Quantum phase transitions of a q-state Potts model in fractal lattices are studied using a continuous-time quantum Monte Carlo simulation technique. For small values of q, the transition is found to be second order and critical exponents of the quantum critical point are calculated. The dynamic critical exponent z is found to be greater than one for all fractals studied, which is in contrast to integer-dimensional regular lattices. When q is greater than a certain value q_{c}, the phase transition becomes first order, where q_{c} depends on the lattice. Further analysis shows that the characteristics of phase transitions are more sensitive to the average number of nearest neighbors than the Hausdorff dimension or the order of ramification.

I study the properties of the quantum critical point of the transverse-field quantum Ising model on various fractal lattices such as the Sierpiński carpet, Sierpiński gasket, and Sierpiński tetrahedron. Using a continuous-time quantum Monte Carlo simulation method and finite-size scaling analysis, I identify the quantum critical point and investigate its scaling properties. Among others, I calculate the dynamic critical exponent and find that it is greater than one for all three structures. The fact that it deviates from one is a direct consequence of the fractal structures not being integer-dimensional regular lattices. Other critical exponents are also calculated. The exponents are different from those of the classical critical point and satisfy the quantum scaling relation, thus confirming that I have indeed found the quantum critical point. I find that the Sierpiński tetrahedron, of which the dimension is exactly 2, belongs to a different universality class than that of the two-dimensional square lattice. I conclude that the critical exponents depend on more details of the structure than just the dimension and the symmetry.

I investigate the quantum phase transition of the transverse-field quantum Ising model in which nearest neighbors are defined according to the connectivity of scale-free networks. Using a continuous-time quantum Monte Carlo simulation method and the finite-size scaling analysis, I identify the quantum critical point and study its scaling characteristics. For the degree exponent λ=6, I obtain results that are consistent with the mean-field theory. For λ=4.5 and 4, however, the results suggest that the quantum critical point belongs to a non-mean-field universality class. Further simulations indicate that the quantum critical point remains mean-field-like if λ>5, but it continuously deviates from the mean-field theory as λ becomes smaller.

We investigate dynamical transport properties of interacting electrons moving in a vibrating nanoelectromechanical wire in a magnetic field. We have built an exactly solvable model in which the electron-electron interaction is considered nonperturbatively and the electric current and mechanical vibration are treated fully quantum mechanically on an equal footing. We demonstrate our theory by calculating the admittance of a finite-size wire, which is influenced by the magnetic field strength, the electron-electron interaction, and the complex interplay between the mechanical and the electrical energy scales. Nontrivial features including sharp resonance peaks appear in the admittance, which may be experimentally observable.

We study the effect of quantum fluctuations on the critical behavior of the Ising ferromagnetic phase transitions that do not belong to the mean-field universality class. A model system is considered, in which Ising spins are placed on the nodes of a scale-free network. Our Monte Carlo analysis shows that the critical exponents differ from those of mean-field phase transitions when degree exponent gamma is in the range 3<gamma<5 . This confirms earlier analytic calculations based on ansatzes and approximation methods. As we apply quantum fluctuations by means of a magnetic field perpendicular to the Ising spin direction, the transition temperature T(c) decreases with increasing magnetic field strength. We find, however, that the quantum fluctuations do not alter the critical exponents and the universality class remains unchanged.

. We study the effect of quantum fluctuations in an Ising spin system on a scale-free network of degree exponent γ>5 using a quantum Monte Carlo simulation technique. In our model, one can adjust the magnitude of the magnetic field perpendicular to the Ising spin direction and can therefore control the strength of quantum fluctuations for each spin. Our numerical analysis shows that quantum fluctuations reduce the transition temperature T c of the ferromagnetic-paramagnetic phase transition. However, the phase transition belongs to the same mean-field type universality class both with and without the quantum fluctuations. We also study the role of hubs by turning on the quantum fluctuations exclusively at the nodes with the most links. When only a small number of hub spins fluctuate quantum mechanically, T c decreases with increasing magnetic field until it saturates at high fields. This effect becomes stronger as the number of hub spins increases. In contrast, quantum fluctuations at the same number of “non-hub” spins do not affect T c . This implies that the hubs play an important role in maintaining order in the whole network.

We present a detailed theory for finite-frequency conductivities Re[sigma(alpha beta)(omega)] of quantum Hall stripes, which form at Landau level N >= 2 close to half-filling, in the presence of weak Gaussian disorder. We use an effective elastic theory to describe the low-energy dynamics of the stripes with the dynamical matrix being determined through matching the density-density correlation function obtained in the microscopic time-dependent Hartree-Fock approximation. We then apply replicas and the Gaussian variational method to deal with the disorder. Within this method, a set of saddle point equations for the retarded self-energies are obtained, which are solved numerically to get Re[sigma(alpha beta)(omega)]. We find a quantum depinning transition as Delta nu, the fractional part of the filling factor, approaches a critical value Delta nu(c) from below. For Delta nu Delta nu(c). For Delta nu >=Delta nu(c), we find a partial RSB solution in which there is RSB perpendicular to the stripes, but replica symmetry along the stripes, leading to free sliding along the stripe direction. The quantum depinning transition is in the Kosterlitz-Thouless universality class. The result is consistent with a previous renormalization group analysis.

We study a model of a magnetic resonance force microscope (MRFM) based on the cyclic adiabatic inversion technique as a high-resolution tool to detect single electron spins. We investigate the quantum dynamics of spin and cantilever in the presence of coupling to an environment. To obtain the reduced dynamics of the combined system of spin and cantilever, we use the Feynman-Vernon influence functional and get results valid at any temperature as well as at arbitrary system-bath coupling strength. We propose that the MRFM can be used as a quantum measurement device, i.e., not only to detect the modulus of the spin but also its direction.

