Real-time dynamics of particle-hole excitations in Mott insulator-metal junctions

Luis G. G. V. Dias da Silva, Khaled A. Al-Hassanieh, Adrian E. Feiguin, Fernando A. Reboredo, and Elbio Dagotto
Phys. Rev. B 81, 125113 – Published 16 March 2010

Abstract

Charge excitations in Mott insulators (MIs) are distinct from their band-insulator counterparts and they can provide a mechanism for energy harvesting in solar cells based on strongly correlated electronic materials. In this paper, we study the real-time dynamics of holon-doublon pairs in an MI connected to metallic leads using the time-dependent density-matrix renormalization-group method. The transfer of charge across the MI-metal interface is controlled by both the electron-electron interaction strength within the MI and the voltage difference between the leads. We find an overall enhancement of the charge transfer as compared to the case of a (noninteracting) band insulator-metal interface with a similar band gap. Moreover, the propagation of holon-doublon excitations within the MI dynamically changes the spin-spin correlations, introducing time-dependent phase shifts in the spin-structure factor.

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  • Received 11 November 2009

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.81.125113

©2010 American Physical Society

Authors & Affiliations

Luis G. G. V. Dias da Silva1,2, Khaled A. Al-Hassanieh3, Adrian E. Feiguin4, Fernando A. Reboredo2, and Elbio Dagotto1,2

  • 1Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996, USA
  • 2Materials Science and Technology Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831, USA
  • 3Theoretical Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico 87545, USA
  • 4Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Wyoming, Laramie, Wyoming 82071, USA

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Issue

Vol. 81, Iss. 12 — 15 March 2010

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