arXiv subjects

Joseph Weston

Publications and source records attributed to Joseph Weston.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2021

Tkwant: a software package for time-dependent quantum transport

Tkwant is a Python package for the simulation of quantum nanoelectronics devices to which external time-dependent perturbations are applied. Tkwant is an extension of the Kwant package (https://kwant-project.org/) and can handle the same types of systems: discrete tight-binding-like models that consist of an arbitrary central region connected to semi-infinite electrodes. The problem is genuinely many-body even in the absence of interactions and is treated within the non-equilibrium Keldysh formalism. Examples of Tkwant applications include the propagation of plasmons generated by voltage pulses, propagation of excitations in the quantum Hall regime, spectroscopy of Majorana fermions in semiconducting nanowires, current-induced skyrmion motion in spintronic devices, multiple Andreev reflection, Floquet topological insulators, thermoelectric effects, and more. The code has been designed to be easy to use and modular. Tkwant is free software distributed under a BSD license and can be found at https://tkwant.kwant-project.org/.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2018

The HANDE-QMC project: open-source stochastic quantum chemistry from the ground state up

Building on the success of Quantum Monte Carlo techniques such as diffusion Monte Carlo, alternative stochastic approaches to solve electronic structure problems have emerged over the last decade. The full configuration interaction quantum Monte Carlo (FCIQMC) method allows one to systematically approach the exact solution of such problems, for cases where very high accuracy is desired. The introduction of FCIQMC has subsequently led to the development of coupled cluster Monte Carlo (CCMC) and density matrix quantum Monte Carlo (DMQMC), allowing stochastic sampling of the coupled cluster wave function and the exact thermal density matrix, respectively. In this article we describe the HANDE-QMC code, an open-source implementation of FCIQMC, CCMC and DMQMC, including initiator and semi-stochastic adaptations. We describe our code and demonstrate its use on three example systems; a molecule (nitric oxide), a model solid (the uniform electron gas), and a real solid (diamond). An illustrative tutorial is also included.

physics.comp-ph↗

arXiv2018

Transient and Sharvin resistances of Luttinger liquids

Although the intrinsic conductance of an interacting one-dimensional system is renormalized by the electron-electron correlations, it has been known for some time that this renormalization is washed out by the presence of the (non-interacting) electrodes to which the wire is connected. Here, we study the transient conductance of such a wire: a finite voltage bias is suddenly applied across the wire and we measure the current before it has enough time to reach its stationary value. These calculations allow us to extract the Sharvin (contact) resistance of Luttinger and Fermi liquids. In particular, we find that a perfect junction between a Fermi liquid electrode and a Luttinger liquid electrode is characterized by a contact resistance that consists of half the quantum of conductance in series with half the intrinsic resistance of an infinite Luttinger liquid. These results were obtained using two different methods: a dynamical Hartree-Fock approach and a self-consistent Boltzmann approach. Although these methods are formally approximate we find a perfect match with the exact results of Luttinger/Fermi liquid theory.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2018

Cooperative Charge Pumping and Enhanced Skyrmion Mobility

The electronic pumping arising from the steady motion of ferromagnetic skyrmions is investigated by solving the time evolution of the Schrodinger equation implemented on a tight-binding model with the statistical physics of the many-body problem. It is shown that the ability of steadily moving skyrmions to pump large charge currents arises from their non-trivial magnetic topology, i.e. the coexistence between spin-motive force and topological Hall effect. Based on an adiabatic scattering theory, we compute the pumped current and demonstrate that it scales with the reflection coefficient of the conduction electrons against the skyrmion. Finally, we propose that such a phenomenon can be exploited in the context of racetrack devices, where the electronic pumping enhances the collective motion of the train of skyrmions.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2016

Towards Realistic Time-Resolved Simulations of Quantum Devices

We report on our recent efforts to perform realistic simulations of large quantum devices in the time domain. In contrast to d.c. transport where the calculations are explicitly performed at the Fermi level, the presence of time-dependent terms in the Hamiltonian makes the system inelastic so that it is necessary to explicitly enforce the Pauli principle in the simulations. We illustrate our approach with calculations for a flying qubit interferometer, a nanoelectronic device that is currently under experimental investigation. Our calculations illustrate the fact that many degrees of freedom (16,700 tight-binding sites in the scattering region) and long simulation times (80,000 times the inverse Bandwidth of the tight-binding model) can be easily achieved on a local computer.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2015

A linear-scaling source-sink algorithm for simulating time-resolved quantum transport and superconductivity

We report on a "source-sink" algorithm which allows one to calculate time-resolved physical quantities from a general nanoelectronic quantum system (described by an arbitrary time-dependent quadratic Hamiltonian) connected to infinite electrodes. Although mathematically equivalent to the non equilibrium Green's function formalism, the approach is based on the scattering wave functions of the system. It amounts to solving a set of generalized Schrödinger equations which include an additional "source" term (coming from the time dependent perturbation) and an absorbing "sink" term (the electrodes). The algorithm execution time scales linearly with both system size and simulation time allowing one to simulate large systems (currently around $10^6$ degrees of freedom) and/or large times (currently around $10^5$ times the smallest time scale of the system). As an application we calculate the current-voltage characteristics of a Josephson junction for both short and long junctions, and recover the multiple Andreev reflexion (MAR) physics. We also discuss two intrinsically time-dependent situations: the relaxation time of a Josephson junction after a quench of the voltage bias, and the propagation of voltage pulses through a Josephson junction. In the case of a ballistic, long Josephson junction, we predict that a fast voltage pulse creates an oscillatory current whose frequency is controlled by the Thouless energy of the normal part. A similar effect is found for short junctions, a voltage pulse produces an oscillating current which, in the absence of electromagnetic environment, does not relax.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2015

