Path integrals approach to resisitivity anomalies in anharmonic systems

Abstract

Different classes of physical systems with sizeable electron-phonon coupling and lattice distortions present anomalous resistivity behaviors versus temperature. We study a molecular lattice Hamiltonian in which polaronic charge carriers interact with non linear potentials provided by local atomic fluctuations between two equilibrium sites. We study a molecular lattice Hamiltonian in which polaronic charge carriers interact with non linear potentials provided by local atomic fluctuations between two equilibrium sites. A path integral model is developed to select the class of atomic oscillations which mainly contributes to the partition function and the electrical resistivity is computed in a number of representative cases. We argue that the common origin of the observed resistivity anomalies lies in the time retarded nature of the polaronic interactions in the local structural instabilities.

4 figures, to appear in Phys.Rev.B, May 1st (2001)

References in corpus (4)

• Mobile small polaron
• Polaron Effective Mass, Band Distortion, and Self-Trapping in the Holstein Molecular Crystal Model
• Lattice dynamics effects on small polaron properties
• Strongly correlated bistable sublattice and temperature hysteresis of elastic and thermal crystal properties

Cited by in corpus (1)

• Particle Path Correlations in a Phonon Bath