Two-instanton approximation to the Coulomb blockade problem

Abstract

We develop the two-instanton approximation to the current-voltage characteristic of a single electron transistor within the Ambegaokar-Eckern-Schon model. We determine the temperature and gate voltage dependence of the Coulomb blockade oscillations of the conductance and the effective charge. We find that a small (in comparison with the charging energy) bias voltage leads to significant suppression of the Coulomb blockade oscillations and to appearance of the bias-dependent phase shift.