Quantum transport in disordered systems under magnetic fields: A study based on operator algebras

Abstract

The linear conductivity tensor for generic homogeneous, microscopic quantum models was formulated as a noncommutative Kubo formula in Refs. \cite{BELLISSARD:1994xj,Schulz-Baldes:1998vm,Schulz-Baldes:1998oq}. This formula was derived directly in the thermodynamic limit, within the framework of $C^*$-algebras and noncommutative calculi defined over infinite spaces. As such, the numerical implementation of the formalism encountered fundamental obstacles. The present work defines a $C^*$-algebra and an approximate noncommutative calculus over a finite real-space torus, which naturally leads to an approximate finite-volume noncommutative Kubo formula, amenable on a computer. For finite temperatures and dissipation, it is shown that this approximate formula converges exponentially fast to its thermodynamic limit, which is the exact noncommutative Kubo formula. The approximate noncommutative Kubo formula is then deconstructed to a form that is implementable on a computer and simulations of the quantum transport in a 2-dimensional disordered lattice gas in a magnetic field are presented.