Electron transport through interacting quantum dots in the metallic regime

We present a detailed theoretical investigation of the effect of Coulomb interactions on electron transport through quantum dots and double-barrier structures connected to a voltage source via an arbitrary linear impedance. Combining real time path integral techniques with the scattering matrix approach, we derive the effective action and evaluate the current-voltage characteristics of quantum dots at sufficiently large conductances. Our analysis reveals a rich variety of different regimes, which we specify in detail for the case of chaotic quantum dots. At sufficiently low energies the interaction correction to the current depends logarithmically on temperature and voltage. We identify two different logarithmic regimes with the crossover between them occurring at energies of order of the inverse dwell time of electrons in the dot. We also analyze the frequency-dependent shot noise in chaotic quantum dots and elucidate its direct relation to interaction effects in mesoscopic electron transport.