skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Thermopower as a tool to investigate many-body effects in quantum systems

Journal Article · · Applied Physics Letters
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4893928· OSTI ID:22310968
; ; ;  [1]
  1. Nanometer Structure Consortium (nmC-LU), Lund University, Box 118, 22100 Lund (Sweden)

Measuring the thermopower of a confined quantum system reveals important information about its excitation spectrum. Our simulations show how this kind of transport spectroscopy is able to extract a clear signal for the onset of Wigner localization in a nanowire segment. This demonstrates that thermopower measurements provide a tool for investigating complex many-body quantum effects, which is less intrusive than the usual charge-stability diagram as no high source-drain bias is required. While the effect is most pronounced for weak tunnel coupling and low temperatures, the excited states also significantly affect the thermopower spectrum at moderate temperature, adding distinct features to the characteristic thermopower lineshape.

OSTI ID:
22310968
Journal Information:
Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 105, Issue 8; Other Information: (c) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0003-6951
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English