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arXiv:1901.04655 · Results in Physics

Super-Klein tunneling of Klein-Gordon particles

Kihong Kim

Published Jan 17, 2019• 18 citations

Abstract

We study the total transmission of quantum particles satisfying the Klein-Gordon equation through a potential barrier based on the classical wave propagation theory. We deduce an analytical expression for the wave impedance for Klein-Gordon particles. From the condition that the impedance is matched throughout the space, we show that super-Klein tunneling, which refers to the omnidirectional total transmission of particles through a potential barrier when the energy of the particle is equal to the half of the barrier potential, should occur in these systems. We also derive a condition for total transmission of Klein-Gordon particles in the presence of both scalar and vector potentials and discuss the influence of weak scattering at the interfaces on super-Klein tunneling. The theoretical predictions are confirmed by explicit numerical calculations of the transmittance based on the invariant imbedding method.

DOI: 10.1016/j.rinp.2019.01.029

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We study the total transmission of quantum particles satisfying the Klein-Gordon equation through a potential barrier based on the classical wave propagation theory. We deduce an analytical expression for the wave impedance for Klein-Gordon particles. From the condition that the impedance is matched throughout the space, we show that super-Klein tunneling, which refers to the omnidirectional total transmission of particles through a potential barrier when the energy of the particle is equal to the half of the barrier potential, should occur in these systems. We also derive a condition for total transmission of Klein-Gordon particles in the presence of both scalar and vector potentials and discuss the influence of weak scattering at the interfaces on super-Klein tunneling. The theoretical predictions are confirmed by explicit numerical calculations of the transmittance based on the invariant imbedding method.

We obtain the solutions for the tunneling zone of a one-dimensional electrostatic potential in the relativistic (Dirac to Klein–Gordon) wave equation regime when the incoming wave packet exhibits the possibility of being almost totally transmitted through the potential barrier. The conditions for the occurrence of accelerated and, eventually, superluminal tunneling transmission probabilities are all quantified and the problematic superluminal interpretation originated from the study based on non-relativistic dynamics of tunneling is reevaluated. The treatment of the problem suggests revealing insights into condensed-matter experiments using electrostatic barriers in single- and bi-layer graphenes, for which the accelerated tunneling effect deserves a more careful investigation.

We introduce a two-dimensional model of spin-1/2 Dirac fermions in graphene subjected to a highly tunable electric field, which exhibits super-Klein tunneling. The electric field can be continuously interpolated between two limiting configurations: a uniform electrostatic Lorentzian barrier with translational invariance and a chain of well-separated electrostatic scatterers. We demonstrate that super-Klein tunneling arises naturally as a direct consequence of the intrinsic connection of the model to free-particle dynamics, a relation that is established through methods of supersymmetric quantum mechanics, which provide an elegant and analytically tractable framework. Besides the mentioned super-Klein tunneling, scale invariance of the model and invisibility of the potential for particles of specific energy are revealed, and possible routes toward experimental realization are discussed.

Dirac particles can undergo perfect transmission through a sufficiently high potential barrier in the Klein zone. Although the perfect Klein tunneling (often referred to as the Klein paradox) is similar to the non-relativistic resonant transmission which occurs only when the kinetic energy exceeds the barrier, the underlying mechanism is believed to be fundamentally distinct. In this work, we show that for the relativistic double-barrier model the perfect-transmission curve can pass continuously from the above-barrier zone to the Klein zone. Additionally, in the Klein zone, perfect transmission occurs even for subcritical barrier heights, supported by both bound-state analysis and wave-packet dynamics. These findings suggest a connection between perfect Klein tunneling and resonant transmission, and provide new insights into the physical nature of the Klein paradox.

We analyse a little known aspect of the Klein paradox. A Klein-Gordon boson appears to be able to cross a supercritical rectangular barrier without being reflected, while spending there a negative amount of time. The transmission mechanism is demonstrably acausal, yet an attempt to construct the corresponding causal solution of the Klein-Gordon equation fails. We relate the causal solution to a divergent multiple-reflections series, and show that the problem is remedied for a smooth barrier, where pair production at the energy equal to a half of the barrier's height is enhanced yet remains finite.