Quantum transport in dispersionless electronic bands

Abstract

Flat electronic bands are counterintuitive: with the electron velocity vanishing, our conventional notions of quasiparticle transport are no longer valid. We here study the quantum transport in the generalized families of perfectly flat bands [PRB 105, L241102 (2022)], and find that while the conventional contributions indeed vanish, the quantum-geometric contribution gives rise to the enhanced electronic transport. This contribution is connected to the Wannier orbital quantization in the perfectly flat bands, and is present only for geometrically-nontrivial bands (for example, flat Chern bands). We find similar expressions for thermal conductance, thermoelectric response, and superfluid weight in the flat bands. In particular, we report the anomalous thermopower associated with flat topological bands reaching values as large as $\frac{k_B}{e}\ln 2$$\approx$60 $\mu$V/k, the quantum unit of thermopower, not expected in conventional dispersive bands.