arXiv subjects

Walter Hofstetter

Publications and source records attributed to Walter Hofstetter.

104 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

arXiv2004

Non-Hermitian Luttinger liquids and flux line pinning in planar superconductors

As a model of thermally excited flux liquids connected by a weak link, we study the effect of a single line defect on vortex filaments oriented parallel to the surface of a thin planar superconductor. This problem can be mapped onto the physics of a Luttinger liquid of interacting bosons in 1 spatial dimension with a point impurity. When the applied magnetic field is tilted relative to the line defect, the corresponding quantum boson Hamiltonian is non-Hermitian. We analyze this problem using a combination of analytic and numerical (density matrix renormalization group) methods, uncovering a delicate interplay between enhancement of pinning due to Luttinger liquid effects and depinning due to the tilted magnetic field. Interactions allow a single columnar defect to be very effective in suppressing vortex tilt when the Luttinger liquid parameter g less than equal to 1.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2004

Mott--Hubbard transition vs. Anderson localization of correlated, disordered electrons

The phase diagram of correlated, disordered electrons is calculated within dynamical mean--field theory using the geometrically averaged (''typical'') local density of states. Correlated metal, Mott insulator and Anderson insulator phases, as well as coexistence and crossover regimes are identified. The Mott and Anderson insulators are found to be continuously connected.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2004

BCS pairing in Fermi systems with several flavors

Motivated by the prospect of Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) pairing in cold fermionic gases we analyze the superfluid phase of 3 fermionic flavors in the attractive Hubbard model. We show that there are several low--lying collective pairing modes and investigate their damping due to the partially gapless nature of the single-particle spectrum. Furthermore we analyze how these modes show up in the density response of the system. Apart from the Anderson-Bogoliubov phase mode of the pairing between two flavors, the dynamical structure factor contains signatures of the gapless third flavor. This picture is found to be robust against perturbations that break the global SU(3)-symmetry of the Hamiltonian.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2003

Ultracold fermions and the SU(N) Hubbard model

We investigate the fermionic SU(N) Hubbard model on the two-dimensional square lattice for weak to moderate interaction strengths using one-loop renormalization group and mean-field methods. For the repulsive case U>0 at half filling and small N the dominant tendency is towards breaking of the SU(N) symmetry. For N>6 staggered flux order takes over as the dominant instability, in agreement with the large-N limit. Away from half filling for N=3 the system rearranges the particle densities such that two flavors remain half filled by cannibalizing the third flavor. In the attractive case and odd N a full Fermi surface coexists with a superconductor in the ground state. These results may be relevant to future experiments with cold fermionic atoms in optical lattices.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2003

Mott-Hubbard metal-insulator transition at non-integer filling

Correlated electrons in a binary alloy $A_{x}B_{1-x}$ are investigated within the Hubbard model and dynamical mean--field theory (DMFT). The random energies $ε_{i}$ have a bimodal probability distribution and an energy separation $Δ$. We solve the DMFT equations by the numerical renormalization group method at zero temperature, and calculate the spectral density as a function of disorder strength $Δ$ and interaction $U$ at different fillings. For filling factors $ν=x$ or $1+x$ the lower or upper alloy subband is half filled and the system becomes a Mott insulator at strong interactions, with a correlation gap at the Fermi level. At the metal--insulator transition hysteresis is observed. We also analyze the effective theory in the $Δ\to \infty $ limit and find good agreement between analytical and numerical results for the critical interaction $U_{c}$ at which the metal--insulator transition occurs.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2003

Non-Hermitian Luttinger Liquids and Vortex Physics

As a model of two thermally excited flux liquids connected by a weak link, we study the effect of a single line defect on vortex filaments oriented parallel to the surface of a thin planar superconductor. When the applied field is tilted relative to the line defect, the physics is described by a nonhermitian Luttinger liquid of interacting quantum bosons in one spatial dimension with a point defect. We analyze this problem using a combination of analytic and numerical density matrix renormalization group methods, uncovering a delicate interplay between enhancement of pinning due to Luttinger liquid effects and depinning due to the tilted magnetic field. Interactions dramatically improve the ability of a single columnar pin to suppress vortex tilt when the Luttinger liquid parameter g is less than or equal to one.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2003

Phase diagram of two-component bosons on an optical lattice

We present a theoretical analysis of the phase diagram of two--component bosons on an optical lattice. A new formalism is developed which treats the effective spin interactions in the Mott and superfluid phases on the same footing. Using the new approach we chart the phase boundaries of the broken spin symmetry states up to the Mott to superfluid transition and beyond. Near the transition point, the magnitude of spin exchange can be very large, which facilitates the experimental realization of spin-ordered states. We find that spin and quantum fluctuations have a dramatic effect on the transition making it first order in extended regions of the phase diagram. For Mott states with even occupation we find that the competition between effective Heisenberg exchange and spin-dependent on--site interaction leads to an additional phase transition from a Mott insulator with no broken symmetries into a spin-ordered insulator.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2002

