Spin-orbit interactions in a helical Luttinger liquid with a Kondo impurity

TL;DR

This paper investigates how combined Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit interactions influence a helical Luttinger liquid with a Kondo impurity, revealing conditions under which Kondo singlet formation is suppressed or preserved and analyzing transport properties.

Contribution

It demonstrates that strong Dresselhaus interaction can negate the Kondo suppression caused by Rashba coupling in a helical Luttinger liquid.

Findings

Rashba coupling can destroy Kondo singlet formation in certain regimes.

Strong Dresselhaus interaction can counteract Rashba effects.

Transport properties like conductance and thermal conductance are affected by spin-orbit interactions.

Abstract

The combined effect of Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit interactions on the physics of a helical Luttinger liquid coupled to a Kondo impurity is studied. A Rashba coupling can potentially destroy the Kondo singlet formation in certain parameter regimes [Phys. Rev. B 86, 161103(R) (2012)]. This effect is here shown to vanish for sufficiently strong Dresselhaus interaction. The transport properties of the system are investigated by calculating electrical conductance, current and current fluctuations, and thermal conductance.