arXiv subjects

Michele Governale

Publications and source records attributed to Michele Governale.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Antidot superlattices in two-dimensional topological insulators

We investigate the electronic properties of a two-dimensional topological insulator patterned with an array of circular holes. The band structures of the topological insulator superlattices are calculated using the Bernevig-Hughes-Zhang model, discretized with the finite element method. The band topology is studied using the Fukui-Hatsugai-Suzuki method, exploiting the fact that topological charge is conserved when a band gap closes and reopens. We find that when the holes are close to each other and the edge states overlap significantly, the material loses its topological character and becomes a trivial insulator. The results show that patterning topological insulators changes their properties, and this can be achieved with a feature size compatible with current lithographic techniques. This shows the potential to incorporate patterned topological insulators in future electronics.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2026

Nonequilibrium Cooper quartet generation in superconducting devices

Cooper quartets are aggregates of four electrons that generalize the concept of Cooper pairs, and their study can unfold unexplored perspectives in correlated matter and many-body physics. We propose a method to isolate them in a double-quantum-dot system coupled to conventional superconducting and normal leads. By driving the system out of equilibrium, we show that a resonance between the vacuum $|0\rangle$ and the four-electron state $|4e\rangle$ emerges in the high bias voltage regime, which involves a two-Cooper pair exchange process and is characterized by finite quartet correlations. We study the transport properties of the system and show that a peak in the Andreev current at high bias voltage has a width that scales with the magnitude of the quartet coupling $\Gamma_{4e}$, which can be tuned by the phase of additional superconducting leads, yielding distinctive signatures. By further studying the current-current correlations and the Fano factor, we establish a regime characterized by equal auto- and cross-correlations, which we interpret as a definitive signature of fast coherent two-Cooper-pair oscillations between the dots and the superconducting leads. The proposed platform, experimentally accessible in a quantum solid-state laboratory, enables exploration of quartet correlations and multifermion-correlated states of matter.

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arXiv2026

Current precision in interacting hybrid Normal-Superconducting systems

We study Andreev-mediated transport and current fluctuations in interacting normal-superconducting quantum-dot systems. Using a generalized master equation based on real-time diagrammatics and full counting statistics, we compute the steady-state current, zero-frequency noise, and rate of entropy production in the large superconducting-gap limit. We show how Coulomb interactions modify Andreev-mediated transport by renormalizing resonant conditions and suppressing superconducting coherence, leading to a pronounced reduction of current precision even when average currents are only weakly affected. These effects are particularly evident at high temperatures, where conventional Coulomb-blockade features are thermally smeared while fluctuation properties remain highly sensitive. By analyzing thermodynamic uncertainty relations, we demonstrate that violations of the quantum bound present in the noninteracting regime are progressively reduced and eventually suppressed as interactions increase, whereas the recently proposed hybrid bound remains satisfied. Our results clarify how Coulomb interactions, and nonequilibrium fluctuations jointly determine transport properties in hybrid superconducting devices, and establish current precision as a robust benchmark for interacting Andreev transport beyond the noninteracting limit.

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arXiv2025

Quantum thermodynamic uncertainty relation and macroscopic superconducting coherence

Stability and efficiency are mutually exclusive in a thermodynamic process, e.g. in a thermal machine. Any effort to reduce the fluctuations of a certain output quantity is necessarily accompanied by an increase of entropy production, therefore lowering its efficiency. This interplay is beautifully captured by the so called Thermodynamic Uncertainty Relations (TURs) which set a lower bound on the relative uncertainty of a current for a given rate of entropy production. Their status in hybrid normal-superconducting (N-S) devices has remained unsettled. We show that, in the subgap regime, departures from the normal quantum TUR are governed by {\it macroscopic} superconducting coherence quantified by the pair amplitude, and that introducing a dephasing probe suppresses this coherence and restores the bound. We further derive a hybrid quantum TUR that is general for two-terminal N-S junctions in the Andreev regime: the inequality is never violated, is saturated only at vanishing current, and is related to the normal quantum bound under the replacement (e to 2e). For N-S quantum dot and Cooper-pair-splitter systems we compute current and noise and show that deviations from the normal bound track the pair amplitude on the central region. The results establish a direct link between superconducting macroscopic coherence and nonequilibrium fluctuations and supply a general bound for the Andreev regime.

