Table of contents

The sixth interdisciplinary conference 'Progress in Non-equilibrium Green's Functions' (PNGF6) took place at Lund University, Sweden, on 17-21 August 2015. The conference was attended by 60 scientists, from Europe and overseas, sharing an interest in Green's function methods and/or non-equilibrium phenomena. At the conference, 34 invited and contributed talks were given, together with a poster session with 17 contributions. As its predecessors (Rostock 1999, Dresden 2002, Kiel 2005, Glasgow 2009, Jyväskylä 2012) did, the conference succeeded in gathering different communities for the exchange of recent developments and results. Among the topics of the conference, we mention approaches for strongly correlated systems, improvements of existing perturbative many-body schemes, electron-phonon/-photon interactions in time-dependent treatments, numerical scalability of NEGF approaches, connections with other non-equilibrium methods and concrete physical applications. For the latter, we mention quantum transport, semiconductor kinetics, multiply excited states in atoms and ions, nuclear reactions, high energy physics, quantum cascade lasers, strongly correlated model systems, graphene-nanostructures, optoelectronics, superconductors, spin-dynamics, photovoltaics, excitations in atoms and ions and time-resolved spectroscopy. The present volume contains 20 articles from participants of PNGF6, devoted to these topics.

Compared to previous conferences, a completely novel and successful aspect of PNGF6 was the participation of experimentalists among the invited speakers, to establish a connection between emerging experimental techniques (for example, time-dependent spectroscopies) and the theoretical NEGF community. As at the previous PNGF conferences, the atmosphere was friendly and exciting at the same time, favoring vivid and stimulating discussions among experienced scientists, young researchers and students.

The conference would not have been possible without financial support from the Swedish VR and from the "Christian-Albrechts-Universität-Kiel via the Kiel nano- and surface- science center (KinSis). Particular thanks go to Katarina Lindqvist, the administrator at the division of Mathematical Physics in Lund, who provided assistance in many different matters, in particular in making the conference unfold very smoothly. We also acknowledge the contributors to this volume for their papers and all the referees of the manuscripts.

Finally, we are glad to announce that the seventh conference 'Progress in Nonequilibrium Green's Functions' (PNGF7) is organized by Andrea Marini and Gianluca Stefanucci, and it will take place in August 2018 in Rome, Italy. Arrivederci in Roma!

All papers published in this volume of Journal of Physics: Conference Series have been peer reviewed through processes administered by the proceedings Editors. Reviews were conducted by expert referees to the professional and scientific standards expected of a proceedings journal published by IOP Publishing.

The recently introduced auxiliary Hamiltonian approach [Balzer K and Eckstein M 2014 Phys. Rev. B89 035148] maps the problem of solving the two-time Kadanoff-Baym equations onto a noninteracting auxiliary system with additional bath degrees of freedom. While the original paper restricts the discussion to spatially local self-energies, we show that there exists a rather straightforward generalization to treat also non-local correlation effects. The only drawback is the loss of time causality due to a combined singular value and eigen decomposition of the two-time self-energy, the application of which inhibits one to establish the self-consistency directly on the time step. For derivation and illustration of the method, we consider the Hubbard model in one dimension and study the decay of the Néel state in the weak-coupling regime, using the local and non-local second-order Born approximation.

The nonequilibrium variational-cluster approach is applied to study the real-time dynamics of the double occupancy in the one-dimensional Fermi-Hubbard model after different fast changes of hopping parameters. A simple reference system, consisting of isolated Hubbard dimers, is used to discuss different aspects of the numerical implementation of the approach in the general framework of nonequilibrium self-energy functional theory. Opposed to a direct solution of the Euler equation, its time derivative is found to serve as numerically tractable and stable conditional equation to fix the time-dependent variational parameters.

In this work we investigate the spectral and transport properties of a single correlated layer attached to two metallic leads, with particular focus on the low-energy physics. A steady state current is driven across the layer by applying a bias voltage between the leads. Extending previous work we introduce a nonzero temperature in the leads, which enables us to study the influence of quasiparticle excitations on the transport characteristics in detail. Even though the system is clearly three dimensional we obtain current-voltage curves that closely resemble those of single quantum dots. Furthermore, a splitting of the quasiparticle excitation with bias voltage is observed in the spectral function.

We describe a first-principles NonEquilibrium Green's Function (NEGF) approach to time-resolved photoabsortion spectroscopy in atomic and nanoscale systems. The method is used to highlight a recently discovered dynamical correlation effect in the spectrum of a Krypton gas subject to a strong ionizing pump pulse. We propose a minimal model that captures the effect, and study the performance of time-local approximations versus time-nonlocal ones. In particular we implement the time-local Hartree-Fock and Markovian second Born (2B) approximation as well as the exact adiabatic approximation within the Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory framework. For the time-nonlocal approximation we instead use the 2B one. We provide enough convincing evidence for the fact that a proper description of the spectrum of an evolving admixture of ionizing atoms requires the simultaneous occurrence of correlation and memory effects.

