Dark states in the magnetotransport through triple quantum dots

TL;DR

This paper investigates how magnetic fields influence electron transport in triple quantum dots, revealing oscillations in current and noise due to interference effects and dark states.

Contribution

It demonstrates how magnetic fields disrupt dark states in triple quantum dots, causing oscillations in transport properties and analyzing shotnoise and skewness.

Findings

Current oscillates with magnetic flux quantum periods.

Dark states block current at zero field.

Magnetic field induces measurable noise oscillations.

Abstract

We consider the transport through a system of three coupled quantum dots in a perpendicular magnetic field. At zero field, destructive interference can trap an electron in a dark state -- a coherent superposition of dot states that completely blocks current flow. The magnetic field can disrupt this interference giving rise to oscillations in the current and its higher-order statistics as the field is increased. These oscillations have a period of either the flux-quantum or half the flux-quantum, depending on the dot geometry. We give results for the stationary current and for the shotnoise and skewness at zero and finite frequency.