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arXiv2024

Entangled Photon-Pair Emission in Waveguide Circuit QED from a Cooper Pair Splitter

As a waveguide circuit QED architecture, we investigate theoretically the single-photon pair emission of a Cooper pair splitter composed of two double quantum dots, each coupled to a microwave transmission line. We find that this system can generate frequency-entangled photon pairs in the left and right transmission lines, specifically a superposition of two photon wave packets at different frequencies. The frequency entanglement of the two photons arises from the particle-hole coherent superposition (i.e., Andreev bound states) involving the delocalized entangled spin singlet. We also estimate a lower bound for the efficiency of entangled photon-pair generation, accounting for the presence of nonradiative processes such as phonon emissions. Our proposal is realistic and achievable with state-of-the-art techniques in quantum microwave engineering with electostatically defined semiconducting quantum dots.

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arXiv2024

Topological nano-switches in higher-order topological insulators

We consider multi-terminal transport through a flake of rectangular shape of a two-dimensional topological insulator in the presence of an in-plane magnetic field. This system has been shown to be a second-order topological insulator, thus exhibiting corner states at its boundaries. The position of the corner states and their decay length can be controlled by the direction of the magnetic field. In the leads we assume that the magnetic field is absent and therefore we have helical one-dimensional propagating states characteristic of the spin-Hall effect. Using a low-energy effective Hamiltonian we show analytically that, in a two-terminal setup, transport can be turned on and off by a rotation of the in-plane magnetic field. Similarly, in a three terminal configuration, the in-plane magnetic field can be used to turn on and off the transmission between neighbouring contacts, thus realising a directional switch. Analytical calculations are supplemented by a numerical finite-difference method. For small values of the Fermi energy and field strength, the analytical results agree exceptionally well with the numerics. The effect of disorder is also addressed in the numerical approach. We find that the switching functionality is remarkably robust to the presence of strong disorder stemming from the topological nature of the states contributing to the electron transport.

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arXiv2023

Corner states of two-dimensional second-order topological insulators with a chiral symmetry and broken time reversal and charge conjugation

Two-dimensional second-order topological insulators are characterized by the presence of topologically protected zero-energy bound states localized at the corners of a flake. In this paper we theoretically study the occurrence and features of such corner states inside flakes in the shape of a convex polygon. We consider two different models, both in Cartan class IIIA, the first obeying inversion symmetry and the other obeying a combined $π/4$ rotation symmetry and time-reversal symmetry ($\hat{C}_4^z\hat{T}$). By using an analytical effective model of an edge corresponding to a massive Dirac fermion, we determine the presence of a corner state between two given edges by studying the sign of their induced masses and derive general rules for flakes in the shape of a convex polygon. In particular, we find that the number of corner states in a flake is always two in the first model, while in the second model there are either 0, 2 or 4. To corroborate our findings, we focus on flakes of specific shapes (a triangle and a square) and use a numerical finite-difference approach to determine the features of the corner states in terms of their probability density. In the case of a triangular flake, we can change the position of corner states by rotating the flake in the first model, while in the second model we can also change their number. Remarkably, when the induced mass of an edge is zero the corresponding corner state becomes delocalized along the edge. In the case of a square flake and the model with $\hat{C}_4^z\hat{T}$ symmetry, there is an orientation of the flake with respect to the crystal axes, for which the corner states extend along the whole perimeter of the square.

