Tunneling Current Spectra of a Metal Core/Semiconductor Shell Quantum Dot Molecule

The transport properties of a metal core/semiconductor shell quantum dot molecule (QDM) embedded in a matrix connected to metallic electrodes are theoretically studied in the framework of Keldysh Green function technique. The effects of the electron plasmon interactions (EPIs) on the tunneling current spectra of QDM are examined. The energy levels of the QDs, intradot and interdot Coulomb interactions, electron interdot hopping strengths, and tunneling rates of QDs are renormalized by the EPIs. The differential conductance spectra show peaks arising from the plasmon assisted tunneling process, intradot and interdot Coulomb interactions, and coherent tunneling between the QDs.