Quantum dots in strong magnetic fields: stability criteria for the maximum density droplet

In this article we discuss the ground state of a parabolically confined quantum dot in the limit of very strong magnetic fields where the electron system is completely spin-polarised and all electrons are in the lowest Landau level. Without electron-electron interactions the ground state is a single Slater determinant corresponding to a droplet centred on the minimum of the confinement potential and occupying the minimum area allowed by the Pauli exclusion principle. Electron-electron interactions favour droplets of larger area. We derive exact criteria for the stability of the maximum density droplet against edge excitations and against the introduction of holes in the interior of the droplet. The possibility of obtaining exact results in the strong magnetic field case is related to important simplifications associated with broken time-reversal symmetry in a strong magnetic field.