Quantum phase transitions in models of coupled magnetic impurities

We discuss models of interacting magnetic impurities coupled to a metallic host. If twice the sum of the impurity spins is larger than the total number of host screening channels, the system shows one or more quantum phase transitions where the ground-state spin changes as a function of the inter-impurity couplings. The simplest example is realized by two spin-1/2 Kondo impurities coupled to a single orbital of the host; this model exhibits a singlet-doublet transition. We investigate the phase diagram and crossover behavior of this model and present Numerical Renormalization Group results together with general arguments showing that the quantum phase transition is either of first order or of the Kosterlitz-Thouless type, depending on the symmetry of the Kondo couplings. Connections to other models and possible applications are discussed.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2001

Quantum Phase Transition in a Multi-Level Dot

We discuss electronic transport through a lateral quantum dot close to the singlet-triplet degeneracy in the case of a single conduction channel per lead. By applying the Numerical Renormalization Group, we obtain rigorous results for the linear conductance and the density of states. A new quantum phase transition of the Kosterlitz-Thouless type is found, with an exponentially small energy scale $T^*$ close to the degeneracy point. Below $T^*$, the conductance is strongly suppressed, corresponding to a universal dip in the density of states. This explains recent transport measurements.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2001

Interference and interaction effects in multi-level quantum dots

Using renormalization group techniques, we study spectral and transport properties of a spinless interacting quantum dot consisting of two levels coupled to metallic reservoirs. For strong Coulomb repulsion $U$ and an applied Aharonov-Bohm phase $ϕ$, we find a large direct tunnel splitting $|Δ|\sim (Γ/π)|\cos(ϕ/2)|\ln(U/ω_c)$ between the levels of the order of the level broadening $Γ$. As a consequence we discover a many-body resonance in the spectral density that can be measured via the absorption power. Furthermore, for $ϕ=π$, we show that the system can be tuned into an effective Anderson model with spin-dependent tunneling.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2001

Kondo Correlations and the Fano Effect in Closed AB-Interferometers

We study the Fano-Kondo effect in a closed Aharonov-Bohm (AB) interferometer which contains a single-level quantum dot and predict a frequency doubling of the AB oscillations as a signature of Kondo-correlated states. Using Keldysh formalism, Friedel sum rule and Numerical Renormalization Group, we calculate the exact zero-temperature linear conductance $G$ as a function of AB phase $ϕ$ and level position $ε$. In the unitary limit, $G(ϕ)$ reaches its maximum $2e^2/h$ at $ϕ=π/2$. We find a Fano-suppressed Kondo plateau for $G(ε)$ similar to recent experiments.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2001

Numerical Renormalization Group Analysis of Interacting Quantum Dots

Wilson's Numerical Renormalization Group (NRG) is so far the only nonperturbative technique that can reliably access low-energy properties of quantum impurity systems. We present a recent extension of the method, the DM-NRG, which yields highly accurate results for dynamical quantities at arbitrary frequencies and temperatures. As an application, we determine the spectrum of a quantum dot in an external magnetic field. Furthermore, we discuss magnetic impurities with orbital degeneracy, which have been inferred in recent experiments on quantum dots in an Aharonov-Bohm geometry. It is demonstrated that for spinless electrons, interference between neighbouring levels sets the low-energy scale of the system. Switching on an external field leads to a remarkable crossover into a regime dominated by orbital Kondo screening. We predict that the broadening-induced level splitting should be clearly visible in measurements of the optical absorption power. A more general model including the electron spin is studied within an extended two-band NRG procedure. We observe competition between interference and Kondo screening, similar to the situation in two-impurity models (RKKY).

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2000

Generalized Numerical Renormalization Group for Dynamical Quantities

In this paper we introduce a new approach for calculating dynamical properties within the numerical renormalization group. It is demonstrated that the method previously used fails for the Anderson impurity in a magnetic field due to the absence of energy scale separation. The problem is solved by evaluating the Green function with respect to the reduced density matrix of the full system, leading to accurate spectra in agreement with the static magnetization. The new procedure (denoted as DM-NRG) provides a unifying framework for calculating dynamics at any temperature and represents the correct extension of Wilson's original thermodynamic calculation.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv1995

Finite-Size Scaling and Universality in the Spin 1 Quantum XY Chain

The spin-1 XY chain in a transverse field is studied using finite-size scaling. The ground state phase diagram displays a paramagnetic, an ordered ferromagnetic and an ordered oscillatory phase. The paramagnetic-ferromagnetic transition line belongs to the universality class of the 2D Ising model. Along this line, universality is confirmed for the finite-size scaling functions of several correlation lengths and for the conformal operator content.

cond-mat↗