arXiv subjects

Michael N. Leuenberger

Publications and source records attributed to Michael N. Leuenberger.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2010

Time-dependent density-matrix functional theory for biexcitonic phenomena

We formulate a time-dependent density-matrix functional theory (TDDMFT) approach for higher-order correlation effects like biexcitons in optical processes in solids based on the reduced two-particle density-matrix formalism within the normal orbital representation. A TDDMFT version of the Schrödinger equation for biexcitons in terms of one- and two-body reduced density matrices is derived, which leads to finite biexcitonic binding energies already with an adiabatic approximation. Biexcitonic binding energies for several bulk semiconductors are calculated using a contact biexciton model.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2010

Complex dynamics of photon entanglement in two-mode Jaynes-Cummings model

We study the dynamics of the photon entanglement, $E_{\mathrm{N}}(t)$, for the two-mode Jaynes-Cummings model in the few-photon case. The atomic transitions associated with the photons with different polarizations are assumed to be independent and, hence, the evolution of the "+"- and "-"-polarized photons is formally separable. However, due to the photons indistinguishability such interaction still leads to entanglement of initially disentangled states owing to the non-linear dependence of the characteristic frequencies on the photon population numbers. The time dependence of entanglement is the result of superimposing oscillations with incommensurate frequencies. Therefore, $E_{\mathrm{N}}(t)$ is a quasi-periodic function of time with the complex profile strongly depending on the number of photons.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2009

Entangling photons by means of the nonlinear response of quantum wells to an ultrashort pulse

We show that many-body correlations among excitons originating from the Pauli exclusion principle in a quantum well embedded inside a microcavity provide a possibility to produce pairs of entangled photons by ultrashort laser pulses with a yield of $\sim 10^{-2}$. The quantum-field theoretical two-particle density matrix in second quantization is used to calculate entanglement for arbitrary emission angles. %At time scales where the heavy-light hole splitting is resolved the resonances corresponding to different two-exciton %states develop, which allow for a simple kinematic theory relating the %states of the outgoing photons with the respective two-exciton states. Largest response can be expected at symmetric emission angles for resonances with the heavy-heavy and light-light two-exciton states with remarkably nontrivial dependence of entanglement on the emission angles and on the ellipticity parameters of the excitation. We show that the angle dependence can be tailored by means of the microcavity. Interestingly, the emitted entangled 2-photon states are always in a triplet state.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2009

Optical $Λ$ transitions and quantum computing in the $^{15}$N-V$^{-}$ Center in Diamond

We present a thorough derivation of the excited state energy levels of the negatively charged $^{15}$N-V$^{-}$ center in diamond for the strong applied electric field case. We show that in the $^{15}$N-V$^{-}$ center a spin non-conserving two-photon $Λ$ transition exists that is mediated by the hyperfine interaction, which provides the possibility to write quantum information. Using second order perturbation theory we obtain a $Λ$ transition rate of the order of 10 MHz at room temperature, which allows for approximately $10^4$ quantum logic operations within the spin coherence time $τ_d(T=300 K)\approx 1m$s of the $^{15}$N-V$^{-}$ center.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2008

On the dark nature of exciton Bose-Einstein condensate

We show that for the very same reason that excitons are bright, i.e. coupled to photons, they have a higher energy than dark excitons, even for electrons spatially separated from holes, such as in a double quantum well. Indeed, the same channel which produces the finite electron-hole effective overlap responsible for the absorption and emission of photon allows for Coulomb interband exchange processes, which are nothing but a sequence of virtual recombination and creation of one electron-hole pair. Consequently, this additional repulsive electron-hole Coulomb exchange interaction exists for bright excitons, but not for dark excitons. If we now remember that dark excitons with spins $\pm 2$ are formed in a natural way through carrier exchange between two opposite spin bright excitons, we are led to predict that in a double quantum well sample with one trap -- a configuration appropriate to get high density -- exciton Bose-Einstein condensation should appear when cooling down the sample as a dark spot made of $(\pm 2)$ excitons at the center of the trap.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2008

Non-perturbative phenomena in semiconductor four-wave mixing spectra

Non-perturbative phenomena in four-wave mixing spectra of semiconductors are studied using the exact solution of a widely used phenomenological non-linear equation of motion of the exciton polarization. It is shown that Coulomb interaction, included in the nonlinearity, leads to two characteristic effects, which are essentially of dynamical origin, -- a split of the exciton peak and a non-monotonous dependence of the response at the exciton frequency on the magnitude of the external field. Relations between the spectral features and the parameters of the system is obtained. It is found that the transition from perturbative to non-perturbative regimes is controlled by parameters inversely proportional to the decay rate. It implies that the condition of low excitation density does not necessarily warrant applicability of the perturbational approach.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2008