A unified diagrammatic treatment of single and double electron photoemission currents is presented. The irreducible lesser density-density response function is the starting point of these derivations. Diagrams for higher order processes in which several electrons are observed in coincidence can likewise be obtained. For physically relevant situations, in which the photoemission cross-section can be written as the Fermi Golden rule, the diagrams from the nonequilibrium Green's function approach can be put in direct correspondence with the diagrams of the scattering theory.

The availability of ultra-short and strong light sources opens the door for a variety of new experiments such as transient absorption, where optical properties of systems can be studied in extreme nonequilibrium situations. The nonequilibrium Green's function formalism is an efficient approach to investigate these processes theoretically. Here we apply the method to the light-matter interaction of the magnesium 2p core level accompanied by electron-plasmon interaction due to collective excitations in the conduction band. The plasmons are described as massive bosonic quasi-particle excitations, leading to a second-order equations of motion, requiring a new approach for their propagation.

We employ Non-equilibrium Green's functions (NEGF) to describe the real-time dynamics of an adsorbate-surface model system exposed to ultrafast laser pulses. For a finite number of electronic orbitals, the system is solved exactly and within different levels of approximation. Specifically i) the full exact quantum mechanical solution for electron and nuclear degrees of freedom is used to benchmark ii) the Ehrenfest approximation (EA) for the nuclei, with the electron dynamics still treated exactly. Then, using the EA, electronic correlations are treated with NEGF within iii) 2nd Born and with iv) a recently introduced hybrid scheme, which mixes 2nd Born self-energies with non-perturbative, local exchange- correlation potentials of Density Functional Theory (DFT). Finally, the effect of a semi-infinite substrate is considered: we observe that a macroscopic number of de-excitation channels can hinder desorption. While very preliminary in character and based on a simple and rather specific model system, our results clearly illustrate the large potential of NEGF to investigate atomic desorption, and more generally, the non equilibrium dynamics of material surfaces subject to ultrafast laser fields.

In this contribution, we review the time-dependent generalized-active-space configuration interaction (TD-GAS-CI) approach to the photoionization dynamics of atoms and molecules including electron correlation effects. It is based on the configuration interaction (CI) expansion of the many-body wave function and the restriction of the determinantal space to a reduced subspace. For its numerically efficient application to photoionization, a partially-rotated basis set is used which adopts features of a localized basis with a good reference description and a grid representation for escaping wave packets. After reviewing earlier applications of the theory, we address the strong-field ionization of a one-dimensional model of the four-electron LiH molecule using TD-GAS-CI and demonstrate the importance of electron-electron correlations in the ionization yield for different orientations of the molecule w.r.t the peak of the linearly polarized laser field. A pronounced orientation-dependent variation of the yield with the pulse duration and the level of considered electron-electron correlations is observed.

We demonstrate that the widely used multi-configuration time-dependent Hartree- Fock method is restricted to a certain class of applications and fails for scenarios where periods of low entanglement occur during the propagation. By using illustrative and physically relevant examples, based on the Hubbard model of solid state physics, we show the existence of serious instabilities in the method itself and demonstrate that the method does not converge with respect to electron correlations. Possible cures of the approach are discussed.

Nonequilibrium Green's functions represent a promising tool for describing central nuclear reactions. Even at the single-particle level, though, the Green's functions contain more information that computers may handle in the foreseeable future. In this study, we explore slab collisions in one dimension, first in the mean field approximation and demonstrate that only function elements close to the diagonal in arguments are relevant, in practice, for the reaction calculations. This bodes well for the application of the Green's functions to the reactions. Moreover we demonstrate that an initial state for a reaction calculation may be generated through adiabatic transformation of interactions. Finally, we report on our progress in incorporating correlations into the dynamic calculations.

Linear density response functions are calculated for symmetric nuclear matter of normal density by time-evolving two-time Green's functions in real time. Of particular interest is the effect of correlations. The system is therefore initially time-evolved with a collision term calculated in a direct Born approximation until fully correlated. An external time-dependent potential is then applied. The ensuing density fluctuations are recorded to calculate the density response. This method was previously used by Kwong and Bonitz for studying plasma oscillations in a correlated electron gas. The energy-weighted sum-rule for the response function is guaranteed by using conserving self-energy insertions as the method then generates the full vertex-functions. These can alternatively be calculated by solving a Bethe -Salpeter equation as done in works by Bozek et al. The (first order) mean field is derived from a momentum-dependent (non-local) interaction while 2^nd order self-energies are calculated using a particle-hole two-body effective (or residual) interaction given by a gaussian local potential.

We show results of calculations of the response function S(ɷ,q₀) for q₀ = 0.2, 0.4 and 0.8fm^-1. Comparison is made with the nucleons being un-correlated i.e. with only the first order mean field included.

We discuss the relation of our work with the Landau quasi-particle theory as applied to nuclear systems by Babu and Brown and followers.

