Transfer-matrix approach to the problem of electrical conduction through a series of absorbers

Abstract

Here we study incoherent transport through molecular wire treated as a linear chain of absorbers, where the phase-breaking processes are modeled by the use of imaginary point-like potentials. The calculations are performed within a transfer-matrix method of the scattering theory. An analytic expression for the transmission of a finite chain in obtained, while the electrical current is then computed with the help of the Tsu-Esaki formula. In particular, it is shown that the maximal current dependence on the wire length is exponential.