Rabi oscillations in semiconductor multi-wave mixing response

We studied the semiconductor response with respect to high intensity resonant excitation on short time scale when the contribution of the Fermi statistics of the electrons and holes prevails. We studied both the single and double pulse excitations. For the latter case we considered the time evolution of the multi-wave mixing exciton polarization. The main difference between the excitation by a single pulse or by two non-collinear pulses is that the Rabi oscillations of the multi-wave mixing response are characterized by two harmonics. Analyzing the operator dynamics governed by the external excitation we found that there are three invariant spin classes, which do not mix with the evolution of the system. Two classes correspond to the bright exciton states and one contains all dark states. We found that the dynamics of the classes is described by six frequencies and the Rabi frequencies are only two of them (one for each bright class). We discuss the effect of the dispersion of the electrons and holes and the Coulomb interaction describing the semiconductor by the semiconductor Bloch equation (SBE). We show that if initially the system is in the ground state then the SBE preserves the invariant spin classes thus proving absence of the dark excitons in the framework of this description. We found that due to the mass difference between holes of different kind additional Rabi frequencies, two of those present in the operator dynamics, should appear in the evolution of the exciton polarization.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2008

Kondo effect in single-molecule magnet transistors

We present a careful and thorough microscopic derivation of the Kondo Hamiltonian for single-molecule magnets (SMMs) transistors. When the molecule is strongly coupled to metallic leads, we show that by applying a transverse magnetic field it is possible to topologically induce or quench the Kondo effect in the conductance of a SMM with either an integer or a half-integer spin S>1/2. This topological Kondo effect is due to the Berry phase interference between multiple quantum tunneling paths of the spin. We calculate the renormalized Berry phase oscillations of the two Kondo peaks as a function of the transverse magnetic field by means of the poor man's scaling. In particular, we show that the Kondo exchange interaction between itinerant electrons in the leads and the SMM pseudo spin 1/2 depends crucially on the SMM spin selection rules for the addition and subtraction of an electron and can range from antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic. We illustrate our findings with the SMM Ni4, which we propose as a possible candidate for the experimental observation of the conductance oscillations.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2007

Single photon Mach-Zehnder interferometer for quantum networks based on the Single Photon Faraday Effect: principle and applications

Combining the recent progress in semiconductor nanostructures along with the versatility of photonic crystals in confining and manipulating light, quantum networks allow for the prospect of an integrated and low power quantum technology. Within quantum networks, which consist of a system of waveguides and nanocavities with embedded quantum dots, it has been demonstrated in theory that many-qubit states stored in electron spins could be teleported from one quantum dot to another via a single photon using the Single Photon Faraday Effect. However, in addition to being able to transfer quantum information from one location to another, quantum networks need added functionality such as (1) controlling the flow of the quantum information and (2) performing specific operations on qubits that can be easily integrated. In this paper, we show how in principle a single photon Mach-Zehnder interferometer, which uses the concept of the single photon Faraday Effect to manipulate the geometrical phase of a single photon, can be operated both as a switch to control the flow of quantum information inside the quantum network and as various single qubit quantum gates to perform operations on a single photon. Our proposed Mach-Zehnder interferometer can be fully integrated as part of a quantum network on a chip. Given that the X gate, the Z gate, and the XZ gate are essential for the implementation of quantum teleportation, we show explicitly their implementation by means of our proposed single photon Mach-Zehnder interferometer. We also show explicitly the implementation of the Hadamard gate and the single-qubit phase gate, which are needed to complete the universal set of quantum gates for integrated quantum computing in a quantum network.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2007

Many-body interaction in semiconductors probed with 2D Fourier spectroscopy

A particular difficulty in studying many-body interactions in a solid is the absence of an experimental technique that can directly probe their key characteristics. We show that 2D Fourier spectroscopy provides an efficient tool for the measurement of critical parameters describing the effect of many-body interactions on the optical response of semiconductors. We develop the basic microscopic theory of 2D Fourier spectroscopy of semiconductors in the framework of the three-band model (heavy holes, light holes, and electrons). The theory includes many-body correlations nonperturbatively and can be generalized straightforwardly in order to describe 2D Fourier spectra obtained in atomic physics. We establish a relation between the 2D Fourier spectrum and the many-body correlations. It is shown, in particular, that 2D Fourier spectroscopy provides a principal possibility to establish experimentally the origin of the fast decay of the memory term describing the Coulomb interaction between heavy- and light-hole excitons. The theory is applied to an analysis of the available experimental data. Experiments providing more detailed information are suggested.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2006

Berry-phase blockade in single-molecule magnets

We formulate the problem of electron transport through a single-molecule magnet (SMM) in the Coulomb blockade regime taking into account topological interference effects for the tunneling of the large spin of a SMM. The interference originates from spin Berry phases associated with different tunneling paths. We show that in the case of incoherent spin states it is essential to place the SMM between oppositely spin-polarized source and drain leads in order to detect the spin tunneling in the stationary current, which exhibits topological zeros as a function of the transverse magnetic field.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2006

