Wave function multifractality and dephasing at metal-insulator and quantum Hall transitions

We analyze the critical behavior of the dephasing rate induced by short-range electron-electron interaction near an Anderson transition of metal-insulator or quantum Hall type. The corresponding exponent characterizes the scaling of the transition width with temperature. Assuming no spin degeneracy, the critical behavior can be studied by performing the scaling analysis in the vicinity of the non-interacting fixed point, since the latter is stable with respect to the interaction. We combine an analytical treatment (that includes the identification of operators responsible for dephasing in the formalism of the non-linear sigma-model and the corresponding renormalization-group analysis in 2 + epsilon dimensions) with numerical simulations on the Chalker-Coddington network model of the quantum Hall transition. Finally, we discuss the current understanding of the Coulomb interaction case and the available experimental data. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.