Multiscale approach to electron transport dynamics

Abstract

Molecular simulations of transport dynamics in nanostructures usually require the implementation of open quantum boundary conditions. This can be instrumented in different frameworks including Green's functions, absorbing potentials, or the driven Liouville von Neumann equation, among others. In any case, the application of these approaches involves the use of large electrodes that introduce a high computational demand when dealing with first-principles calculations. Here, we propose a hybrid scheme where the electrodes are described at a semiempirical, tight binding level, coupled to a molecule or device represented with density functional theory (DFT). This strategy allows us to use massive electrodes at a negligible computational cost, preserving the accuracy of the DFT method in the modeling of the transport properties, provided that the electronic structure of every lead is properly defined to behave as a conducting fermionic reservoir. We study the nature of the multiscale coupling and validate the methodology through the computation of the tunneling decay constant in polyacetylene and of quantum interference effects in an aromatic ring. The present implementation is applied both in microcanonical and grand-canonical frameworks, in the last case using the Driven Liouville von Neumann equation, discussing the advantages of one or the other. Finally, this multiscale scheme is employed to investigate the role of an electric field applied normally to transport in the conductance of polyacetylene. It is shown that the magnitude and the incidence angle of the applied field have a considerable effect on the electron flow, hence constituting an interesting tool for current control in nanocircuits.