Dynamical mean-field theories of correlation and disorder

Abstract

We provide a review of recently-develop dynamical mean-field theory (DMFT) approaches to the general problem of strongly correlated electronic systems with disorder. We first describe the standard DMFT approach, which is exact in the limit of large coordination, and explain why in its simplest form it cannot capture either Anderson localization or the glassy behavior of electrons. Various extensions of DMFT are then described, including statistical DMFT, typical medium theory, and extended DMFT, methods specifically designed to overcome the limitations of the original formulation. We provide an overview of the results obtained using these approaches, including the formation of electronic Griffiths phases, the self-organized criticality of the Coulomb glass, and the two-fluid behavior near Mott-Anderson transitions. Finally, we outline research directions that may provide a route to bridge the gap between the DMFT-based theories and the complementary diffusion-mode approaches to the metal-insulator transition.