Sebastian Reyes

Lattice defects and boundaries in conducting carbon nanotubes

We consider the effect of various defects and boundary structures on the low energy electronic properties in conducting zigzag and armchair carbon nanotubes. The tight binding model of the conduction bands is mapped exactly onto simple lattice models consisting of two uncoupled parallel chains. Imperfections such as impurities, structural defects or caps can be easily included into the effective lattice models, allowing a detailed physical interpretation of their consequences. The method is quite general and can be used to study a wide range of possible imperfections in carbon nanotubes. We obtain the electron density patterns expected from a scanning tunneling microscopy experiment for half fullerene caps and two typical impurities in the bulk of a tube, namely the Stone-Wales defect and a single vacancy.

Quantum resonance catastrophe for conductance through a periodically driven barrier

We consider the quantum transport in a tight-binding chain with a locally applied potential which is oscillating in time. The steady state for such a driven impurity can be calculated exactly for any energy and applied potential using the Floquet formalism. The resulting transmission has a non-trivial, non-monotonic behavior depending on incoming momentum, driving frequency, and the strength of the applied periodic potential. Hence there is an abundance of tuning possibilities, which allows to find resonances of total reflection for any choice of incoming momentum and periodic potential. Remarkably, this implies that even for an arbitrarily small infinitesimal impurity potential it is always possible to find a resonance frequency at which there is a catastrophic breakdown of the transmission T = 0. The points of zero transmission are closely related to the phenomenon of Fano resonances at dynamically created bound states in the continuum. The results are relevant for a variety of one-dimensional systems where local AC driving is possible, such as quantum nanodot arrays, ultracold gases in optical lattices, photonic crystals, or molecular electronics.

Crossed Spin-1/2 Heisenberg Chains as a Quantum Impurity Problem

Using equivalencies between different models we reduce the model of two spin-1/2 Heisenberg chains crossed at one point to the model of free fermions. The spin-spin correlation function is calculated by summing the perturbation series in the interchain interaction. The result reveals a power law decay with a nonuniversal exponent.

Transport through an AC-driven impurity: Fano interference and bound states in the continuum

Using the Floquet formalism we study transport through an AC-driven impurity in a tight binding chain. The results obtained are exact and valid for all frequencies and barrier amplitudes. At frequencies comparable to the bulk bandwidth we observe a breakdown of the transmission T = 0 which is related to the phenomenon of Fano resonances associated to AC-driven bound states in the continuum. We also demonstrate that the location and width of these resonances can be modified by tuning the frequency and amplitude of the driving field. At high frequencies there is a close relation between the resonances and the phenomenon of coherent destruction of tunneling. As the frequency is lowered no more resonances are possible below a critical value and the results approach a simple time average of the static transmission.

Microscopic modeling of the effect of phonons on the optical properties of solid-state emitters

Understanding the effect of vibrations in optically active nano systems is crucial for successfully implementing applications in molecular-based electro-optical devices, quantum information communications, single photon sources, and fluorescent markers for biological measurements. Here, we present a first-principles microscopic description of the role of phonons on the isotopic shift presented in the optical emission spectrum associated to the negatively charged silicon-vacancy color center in diamond. We use the spin-boson model and estimate the electron-phonon interactions using a symmetrized molecular description of the electronic states and a force-constant model to describe molecular vibrations. Group theoretical arguments and dynamical symmetry breaking are presented in order to explain the optical properties of the zero-phonon line and the isotopic shift of the phonon sideband.

Perfect Spin Filter by Periodic Drive of a Ferromagnetic Quantum Barrier

We consider the problem of particle tunneling through a periodically driven ferromagnetic quantum barrier connected to two leads. The barrier is modeled by an impurity site representing a ferromagnetic layer or a quantum dot in a tight-binding Hamiltonian with a local magnetic field and an ac-driven potential, which is solved using the Floquet formalism. The repulsive interactions in the quantum barrier are also taken into account. Our results show that the time-periodic potential causes sharp resonances of perfect transmission and reflection, which can be tuned by the frequency, the driving strength, and the magnetic field. We demonstrate that a device based on this configuration could act as a highly tunable spin valve for spintronic applications.

Pair correlations as a signature of entanglement: A bosonic mixture in gauge field ring lattices

We study the pair-superfluid phase and entanglement of a Bose-Bose mixture of ultracold atoms in a ring lattice in the presence of a synthetic gauge field. Special attention is given to a quantum phase transition region of the phase diagram observed in the parameter space that characterizes the intra- and inter- species interactions of the system. In the scenario of large interaction, it is shown that the ground and excited states of the lowest-energy band exhibit features of a pair-superfluid phase. We demonstrate that in the subspace associated with the lowest-energy band there is a maximally entangled eigenstate that is a perfect pair-superfluid. We suggest to use this connection between the bipartite entanglement and the pair-superfluidity as a signature of the presence of entanglement in the eigenstates associated with the lowest-energy band. Moreover, we find strong indications that the interference pattern of the pair-superfluid phase in momentum space can be used as a tool for the characterization of the entanglement in the ground state.