Physics – Condensed Matter – Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Scientific paper
2006-01-09
Nature Physics 2, 336-340 (2006)
Physics
Condensed Matter
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
final version, modified introduction and clarifications, 4 pages
Scientific paper
10.1038/nphys293
Properties of the "electron gas" - in which conduction electrons interact by means of Coulomb forces but ionic potentials are neglected - change dramatically depending on the balance between kinetic energy and Coulomb repulsion. The limits are well understood. For very weak interactions (high density), the system behaves as a Fermi liquid, with delocalized electrons. In contrast, in the strongly interacting limit (low density), the electrons localize and order into a Wigner crystal phase. The physics at intermediate densities, however, remains a subject of fundamental research. Here, we study the intermediate-density electron gas confined to a circular disc, where the degree of confinement can be tuned to control the density. Using accurate quantum Monte Carlo techniques, we show that the electron-electron correlation induced by an increase of the interaction first smoothly causes rings, and then angular modulation, without any signature of a sharp transition in this density range. This suggests that inhomogeneities in a confined system, which exist even without interactions, are significantly enhanced by correlations.
Baranger Harold U.
Ghosal Amit
Guclu A. D.
Ullmo Denis
Umrigar Cyrus J.
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