separations.Comment: 20 pages, LATEX, amsfonts, latexsy

Affine orbifolds and rational conformal field theory extensions of W_{1+infinity}

Chiral orbifold models are defined as gauge field theories with a finite gauge group $\Gamma$. We start with a conformal current algebra A associated with a connected compact Lie group G and a negative definite integral invariant bilinear form on its Lie algebra. Any finite group $\Gamma$ of inner automorphisms or A (in particular, any finite subgroup of G) gives rise to a gauge theory with a chiral subalgebra $A^{\Gamma}\subset A$ of local observables invariant under $\Gamma$. A set of positive energy $A^{\Gamma}$ modules is constructed whose characters span, under some assumptions on $\Gamma$, a finite dimensional unitary representation of $SL(2,Z)$. We compute their asymptotic dimensions (thus singling out the nontrivial orbifold modules) and find explicit formulae for the modular transformations and hence, for the fusion rules. As an application we construct a family of rational conformal field theory (RCFT) extensions of $W_{1+\infty}$ that appear to provide a bridge between two approaches to the quantum Hall effect.Comment: 64 pages, amste