A theory of bipolaron states in quantum wires with a parabolic potential well is developed applying the Feynman variational principle. The basic parameters of the bipolaron ground state (the binding energy, the number of phonons in the bipolaron cloud, the effective mass, and the bipolaron radius) are studied as a function of sizes of the potential well. Two cases are considered in detail: a cylindrical quantum wire and a planar quantum wire. Analytical expressions for the bipolaron parameters are obtained at large and small sizes of the quantum well. It is shown that at $R\gg 1$ [where $R$ means the radius (half width) of a cylindrical (planar) quantum wire, expressed in Feynman units], the influence of confinement on the bipolaron binding energy is described by the function $\sim {1/R}^2$ for both cases, while at small sizes this influence is different in each case. In quantum wires, the bipolaron binding energy $W\left(R\right)\mathrm{}$ increases logarithmically with decreasing radius. The shapes and the sizes of a nanostructure, which are favorable for observation of stable bipolaron states, are determined.

• Received 8 January 1999

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.61.2721