Probing (topological) Floquet states through DC transport

We consider the differential conductance of a periodically driven system connected to infinite electrodes. We focus on the situation where the dissipation occurs predominantly in these electrodes. Using analytical arguments and a detailed numerical study we relate the differential conductances of such a system in two and three terminal geometries to the spectrum of quasi-energies of the Floquet operator. Moreover these differential conductances are found to provide an accurate probe of the existence of gaps in this quasi-energy spectrum, being quantized when topological edge states occur within these gaps. Our analysis opens the perspective to describe the intermediate time dynamics of driven mesoscopic conductors as topological Floquet filters.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2015

Manipulating Andreev and Majorana Bound States with microwaves

We study the interplay between Andreev (Majorana) bound states that form at the boundary of a (topological) superconductor and a train of microwave pulses. We find that the extra dynamical phase coming from the pulses can shift the phase of the Andreev reflection, resulting in the appear- ance of dynamical Andreev states. As an application we study the presence of the zero bias peak in the differential conductance of a normal-topological superconductor junction - the simplest, yet somehow ambiguous, experimental signature for Majorana states. Adding microwave radiation to the measuring electrodes provides an unambiguous probe of the Andreev nature of the zero bias peak.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2014

AC Josephson effect without superconductivity

Superconductivity derives its most salient features from the coherence of its macroscopic wave function. The associated physical phenomena have now moved from exotic subjects to fundamental building blocks for quantum circuits such as qubits or single photonic modes. Here, we theoretically find that the AC Josephson effect---which transforms a DC voltage $V_b$ into an oscillating signal $cos(2eV_b t/ \hbar)$---has a mesoscopic counterpart in normal conductors. We show that on applying a DC voltage $V_b$ to an electronic interferometer, there exists a universal transient regime where the current oscillates at frequency $eV_b/h$. This effect is not limited by a superconducting gap and could, in principle, be used to produce tunable AC signals in the elusive $0.1-10$ THz "terahertz gap".

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2014

Classical and quantum spreading of a charge pulse

With the technical progress of radio-frequency setups, high frequency quantum transport experiments have moved from theory to the lab. So far the standard theoretical approach used to treat such problems numerically--known as Keldysh or NEGF (Non Equilibrium Green's Functions) formalism--has not been very successful mainly because of a prohibitive computational cost. We propose a reformulation of the non-equilibrium Green's function technique in terms of the electronic wave functions of the system in an energy-time representation. The numerical algorithm we obtain scales now linearly with the simulated time and the volume of the system, and makes simulation of systems with 10^5 - 10^6 atoms/sites feasible. We illustrate our method with the propagation and spreading of a charge pulse in the quantum Hall regime. We identify a classical and a quantum regime for the spreading, depending on the number of particles contained in the pulse. This numerical experiment is the condensed matter analogue to the spreading of a Gaussian wavepacket discussed in quantum mechanics textbooks.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2014

Stopping electrons with radio-frequency pulses in the quantum Hall regime

Most functionalities of modern electronic circuits rely on the possibility to modify the path fol- lowed by the electrons using, e.g. field effect transistors. Here we discuss the interplay between the modification of this path and the quantum dynamics of the electronic flow. Specifically, we study the propagation of charge pulses through the edge states of a two-dimensional electron gas in the quantum Hall regime. By sending radio-frequency (RF) excitations on a top gate capacitively coupled to the electron gas, we manipulate these edge state dynamically. We find that a fast RF change of the gate voltage can stop the propagation of the charge pulse inside the sample. This effect is intimately linked to the vanishing velocity of bulk states in the quantum Hall regime and the peculiar connection between momentum and transverse confinement of Landau levels. Our findings suggest new possibilities for stopping, releasing and switching the trajectory of charge pulses in quantum Hall systems.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2014

Numerical simulations of time resolved quantum electronics

This paper discusses the technical aspects - mathematical and numerical - associated with the numerical simulations of a mesoscopic system in the time domain (i.e. beyond the single frequency AC limit). After a short review of the state of the art, we develop a theoretical framework for the calculation of time resolved observables in a general multiterminal system subject to an arbitrary time dependent perturbation (oscillating electrostatic gates, voltage pulses, time-vaying magnetic fields) The approach is mathematically equivalent to (i) the time dependent scattering formalism, (ii) the time resolved Non Equilibrium Green Function (NEGF) formalism and (iii) the partition-free approach. The central object of our theory is a wave function that obeys a simple Schrodinger equation with an additional source term that accounts for the electrons injected from the electrodes. The time resolved observables (current, density. . .) and the (inelastic) scattering matrix are simply expressed in term of this wave function. We use our approach to develop a numerical technique for simulating time resolved quantum transport. We find that the use of this wave function is advantageous for numerical simulations resulting in a speed up of many orders of magnitude with respect to the direct integration of NEGF equations. Our technique allows one to simulate realistic situations beyond simple models, a subject that was until now beyond the simulation capabilities of available approaches.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