Noise and transport in mesoscopics: Physics beyond the Landauer-büttiker formalism

The standard physical model of contemporary mesoscopic noise and transport consists in a phenomenologically based approach, proposed originally by Landauer and since continued and amplified by Büttiker, Imry and others. Throughout all the years of its gestation and growth, it is surprising that the Landauer-Büttiker approach to mesoscopics has matured with scant attention to the conserving properties lying at its roots: that is, at the level of actual microscopic principles. We systematically apply the sum rules for the electron gas to clarify the issue of conservation within the standard model of mesoscopic conduction. Noise, as observed in quantum point contacts, provides the vital clue.