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arXiv2022

Topological-Insulator Nanocylinders

Nanostructures, such a quantum dots or nanoparticles, made of three-dimensional topological insulators (3DTIs) have been recently attracting increasing interest, especially for their optical properties. In this paper we calculate the energy spectrum, the surface states and the dipole matrix elements for optical transitions with in-plane polarization of 3DTI nanocylinders of finite height L and radius R. We first derive an effective 2D Hamiltonian by exploiting the cylindrical symmetry of the problem. We develop two approaches: the first one is an exact numerical tight-binding model obtained by discretising the Hamiltonian. The second one, which allows us to obtain analytical results, is an approximated model based on a large-R expansion and on an effective boundary condition to account for the finite height of the nanocylinder. We find that the agreement between the two models, as far as eigenenergies and eigenfunctions are concerned, is excellent for the lowest absolute value of the longitudinal component of the angular momentum. Finally, we derive analytical expressions for the dipole matrix elements by first considering the lateral surface alone and the bases alone, and then for the whole nanocylinder. In particular, we focus on the two limiting cases of tall and squat nanocylinders. The latter case is compared with the numerical results finding a good agreement.

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arXiv2021

On the effect of disorder in a $p$-wave flat-band superconductor

We present a theoretical study of flat-band superconductivity for fully spin-polarized triplet pairing with $p$-wave symmetry. We consider the effect of disorder and calculate the disorder-averaged Green's functions diagrammatically in first-order Born approximation. In the clean limit, we find that, similarly to the case of $s$-wave pairing in a flat-band, both the gap and the critical temperature depend linearly on the attractive interaction strength. We derive the critical-temperature suppression formula for the flat-band case and find that $p$-wave flat-band superconductivity is more robust than the standard case of a band with finite density of states, particularly in more disordered samples.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2020

Finite-size effects in cylindrical topological insulators

We present a theoretical study of a nanowire made of a three-dimensional topological insulator. The bulk topological insulator is described by a continuum-model Hamiltonian, and the cylindrical-nanowire geometry is modelled by a hard-wall boundary condition. We provide the secular equation for the eigenergies of the systems (both for bulk and surface states) and the analytical form of the energy eigenfunctions. We describe how the surface states of the cylinder are modified by finite-size effects. In particular, we provide a $1/R$ expansion for the energy of the surface states up to second order. The knowledge of the analytical form for the wavefunctions enables the computation of matrix elements of any single-particle operators. In particular, we compute the matrix elements of the optical dipole operator, which describe optical absorption and emission, treating intra- and inter-band transition on the same footing. Selection rules for optical transitions require conservation of linear momentum parallel to the nanowire axis, and a change of $0$ or $\pm 1$ in the total-angular-momentum projection parallel to the nanowire axis. The magnitude of the optical-transition matrix elements is strongly affected by the finite radius of the nanowire.

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arXiv2019

Single atom laser in normal-superconductor quantum dots

We study a single-level quantum dot strongly coupled to a superconducting lead and tunnel-coupled to a normal electrode which can exchange energy with a single-mode resonator. We show that a such system can sustain lasing characterized by a sub-Poissonian Fock-state distribution of the resonator. The lasing regime is clearly identifiable in the subgap transport regime: in the resonant case, the current is pinned to the maximum value achievable in this hybrid nanostructure.

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arXiv2019

Nonlocal thermoelectricity in a Cooper-pair splitter

We investigate the nonlocal thermoelectric transport in a Cooper-pair splitter based on a double-quantum-dot-superconductor three-terminal hybrid structure. We find that the nonlocal coupling between the superconductor and the quantum dots gives rise to nonlocal thermoelectric effects which originate from the nonlocal particle-hole breaking of the system. We show that Cooper-pair splitting induces the generation of a thermo-current in the superconducting lead without any transfer of charge between the two normal metal leads. Conversely, we show that a nonlocal heat exchange between the normal leads is mediated by non-local Andreev reflection. We discuss the influence of finite Coulomb interaction and study under which conditions nonlocal power generation becomes possible, and when the Cooper-pair splitter can be employed as a cooling device.

