Quantum transport through a multi-quantum-dot-pair chain side-coupled with Majorana bound states

We investigate the quantum transport properties through a special kind of quantum dot (QD) system composed of a serially coupled multi-QD-pair (multi-QDP) chain and side-coupled Majorana bound states (MBSs) by using the Green functions method, where the conductance can be classified into two kinds: the electron tunneling (ET) conductance and the Andreev reflection (AR) one. First we find that for the nonzero MBS-QDP coupling a sharp AR-induced zero-bias conductance peak with the height of e²/h is present (or absent) when the MBS is coupled to the far left (or the other) QDP. Moreover, the MBS-QDP coupling can suppress the ET conductance and strengthen the AR one, and further split into two sub-peaks each of the total conductance peaks of the isolated multi-QDPs, indicating that the MBS will make obvious influences on the competition between the ET and AR processes. Then we find that the tunneling rate Γ^L is able to affect the conductances of leads L and R in different ways, demonstrating that there exists a Γ^L-related competition between the AR and ET processes. Finally we consider the effect of the inter-MBS coupling on the conductances of the multi-QDP chains and it is shown that the inter-MBS coupling will split the zero-bias conductance peak with the height of e²/h into two sub-peaks. As the inter-MBS coupling becomes stronger, the two sub-peaks are pushed away from each other and simultaneously become lower, which is opposite to that of the single QDP chain where the two sub-peaks with the height of about e²/2h become higher. Also, the decay of the conductance sub-peaks with the increase of the MBS-QDP coupling becomes slower as the number of the QDPs becomes larger. This research should be an important extension in studying the transport properties in the kind of QD systems coupled with the side MBSs, which is helpful for understanding the nature of the MBSs, as well as the MBS-related QD transport properties.