LEARNING OUTCOMES

The principal task of the present course is to provide a clear background and a panorama on mesoscopic systems and quantum nanodevices.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The principal task of the present course is to provide a clear and firm background and panorama on electronic and photonic quantum systems. The students will learn characteristic quantum phenomena also in the out of equilibrium regime. To reach these tasks there will be also a part devoted to the theory of linear response and an introduction to the quantum optics field. Particular attention wil be put on the interplay between theoretical and experimental  aspects.

TEACHING METHODS

The course is at the blackboard with also the possibility to see slides especially connected to the possible experiments.

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

The first part of the course describes general aspects of the out of equilibrium phenomena in quantum systems with the explanation of the linear response theory. In the second part several examples are presented which are directly connected with electronic and photonic quantum systems. An introduction to quantum optics will be presented and a focus on  transport properties of nanodevices will be given. Below the detailed  program.

Linear response theory and Green functions

• Time evolution of out of equilibrium density matrix. Applications to the electrical conductivity and to the tunneling between metals. Fluctuation-Dissipation theorem and thermal noise in quantum conductors.

Introduction to quantum optics

• Quantum states of radiation: Fock states, coherent states and squeezed states.
• Glauber's coherence function, photodetection and coincidences.
• Single photon interferometers: Mach-Zehnder and Fabry-Pérot. Intensity interferometers: Hanbury-Brown-Twiss and Hong-Ou-Mandel.

Quantum electronic nanodevices

• Heterostructures, bidimensional gas. Scattering processes in solids, length scales in the mesoscopic regime, ballistic transport.
• Quantum wires, quantum point contact: conductance quantization, two and four terminal measurements. Landauer Formula.
• Quantum dots: theoretical decription, single electron transistor and Coulomb blockade oscillations.
• Aharonov-Bohm effects. Introduction to paths integrals and phase of the wave function. Applications and experiments  to solid state systems. Berry phase and its connection with the AB phase.
• Integer Quantum Hall effect: Landau level, disorder and edge states. Phenomenological description of fractional quantum Hall effect. Introduction to topological systems in two dimensions.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

RECOMMENDED BIBLIOGRAPHY

1) H. Bruus, K. Flensberg, "Many-body Quantum Theory in Condensed Matter Physics" Oxford University Press (2004).

2) G.F. Giuliani, G. Vignale. "Quantum theory of the electron liquid". Cambridge Univ. Press (2005). *

3) Y.V. Nazarov, Y.M. Blanter. "Quantum Transport. Introduction to Nanoscience". Cambridge Univ. Press (2009). 

4) T. Ihn. "Semiconductor Nanostructures" Oxford University Press (2010).

5) Mark Fox “Quantum Optics. An introduction”.

6) Rodney Loudon “The Quantum Theory of Light”.

7) S. Haroche, J.-M. Raimond “Exploring the quantum. Atoms, Cavities, and Photons.”
Recommended books for the different parts of the course