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arXiv2017

Entanglement-symmetry control in a quantum-dot Cooper-pair splitter

The control of nonlocal entanglement in solid state systems is a crucial ingredient of quantum technologies. We investigate a Cooper-pair splitter based on a double quantum dot realised in a semiconducting nanowire. In the presence of interdot tunnelling the system provides a simple mechanism to develop spatial entanglement even in absence of nonlocal coupling with the superconducting lead. We discuss the possibility to control the symmetry (singlet or triplet) of spatially separated, entangled electron pairs taking advantage of the spin-orbit coupling of the nanowire. We also demonstrate that the spin-orbit coupling does not impact over the entanglement purity of the nonlocal state generated in the double quantum dot system.

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arXiv2016

Double quantum dot Cooper-pair splitter at finite couplings

We consider the sub-gap physics of a hybrid double-quantum dot Cooper-pair splitter with large single-level spacings, in the presence of tunnelling between the dots and finite Coulomb intra- and inter-dot Coulomb repulsion. In the limit of a large superconducting gap, we treat the coupling of the dots to the superconductor exactly. We employ a generalized master-equation method which easily yields currents, noise and cross-correlators. In particular, for finite inter- and intra-dot Coulomb interaction, we investigate how the transport properties are determined by the interplay between local and nonlocal tunneling processes between the superconductor and the dots. We examine the effect of inter-dot tunneling on the particle-hole symmetry of the currents with and without spin-orbit interaction. We show that spin-orbit interaction in combination with finite Coulomb energy opens the possibility to control the nonlocal entanglement and its symmetry (singlet/triplet). We demonstrate that the generation of nonlocal entanglement can be achieved even without any direct nonlocal coupling to the superconducting lead.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2015

Finite-frequency noise in a topological superconducting wire

In this paper we study the finite-frequency current cross-correlations for a topological superconducting nanowire attached to two terminals at one of its ends. Using an analytic 1D model we show that the presence of a Majorana bound state yields vanishing cross-correlations for frequencies larger than twice the applied transport voltage, in contrast to what is found for a zero-energy ordinary Andreev bound state. Zero cross-correlations at high frequency have been confirmed using a more realistic tight-binding model for finite-width topological superconducting nanowires. Finite-temperature effects have also been investigated.

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arXiv2015

Finite-frequency noise in a quantum dot with normal and superconducting leads

We consider a single-level quantum dot tunnel-coupled to one normal and one superconducting lead. We employ a diagrammatic real-time approach to calculate the finite-frequency current noise for subgap transport. The noise spectrum gives direct access to the internal dynamics of the dot. In particular the noise spectrum shows sharp dips at the frequency of the coherent oscillations of Cooper pairs between dot and superconductor. This feature is most pronounced when the superconducting correlation is maximal. Furthermore, in the quantum-noise regime, $ω> k_\text{B}T,μ_\text{N}$, the noise spectrum exhibits steps at frequencies equal to the Andreev addition energies. The height of these steps is related to the effective coupling strength of the excitations. The finite-frequency noise spectrum hence provides a full spectroscopy of the system.

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arXiv2014

Unconventional Superconductivity in Double Quantum Dots

The formation of electron pairs is a prerequisite of superconductivity. The fermionic nature of electrons yields four classes of superconducting correlations with definite symmetry in spin, space and time. Here, we suggest double quantum dots coupled to conventional s-wave superconductors in the presence of inhomogeneous magnetic fields as a model system exhibiting unconventional pairing. Due to their small number of degrees of freedom, tunable by gate voltages, quantum-dot systems provide an ideal tool to gain fundamental insight in unconventional pairing. We propose two detection schemes for unconventional superconductivity, based on either Josephson or Andreev spectroscopy.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2014

Detection of the relaxation rates of an interacting quantum dot by a capacitively coupled sensor dot

We present a theoretical study of the detection of the decay time scales for a single-level quantum dot by means of a capacitively coupled sensor dot, which acts as an electrometer. We investigate the measurement back-action on the quantum-dot decay rates and elucidate its mechanism. We explicitly show that the setup can be used to measure the bare quantum-dot relaxation rates by choosing gate pulses that minimize the back-action. Interestingly, we find that besides the charge relaxation rate, also the rate associated to the fermion parity in the dot can be accessed with this setup.

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