Using an exactly solvable model, we study the low-energy properties of a one-dimensional spinless electron fluid contained in a quantum-mechanically moving wire located in a static magnetic field. The phonon and electric currents are coupled via Lorentz force and the eigenmodes are described by two independent boson fluids. At low energies, the two boson modes are charged while one of them has excitation gap due to back-reaction of the Lorentz force. The theory is illustrated by evaluating optical absorption spectra. Our results are exact and show a non-perturbative regime of electron transport.

An electron antidot system is an open geometry problem and often requires heavy calculations to compute its physical properties. Such a difficulty can be avoided by transforming an electron antidot system to a system of hole quantum dot since the transformed system contains only a finite number of confined holes. Using this transformation, we present a microscopic approach to study electronic properties of an antidot in the integer quantum Hall regime. Based on this approach we discuss various conditions under which the Kondo effect may be present.

We study electron antidots using a Hartree-Fock approach and an electron-hole transformation that maps the electron antidot into a quantum dot with finite number of holes. We investigate hole maximum density droplets of a bell shape antidot potential in the integer quantum Hall regime with the filling factor two. Here we give the reasons for why a bell shape antidot potential can lead to spin flip transitions, which can cause the Kondo effect. We identify maximum density droplet states corresponding to the spin states of the Anderson impurity that describe the Kondo effect of the antidot.

We report on the calculation of the frequency-dependent conductivity of the quantum Hall stripes and bubble crystals that form in high Landau level. We use the replica and Gaussian variational methods (GVM) with a dynamical matrix obtained from the time-dependent Hartree-Fock approximation. In the stripe state, we go beyond the semiclassical approximation of the saddle point equations obtained with the GVM and demonstrate the existence of a quantum depinning transition as a function of filling factor. Below a critical filling factor, the pinned state is described by a replica symmetry breaking (RSB) solution that gives resonant peaks in the frequency-dependent conductivity in both directions, parallel and perpendicular to the stripes orientation. These peaks shift to zero frequency as the critical filling is approached. Above the critical filling, we find a depinned stripe state described by a partial replica symmetry breaking solution in which there is free sliding only along the stripe direction. The transition has a Kosterlitz-Thouless character and includes a jump in the low-frequency exponent of the dynamical conductivity. In the bubble crystals a semiclassical approximation yields a pinning peak frequency and resonance width that generally decrease with increasing filling factor, in accordance with recent microwave absorption experiments.

We examine the effect of disorder on the electromagnetic response of quantum Hall stripes using an effective elastic theory to describe their low-energy dynamics, and replicas and the Gaussian variational method to handle disorder effects. Within our model we demonstrate the existence of a depinning transition at a critical partial Landau level filling factor Deltanu(c). For DeltanuDeltanu(c). For Deltanu> or =Deltanu(c), we find a partial RSB solution in which there is free sliding only along the stripe direction. The transition is analogous to the Kosterlitz-Thouless phase transition.

We propose a general capacitive model for an antidot, which has two localized edge states with different spins in the quantum Hall regime. The capacitive coupling of localized excess charges, which are generated around the antidot due to magnetic flux quantization, and their effective spin fluctuation can result in Coulomb blockade, h/(2e) Aharonov-Bohm oscillations, and the Kondo effect. The resultant conductance is in qualitative agreement with recent experimental data.

Transport through a superconductor-Luttinger liquid junction is considered. When the interaction in the Luttinger liquid is repulsive, the resistance of the junction with a sufficiently clean interface shows nonmonotonic temperature or voltage dependence due to the competition between the superconductivity and the repulsive interaction. The result is discussed in connection with recent experiments on single-wall carbon nanotubes in contact with superconducting leads.

We study quantum Ising spins placed on small-world networks. A simple model is considered in which the coupling between any given pair of spins is a nonzero constant if they are linked in the small-world network, and zero otherwise. By applying a transverse magnetic field, we have investigated the effect of quantum fluctuations. Our numerical analysis shows that the quantum fluctuations do not alter the universality class at the ferromagnetic phase transition, which is of the mean-field type. The transition temperature is reduced by the quantum fluctuations and eventually vanishes at the critical transverse field Delta(c). With increasing rewiring probability, Delta(c) is shown to be enhanced.

We study mesoscopic resonant tunneling and the multichannel Kondo problem by mapping them to a first-quantized quantum mechanical model of a particle moving in a multidimensional periodic potential and a dissipative medium. From renormalization group analyses, we obtain zero-temperature phase diagrams of the quantum Brownian motion models with various different lattice symmetries. Either stable, unstable, or both intermediate fixed points may be present depending on the symmetry. We also explicitly derive the direct mapping between the multilead quantum dot model and the multichannel Kondo model. Governed by the multichannel Kondo fixed point at low temperatures, the conductance between the leads follows a universal scaling function. We also calculate the on-resonance conductance and the scaling exponents are predicted.

We investigate the microwave absorption of a pinned, two-dimensional Wigner crystal in a strong magnetic field at finite temperatures. Using a model of a uniform commensurate pinning potential, we analyze thermal broadening of the electromagnetic absorption resonance. Surprisingly, we find that the pinning resonance peak should remain sharp even when the temperature is comparable or greater than the peak frequency. This result agrees qualitatively with recent experimental observations of the ac conductivity in two-dimensional hole systems in a magnetically induced insulating state. It is shown, in analogy with Kohn's theorem, that the electron-electron interaction does not affect the response of a harmonically pinned Wigner crystal to a spatially uniform external field at any temperature. We thus focus on anharmonicity in the pinning potential as a source of broadening. Using a 1/N expansion technique, we show that the broadening is introduced through the self-energy corrections to the magnetophonon Green's functions.