Underscreened Kondo effect in quantum dots coupled to ferromagnetic leads

We analyze the equilibrium transport properties of underscreened Kondo effect in the case of a two-level quantum dot coupled to ferromagnetic leads. Using the numerical renormalization group (NRG) method, we have determined the gate voltage dependence of the dot's spin and level-resolved spectral functions. We have shown that the polarization of the dot is very susceptible to spin imbalance in the leads and changes sign in the middle of the S=1 Coulomb valley. Furthermore, we have also found that by fine-tuning an external magnetic field one can compensate for the presence of ferromagnetic leads and restore the Kondo effect in the case of $S=1/2$ Coulomb valley. However, the underscreened Kondo effect cannot be fully recovered due to its extreme sensitivity with respect to the magnetic field.Comment: 7 pages, 6 figure

Tunnel magnetoresistance of a supramolecular spin valve

We theoretically study the transport properties of a supramolecular spin valve, consisting of a carbon nanotube with two attached magnetic molecules, weakly coupled to metallic contacts. The emphasis is put on analyzing the change of the system's transport properties with the application of an external magnetic field, which aligns the spins of the molecules. It is shown that magnetoresistive properties of the considered molecular junction, which are associated with changing the state of the molecules from superparamagnetic to the ferromagnetic one, strongly depend on the applied bias voltage and the position of the nanotube's orbital levels, which can be tuned by a gate voltage. A strong dependence on the transport regime is also found in the case of the spin polarization of the current flowing through the system. The mechanisms leading to those effects are explained by invoking appropriate molecular states responsible for transport. The analysis is done with aid of the real-time diagrammatic technique up to the second order of expansion with respect to tunneling processes

Interplay of the Kondo Effect and Spin-Polarized Transport in Magnetic Molecules, Adatoms and Quantum Dots

We study the interplay of the Kondo effect and spin-polarized tunneling in a class of systems exhibiting uniaxial magnetic anisotropy, such as magnetic molecules, magnetic adatoms, or quantum dots coupled to a single localized magnetic moment. Using the numerical renormalization group method we calculate the spectral functions and linear conductance in the Kondo regime. We show that the exchange coupling between conducting electrons and localized magnetic core generally leads to suppression of the Kondo effect. We also predict a nontrivial dependence of the tunnel magnetoresistance on the strength of exchange coupling and on the anisotropy constant.Comment: 4 pages with 4 EPS figures (version as accepted for publication in Physical Review Letters

Co-tunneling current through the two-level quantum dot coupled to magnetic leads: A role of exchange interaction

The co-tunneling current through a two-level doubly occupied quantum dot weakly coupled to ferromagnetic leads is calculated in the Coulomb blockade regime. It is shown that the dependence of the differrential conductance on applied voltage has a stair-case structure with different sets of "stairs" for parallel and anti-parallel configurations of magnetization of the leads. Contributions to the current from elastic and inelastic processes are considered distinctly. It is observed that the interference part of the co-tunneling current involves terms corresponding to inelastic processes. Dependence of the co-tunneling current on the phases of the tunneling amplitudes is studied.Comment: LaTex, 14 page

Kondo effect in a quantum dot coupled to ferromagnetic leads and side-coupled to a nonmagnetic reservoir

Equilibrium transport properties of a single-level quantum dot tunnel-coupled to ferromagnetic leads and exchange-coupled to a side nonmagnetic reservoir are analyzed theoretically in the Kondo regime. The equilibrium spectral functions and conductance through the dot are calculated using the numerical renormalization group (NRG) method. It is shown that in the antiparallel magnetic configuration, the system undergoes a quantum phase transition with increasing exchange coupling $J$, where the conductance drops from its maximum value to zero. In the parallel configuration, on the other hand, the conductance is generally suppressed due to an effective spin splitting of the dot level caused by the presence of ferromagnetic leads, irrespective of the strength of exchange constant. However, for $J$ ranging from J=0 up to the corresponding critical value, the Kondo effect and quantum critical behavior can be restored by applying properly tuned compensating magnetic field.Comment: (8 pages, 8 figs) to appear in PR

Comment on "Deuterium--tritium fusion reactors without external fusion breeding" by Eliezer et al

Inclusion of inverse Compton effects in the calculation of deuterium-deuterium burn under the extreme conditions considered by Eliezer et al. [Phys. Lett. A 243 (1998) 298] are shown to decrease the maximum burn temperature from about 300 keV to only 100--150 keV. This decrease is such that tritium breeding by the DD --> T + p reaction is not sufficient to replace the small amount of tritium that is initially added to the deuterium plasma in order to trigger ignition at less than 10 keV.Comment: 6 pages, 1 tabl