Quantum criticality and emergent symmetry in coupled quantum dots

We consider strongly correlated regimes which emerge at low temperature in coupled quantum dot (or magnetic impurity) systems. In strongly correlated systems a single particle description fails to explain the observed behaviour, so we resort to many body methods. We describe our system using a 2-impurity Anderson model and develop a numerical renormalisation group procedure which provides non-perturbative insight into the low energy behaviour, through calculation of dynamic quantities. We combine this approach with renormalised perturbation theory, thus acquiring a picture of how the Hamiltonian and interactions change at low energies. These approaches are first used to study the emergence of a Kondo effect with an SU(4) symmetry in capacitively-coupled double quantum dot systems. We classify the 'types' of SU(4) symmetry which can emerge and show how an experimentalist might achieve such emergence through tuning their system. We provide a way of distinguishing between the SU(2) and SU(4) Kondo regimes by considering the conductance. We also study a quantum critical point which occurs in the Heisenberg coupled quantum dot/impurity model. There is an anomalous entropy contributed by the impurities in this regime which is indicative of an uncoupled Majorana Fermion. We calculate dynamic quantities in regimes with different symmetries and establish correspondence with the 2-channel Kondo model. We formulate possible pictures of the underlying mechanisms of the critical point and construct a Majorana fermion model for the case with particle-hole symmetry, which explains the non-Fermi liquid energy levels and degeneracies obtained. We conjecture that a Majorana zero mode is present, and that this is responsible for the anomalous entropy.Open Acces