TL;DR: In this article, a first-principles theory of the quasiparticle energies in semiconductors and insulators described in terms of the electron self-energy operator is presented.
Abstract: We present a first-principles theory of the quasiparticle energies in semiconductors and insulators described in terms of the electron self-energy operator. The full dielectric matrix is used to evaluate the self-energy operator in the GW approximation: the first term in an expansion of the self-energy operator in terms of the dynamically screened Coulomb interaction (W) and the dressed Green's function (G). Quasiparticle energies are calculated for the homopolar materials diamond, Si, and Ge as well as for the ionic compound LiCl. The results are in excellent agreement with available experimental data. In particular, the indirect band gap is calculated as 5.5, 1.29, and 0.75 eV as compared with experimental gaps of 5.48, 1.17, and 0.744 eV for diamond, Si, and Ge, respectively. The Ge results include relativistic effects. The calculated direct gap for LiCl is within 5% of experiment. Viewed as a correction to the density-functional eigenvalues calculated with the local-density approximation, the present results show a correction dominated by a large jump at the gap. It is found that because of the charge inhomogeneity, the full dielectric screening matrix must be included, i.e., local-field effects are essential. The dynamical effects are also found to be crucial. The required dielectric matrices are obtained within the density-functional approach for the static case and extended to finite frequency with use of a generalized plasmon-pole model based on sum rules. The model reproduces the \ensuremath{\omega} and ${\ensuremath{\omega}}^{\mathrm{\ensuremath{-}}1}$ moments of the exact many-body response function. The qualitative features of the electron self-energy operator are discussed. Using the static Coulomb-hole--screened-exchange approximation for illustration, the role of local fields in the self-energy operator are explained. The role of dynamical renormalization is illustrated. The same qualitative features are observed in both the homopolar and ionic materials.
TL;DR: In this article, a condition for boundary Majorana fermions is expressed as a condition on the bulk electron spectrum, which is satisfied in the presence of an arbitrary small energy gap induced by proximity of a 3D p-wave superconductor.
Abstract: Certain one-dimensional Fermi systems have an energy gap in the bulk spectrum while boundary states are described by one Majorana operator per boundary point. A finite system of length L possesses two ground states with an energy difference proportional to exp(-L/l0) and different fermionic parities. Such systems can be used as qubits since they are intrinsically immune to decoherence. The property of a system to have boundary Majorana fermions is expressed as a condition on the bulk electron spectrum. The condition is satisfied in the presence of an arbitrary small energy gap induced by proximity of a three-dimensional p-wave superconductor, provided that the normal spectrum has an odd number of Fermi points in each half of the Brillouin zone (each spin component counts separately).
TL;DR: In this article, the authors define a set of generalized density matrices for the Hermitean density matrix of order $k, which is further antisymmetric in each set of these indices.
Abstract: In order to calculate the average value of a physical quantity containing also many-particle interactions in a system of $N$ antisymmetric particles, a set of generalized density matrices are defined. In order to permit the investigation of the same physical situation in two complementary spaces, the Hermitean density matrix of order $k$ has two sets of indices of each $k$ variables, and it is further antisymmetric in each set of these indices.Every normalizable antisymmetric wave function may be expanded in a series of determinants of order $N$ over all ordered configurations formed from a basic complete set of one-particle functions ${\ensuremath{\psi}}_{k}$, which gives a representation of the wave function and its density matrices also in the discrete $k$-space. The coefficients in an expansion of an eigenfunction to a particular operator may be determined by the variation principle, leading to the ordinary secular equation of the method of configurational interaction. It is shown that the first-order density matrix may be brought to diagonal form, which defines the "natural spin-orbitals" associated with the system. The situation is then partly characterized by the corresponding occupation numbers, which are shown to lie between 0 and 1 and to assume the value 1, only if the corresponding spin-orbital occurs in all configurations necessary for describing the situation. If the system has exactly $N$ spin-orbitals which are fully occupied, the total wave function may be reduced to a single Slater determinant. However, due to the mutual interaction between the particles, this limiting case is never physically realized, but the introduction of natural spin-orbitals leads then instead to a configurational expansion of most rapid convergence.In case the basic set is of finite order $M$, the best choice of this set is determined by a form of extended Hartree-Fock equations. It is shown that, in this case, the natural spin-orbitals approximately fulfill some equations previously proposed by Slater.
TL;DR: In this article, a condition for boundary Majorana fermions is expressed as a condition on the bulk electron spectrum, which is satisfied in the presence of an arbitrary small energy gap induced by proximity of a 3-dimensional p-wave superconductor, provided that the normal spectrum has an odd number of Fermi points in each half of the Brillouin zone.
Abstract: Certain one-dimensional Fermi systems have an energy gap in the bulk spectrum while boundary states are described by one Majorana operator per boundary point. A finite system of length $L$ possesses two ground states with an energy difference proportional to $\exp(-L/l_0)$ and different fermionic parities. Such systems can be used as qubits since they are intrinsically immune to decoherence. The property of a system to have boundary Majorana fermions is expressed as a condition on the bulk electron spectrum. The condition is satisfied in the presence of an arbitrary small energy gap induced by proximity of a 3-dimensional p-wave superconductor, provided that the normal spectrum has an odd number of Fermi points in each half of the Brillouin zone (each spin component counts separately).
TL;DR: In this article, a general principle for associating nonlinear equations evolutions with linear operators so that the eigenvalues of the linear operator integrals of the nonlinear equation can be found is presented, where the main tool used is the first remarkable series of integrals discovered by Kruskal and Zabusky.
Abstract: In Section 1 we present a general principle for associating nonlinear equations evolutions with linear operators so that the eigenvalues of the linear operator integrals of the nonlinear equation. A striking instance of such a procedure discovery by Gardner, Miura and Kruskal that the eigenvalues of the Schrodinger operator are integrals of the Korteweg-de Vries equation.
In Section 2 we prove the simplest case of a conjecture of Kruskal and Zabusky concerning the existence of double wave solutions of the Korteweg-de Vries equation, i.e., of solutions which for |I| large behave as the superposition of two solitary waves travelling at different speeds. The main tool used is the first of remarkable series of integrals discovered by Kruskal and Zabusky.