corner
corner
APS » Journals » Phys. Rev. Lett. » Volume 94 » Issue 10
< Previous Article | Next Article >

Phys. Rev. Lett. 94, 100602 (2005) [4 pages]

Breakdown of an Electric-Field Driven System: A Mapping to a Quantum Walk

Download: PDF (275 kB) Buy this article Export: BibTeX or EndNote (RIS)

Takashi Oka1, Norio Konno2, Ryotaro Arita1,*, and Hideo Aoki1
1Department of Physics, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
2Department of Applied Mathematics, Faculty of Engineering, Yokohama National University, Yokohama 240-8501, Japan

Received 1 July 2004; published 18 March 2005

Quantum transport properties of electron systems driven by strong electric fields are studied by mapping the Landau-Zener transition dynamics to a quantum walk on a semi-infinite one-dimensional lattice with a reflecting boundary, where the sites correspond to energy levels and the boundary the ground state. Quantum interference induces a distribution localized around the ground state, and a delocalization transition occurs when the electric field is increased, which describes the dielectric breakdown in the original electron system.

© 2005 The American Physical Society

URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.94.100602
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.94.100602
PACS:
05.60.Gg, 05.40.Fb, 72.10.Bg

*Present address: Max-Planck-Institut for Solid State Research, Heisenbergstrasse 1, Stuttgart, D-70569 Germany.

 
< Previous Article | Next Article >