We study the exciton dynamics in an optically excited nanocrystal quantum dot. Multiple exciton formation is more efficient in nanocrystal quantum dots compared to bulk semiconductors due to enhanced Coulomb interactions and the absence of conservation of momentum. The formation of multiple excitons is dependent on different excitation parameters and the dissipation. We study this process within a Lindblad quantum rate equation using the full many-particle states. We optically excite the system by creating a single high energy exciton E_SX in resonance to a double exciton E_DX. With Coulomb electron-electron interaction, the population can be transferred from the single exciton to the double exciton state by impact ionisation (inverse Auger process). The ratio between the recombination processes and the absorbed photons provide the yield of the structure. We observe a quantum yield of comparable value to experiment assuming typical experimental conditions for a 4 nm PbS quantum dot.

In this work we include electron-electron interaction beyond Hartree-Fock level in our non-equilibrium Green's function approach by a crude form of GW through the Single Plasmon Pole Approximation. This is achieved by treating all conduction band electrons as a single effective band screening the Coulomb potential. We describe the corresponding self-energies in this scheme for a multi-subband system. In order to apply the formalism to heterostructures we discuss the screening and plasmon dispersion in both 2D and 3D systems. Results are shown for a four well quantum cascade laser with different doping concentration where comparisons to experimental findings can be made.

We review a time-dependent slave bosons approach within the non-equilibrium Green's function technique to analyze the charge and spin pumping in a strongly interacting quantum dot. We study the pumped current as a function of the pumping phase and of the dot energy level and show that a parasitic current arises, beyond the pure pumping one, as an effect of the dynamical constraints. We finally illustrate an all-electrical mean for spin-pumping and discuss its relevance for spintronics applications.

In spite of the absent friction of super-currents, normal currents affect the superconducting condensate. The BCS approach with Bogoliubov-Valutin quasiparticles is not suited for description of the normal current near the critical line. We review an alternative theory of the non-equilibrium superconductivity dealing exclusively with normal-state quasiparticles. It is based on the Thouless T-matrix criterion, which is extended to non-equilibrium. The problem of selfconsistency of the T-matrix in the superconducting state is examined and solved with the help of the multiple-scattering theory.

We discuss an extension of our earlier work on the time-dependent Landauer- Buttiker formalism for noninteracting electronic transport. The formalism can without complication be extended to superconducting central regions since the Green's functions in the Nambu representation satisfy the same equations of motion which, in turn, leads to the same closed expression for the equal-time lesser Green's function, i.e., for the time-dependent reduced one-particle density matrix. We further write the finite-temperature frequency integrals in terms of known special functions thereby considerably speeding up the computation. Simulations in simple normal metal - superconductor - normal metal junctions are also presented.

Recently [Phys. Rev. B 91, 125433 (2015)] we derived a general formula for the time-dependent quantum electron current through a molecular junction subject to an arbitrary time-dependent bias within the Wide Band Limit Approximation (WBLA) and assuming a single particle Hamiltonian. Here we present an efficient numerical scheme for calculating the current and particle number. Using the Padé expansion of the Fermi function, it is shown that all frequency integrals occurring in the general formula for the current can be removed analytically. When the bias in the reservoirs is assumed to be sinusoidal it is possible to manipulate the general formula into a form containing only summations over special functions. To illustrate the method, we consider electron transport through a one-dimensional molecular wire coupled to two leads subject to out-of-phase biases. We also investigate finite size effects in the current response and particle number that result from the switch-on of this bias.

Using non-equilibrium Green's functions combined with many-body perturbation theory, we have calculated steady-state densities and currents through short interacting chains subject to a finite electric bias. By using a steady-state reverse-engineering procedure, the effective potential and bias which reproduce such densities and currents in a non-interacting system have been determined. The role of the effective bias is characterised with the aid of the so-called exchange-correlation bias, recently introduced in a steady-state density-functional- theory formulation for partitioned systems. We find that the effective bias (or, equivalently, the exchange-correlation bias) depends strongly on the interaction strength and the length of the central (chain) region. Moreover, it is rather sensitive to the level of many-body approximation used. Our study shows the importance of the effective/exchange-correlation bias out of equilibrium, thereby offering hints on how to improve the description of density- functional-theory based approaches to quantum transport.

Retarded contact self-energies in the framework of nonequilibrium Green's functions allow to model the impact of lead structures on the device without explicitly including the leads in the actual device calculation. Most of the contact self-energy algorithms are limited to homogeneous or periodic, semi-infinite lead structures. In this work, the complex absorbing potential method is extended to solve retarded contact self-energies for arbitrary lead structures, including irregular and randomly disordered leads. This method is verified for regular leads against common approaches and on physically equivalent, but numerically different irregular leads. Transmission results on randomly alloyed In_0.5Ga_0.5As structures show the importance of disorder in the leads. The concept of retarded contact self-energies is expanded to model passivation of atomically resolved surfaces without explicitly increasing the device's Hamiltonian.

We present an ongoing development of an existing code for calculating ground- state, steady-state, and transient properties of many-particle systems. The development involves the addition of the full four-index two electron integrals, which allows for the calculation of transport systems, as well as the extension to multi-level electronic systems, such as atomic and molecular systems and other applications. The necessary derivations are shown, along with some preliminary results and a summary of future plans for the code.