Berry Phase Oscillations of the Kondo Effect in Single-Molecule Magnets

We show that it is possible to topologically induce or quench the Kondo resonance in the conductance of a single-molecule magnet (S>1/2) strongly coupled to metallic leads. This can be achieved by applying a magnetic field perpendicular to the molecule easy axis and works for both full- and half-integer spin cases. The effect is caused by the Berry phase interference between two quantum tunneling paths of the molecule's spin. We have calculated the renormalized Berry phase oscillations of the Kondo peaks as a function of the transverse magnetic field as well as the conductance of the molecule by means of the poor man's scaling method. We propose to use a new variety of the single-molecule magnet Ni4 for the experimental observation of this phenomenon.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2005

Theory of Umklapp-assisted recombination of bound excitons in Si:P

We present the calculations for the oscillator strength of the recombination of excitons bound to phosphorous donors in silicon. We show that the direct recombination of the bound exciton cannot account for the experimentally measured oscillator strength of the no-phonon line. Instead, the recombination process is assisted by an umklapp process of the donor electron state. We make use of the empirical pseudopotential method to evaluate the Umklapp-assisted recombination matrix element in second-order perturbation theory. Our result is in excellent agreement with the experiment. We also present two methods to improve the optical resolution of the optical detection of the spin state of a single nucleus in silicon.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2005

Phonon Bottleneck Effect Leads to Observation of Quantum Tunneling of the Magnetization and Butterfly Hysteresis Loops in (Et4N)3Fe2F9

A detailed investigation of the unusual dynamics of the magnetization of (Et4N)3Fe2F9 (Fe2), containing isolated [Fe2F9]3- dimers, is presented and discussed. Fe2 possesses an S=5 ground state with an energy barrier of 2.40 K due to an axial anisotropy. Poor thermal contact between sample and bath leads to a phonon bottleneck situation, giving rise to butterfly-shaped hysteresis loops below 5 K concomitant with slow decay of the magnetization for magnetic fields Hz applied along the Fe--Fe axis. The butterfly curves are reproduced using a microscopic model based on the interaction of the spins with resonant phonons. The phonon bottleneck allows for the observation of resonant quantum tunneling of the magnetization at 1.8 K, far above the blocking temperature for spin-phonon relaxation. The latter relaxation is probed by AC magnetic susceptibility experiments at various temperatures and bias fields. At H=0, no out-of-phase signal is detected, indicating that at T smaller than 1.8 K Fe2 does not behave as a single-molecule magnet. At 1 kG, relaxation is observed, occurring over the barrier of the thermally accessible S=4 first excited state that forms a combined system with the S=5 state.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2004

Fault-tolerant quantum computing with spins using the conditional Faraday rotation

We propose a fault-tolerant scheme for deterministic quantum computing with spins that is based on a quantum teleportation scheme using the conditional Faraday rotation. The phase gate between two sets of noninteracting quantum dots, embedded in microcavities inside a photonic crystal, is mediated by single photons, which yields a Faraday rotation rate high enough for gate operation times of 100 ps. Using sets of quantum dots and error correction codes makes our scheme fault-tolerant. Single-qubit operations on encoded qubits can be implemented by means of the optical Stark effect combined with the optical RKKY interaction.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2004

Teleportation of electronic many-qubit states via single photons

We propose a teleportation scheme that relies only on single-photon measurements and Faraday rotation, for teleportation of many-qubit entangled states stored in the electron spins of a quantum dot system. The interaction between a photon and the two electron spins, via Faraday rotation in microcavities, establishes Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger entanglement in the spin-photon-spin system. The appropriate single-qubit measurements, and the communication of two classical bits, produce teleportation. This scheme provides the essential link between spintronic and photonic quantum information devices by permitting quantum information to be exchanged between them.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2003

Measuring the entanglement of coupled spins by multiphoton interference

We propose an experimental method to measure the entanglement of coupled spins, each in a separate quantum dot, by means of multiphoton interference patterns generated through the scattering of two laser beams off the quantum dots. We calculate the N-photon quantum correlations measured by N detectors on an image plane. Using two perpendicular laser beams, either many correlation measurements on a time ensemble or a single correlation measurement on a spatial ensemble of the many-qubit state is sufficient to retrieve all the possible amplitudes of a many-qubit state.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2003

The Grover algorithm with large nuclear spins in semiconductors

We show a possible way to implement the Grover algorithm in large nuclear spins 1/2<I<9/2 in semiconductors. The Grover sequence is performed by means of multiphoton transitions that distribute the spin amplitude between the nuclear spin states. They are distinguishable due to the quadrupolar splitting, which makes the nuclear spin levels non-equidistant. We introduce a generalized rotating frame for an effective Hamiltonian that governs the non-perturbative time evolution of the nuclear spin states for arbitrary spin lengths I. The larger the quadrupolar splitting, the better the agreement between our approximative method using the generalized rotating frame and exact numerical calculations.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