Scattering of electrons from an interacting region

Abstract

We address the problem of transmission of electrons between two noninteracting leads through a region where they interact (quantum dot). We use a model of spinless electrons hopping on a one-dimensional lattice and with an interaction on a single bond. We show that all two-particle scattering states can be found exactly. Comparisons are made with numerical results on the time evolution of a two-particle wave packet, and several interesting features are found. For N particles, the scattering state is obtained within a two-particle scattering approximation. For a dot connected to Fermi seas at different chemical potentials, we find an expression for the change in the Landauer current resulting from the interactions on the dot. We end with some comments on the case of spin-1/2 electrons.