Nonequilibrium steady state full counting statistics in the noncrossing approximation

Abstract

Quantum transport is often characterized not just by mean observables like the particle or energy current but by their fluctuations and higher moments, which can act as detailed probes of the physical mechanisms at play. However, relatively few theoretical methods are able to access the full counting statistics (FCS) of transport processes through electronic junctions in strongly correlated regimes. While most experiments are concerned with steady state properties, most accurate theoretical methods rely on computationally expensive propagation from a tractable initial state. Here, we propose a simple approach for computing the FCS through a junction directly at the steady state, utilizing the propagator noncrossing approximation. Compared to time propagation, our method offers reduced computational cost at the same level of approximation, but the idea can also be used within other approximations or as a basis for numerically exact techniques. We demonstrate the method’s capabilities by investigating the impact of lead dimensionality on electronic transport in the nonequilibrium Anderson impurity model at the onset of Kondo physics. Our results reveal a distinct signature of one dimensional leads in the noise and Fano factor not present for other dimensionalities, showing the potential of FCS measurements as a probe of the environment surrounding a quantum dot.