On the validity and breakdown of the Onsager symmetry in mesoscopic conductors interacting with environments

TL;DR

This paper explores how environmental interactions cause magnetic-field asymmetries in mesoscopic conductors, revealing that such asymmetries only occur when the environment is out of equilibrium, with implications for quantum transport.

Contribution

It demonstrates that environment-induced asymmetries in mesoscopic conductors depend on the environment being out of equilibrium, providing a detailed analysis with a quantum dot model.

Findings

Asymmetry appears only when the environment is out of equilibrium

The asymmetry depends on environment bias and dephasing effects

Quantum dot coupled to quantum Hall conductor illustrates the phenomenon

Abstract

We investigate magnetic-field asymmetries in the linear transport of a mesoscopic conductor interacting with its environment. Interestingly, we find that the interaction between the two systems causes an asymmetry only when the environment is out of equilibrium. We elucidate our general result with the help of a quantum dot capacitively coupled to a quantum Hall conductor and discuss the asymmetry dependence on the environment bias and induced dephasing.