Phase rigidity and avoided level crossings in the complex energy plane

We consider the effective Hamiltonian of an open quantum system, its biorthogonal eigenfunctions $\phi_\lambda$ and define the value $r_\lambda = (\phi_\lambda|\phi_\lambda)/$ that characterizes the phase rigidity of the eigenfunctions $\phi_\lambda$. In the scenario with avoided level crossings, $r_\lambda$ varies between 1 and 0 due to the mutual influence of neighboring resonances. The variation of $r_\lambda$ may be considered as an internal property of an {\it open} quantum system. In the literature, the phase rigidity $\rho$ of the scattering wave function $\Psi^E_C$ is considered. Since $\Psi^E_C$ can be represented in the interior of the system by the $\phi_\lambda$, the phase rigidity $\rho$ of the $\Psi^E_C$ is related to the $r_\lambda$ and therefore also to the mutual influence of neighboring resonances. As a consequence, the reduction of the phase rigidity $\rho$ to values smaller than 1 should be considered, at least partly, as an internal property of an open quantum system in the overlapping regime. The relation to measurable values such as the transmission through a quantum dot, follows from the fact that the transmission is, in any case, resonant with respect to the effective Hamiltonian. We illustrate the relation between phase rigidity $\rho$ and transmission numerically for small open cavities.Comment: 6 pages, 3 figure

Whispering gallery modes in open quantum billiards

The poles of the S-matrix and the wave functions of open 2D quantum billiards with convex boundary of different shape are calculated by the method of complex scaling. Two leads are attached to the cavities. The conductance of the cavities is calculated at energies with one, two and three open channels in each lead. Bands of overlapping resonance states appear which are localized along the convex boundary of the cavities and contribute coherently to the conductance. These bands correspond to the whispering gallery modes appearing in the classical calculations.Comment: 9 pages, 3 figures in jpg and gif forma

Conductance of Open Quantum Billiards and Classical Trajectories

We analyse the transport phenomena of 2D quantum billiards with convex boundary of different shape. The quantum mechanical analysis is performed by means of the poles of the S-matrix while the classical analysis is based on the motion of a free particle inside the cavity along trajectories with a different number of bounces at the boundary. The value of the conductance depends on the manner the leads are attached to the cavity. The Fourier transform of the transmission amplitudes is compared with the length of the classical paths. There is good agreement between classical and quantum mechanical results when the conductance is achieved mainly by special short-lived states such as whispering gallery modes (WGM) and bouncing ball modes (BBM). In these cases, also the localization of the wave functions agrees with the picture of the classical paths. The S-matrix is calculated classically and compared with the transmission coefficients of the quantum mechanical calculations for five modes in each lead. The number of modes coupled to the special states is effectively reduced.Comment: 19 pages, 6 figures (jpg), 2 table

Interfering resonances in a quantum billiard

We present a method for numerically obtaining the positions, widths and wavefunctions of resonance states in a two dimensional billiard connected to a waveguide. For a rectangular billiard, we study the dynamics of three resonance poles lying separated from the other ones. As a function of increasing coupling strength between the waveguide and the billiard two of the states become trapped while the width of the third one continues to increase for all coupling strengths. This behavior of the resonance poles is reflected in the time delay function which can be studied experimentally.Comment: 2 pages, 3 figure

Nonlinear acousto-electric transport in a two-dimensional electron system

We study both theoretically and experimentally the nonlinear interaction between an intense surface acoustic wave and a two-dimensional electron plasma in semiconductor-piezocrystal hybrid structures. The experiments on hybrid systems exhibit strongly nonlinear acousto-electric effects. The plasma turns into moving electron stripes, the acousto-electric current reaches its maximum, and the sound absorption strongly decreases. To describe the nonlinear phenomena, we develop a coupled-amplitude method for a two-dimensional system in the strongly nonlinear regime of interaction. At low electron densities the absorption coefficient decreases with increasing sound intensity, whereas at high electron density the absorption coefficient is not a monotonous function of the sound intensity. High-harmonic generation coefficients as a function of the sound intensity have a nontrivial behavior. Theory and experiment are found to be in a good agreement.Comment: 27 pages, 6 figure

Observation of resonance trapping in an open microwave cavity

The coupling of a quantum mechanical system to open decay channels has been theoretically studied in numerous works, mainly in the context of nuclear physics but also in atomic, molecular and mesoscopic physics. Theory predicts that with increasing coupling strength to the channels the resonance widths of all states should first increase but finally decrease again for most of the states. In this letter, the first direct experimental verification of this effect, known as resonance trapping, is presented. In the experiment a microwave Sinai cavity with an attached waveguide with variable slit width was used.Comment: to be published in Phys. Rev. Let

The brachistochrone problem in open quantum systems

Recently, the quantum brachistochrone problem is discussed in the literature by using non-Hermitian Hamilton operators of different type. Here, it is demonstrated that the passage time is tunable in realistic open quantum systems due to the biorthogonality of the eigenfunctions of the non-Hermitian Hamilton operator. As an example, the numerical results obtained by Bulgakov et al. for the transmission through microwave cavities of different shape are analyzed from the point of view of the brachistochrone problem. The passage time is shortened in the crossover from the weak-coupling to the strong-coupling regime where the resonance states overlap and many branch points (exceptional points) in the complex plane exist. The effect can {\it not} be described in the framework of standard quantum mechanics with Hermitian Hamilton operator and consideration of $S$ matrix poles.Comment: 18 page

S-matrix theory for transmission through billiards in tight-binding approach

In the tight-binding approximation we consider multi-channel transmission through a billiard coupled to leads. Following Dittes we derive the coupling matrix, the scattering matrix and the effective Hamiltonian, but take into account the energy restriction of the conductance band. The complex eigenvalues of the effective Hamiltonian define the poles of the scattering matrix. For some simple cases, we present exact values for the poles. We derive also the condition for the appearance of double poles.Comment: 29 pages, 9 figures, submitted to J. Phys. A: Math. and Ge