Relaxation dynamics of the electron distribution in the Coulomb-blockade problem

We study the relaxation dynamics of electron distribution function on the island of a single-electron transistor. We focus on the regime of not very low temperatures in which an electron coherence can be neglected but quantum fluctuations of charge are strong due to Coulomb interaction. The quantum kinetic equation governing evolution of the electron distribution function due to escape of electrons to the reservoirs is derived. Analytical solutions for time dependence of the electron distribution are obtained in the regimes of weak and strong Coulomb blockade. We find that usual exponential in time relaxation is strongly modified due to the presence of Coulomb interaction.