Fluctuation conductivity in insulator-superconductor transitions with dissipation

We analyze here the fluctuation conductivity in the vicinity of the critical point in a 2D Josephson junction array shunted by an Ohmic resistor. We find that, at the Gaussian level, the conductivity acquires a logarithmic dependence on T/m ( m is the inverse correlation length) when the dissipation is sufficiently small. In the renormalized classical regime, this logarithmic dependence gives rise to a leveling off of the resistivity at low to intermediate temperatures when fluctuations are included. We show, however, that this trend does not persist to T=0 at which point the resistivity vanishes. The possible relationship of the leveling of the resistivity to the low temperature transport in granular superconductors is discussed.     

Even-odd effect in spontaneously coherent bilayer quantum Hall droplets

Using exact diagonalization in the disk geometry we predict a novel even-odd effect in the Coulomb-blockade spectra of vertically coupled double quantum dots under an external magnetic field. The even-odd effect in the tunneling conductance is a direct manifestation of spontaneous interlayer phase coherence, and is similar to the even-odd resonance in the Cooper pair box problem in mesoscopic superconducting grains. Coherent fluctuations in the number of Cooper pairs in superconductors are analogous to the fluctuations in the relative number difference between the two layers in quantum Hall droplets.     

Superconductivity in a doped mott insulator

Starting from the d-wave resonating-valence-bond mean-field theory of Kotliar and Liu, we present a new, long-wavelength/low-energy exact, treatment of gauge fluctuations. The result is a theory of gapless fermion quasiparticles coupled to superconducting phase fluctuations. We will discuss the physical implications, and the similarity and differences to a theory of superconductors with phase fluctuations.     

Self-organization of the critical state in granular superconductors

The critical state in granular superconductors is studied using two mathematical models: systems of differential equations for the gauge-invariant phase difference and a simplified model that is described by a system of coupled mappings and in many cases is equivalent to the standard models used for studying self-organized criticality. It is shown that the critical state of granular superconductors is self-organized in all cases studied. In addition, it is shown that the models employed are essentially equivalent, i.e., they demonstrate not only the same critical behavior, but they also lead to the same noncritical phenomena. The first demonstration of the existence of self-organized criticality in a system of nonlinear differential equations and its equivalence to self-organized criticality in standard models is given in this paper.     

Pseudogap and spin fluctuations in the normal state of the electron-doped cuprates

We present reliable many-body calculations for the t-t(')-t(')-U Hubbard model that explain in detail the results of recent angle-resolved photoemission experiments on electron-doped high-temperature superconductors. The origin of the pseudogap is traced to two-dimensional antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations whose calculated temperature-dependent correlation length also agrees with recent neutron scattering measurements. We make specific predictions for photoemission, for neutron scattering, and for the phase diagram.     

Velocity correlations in dense granular flows

Velocity fluctuations of grains flowing down a rough inclined plane are experimentally studied. The grains at the free surface exhibit fluctuating motions, which are correlated over a few grain diameters. The characteristic correlation length is shown to depend on the inclination of the plane and not on the thickness of the flowing layer. This result strongly supports the idea that dense granular flows are controlled by a characteristic length larger than the particle diameter.     

Exact results for the crossover from Gaussian to non-Gaussian order parameter fluctuations in quasi-one-dimensional electronic systems

The physics of quasi-one-dimensional Peierls systems is dominated by order parameter fluctuations. We present an algorithm which allows us for the first time to exactly calculate physical properties of the electrons gas coupled to classical order parameter fluctuations. The whole range from the Gaussian regime dominated by amplitude fluctuations to the non-Gaussian regime dominated by phase fluctuations is accessible. Our results provide insight into the "pseudogap" phenomenon occurring in underdoped high- T(c) superconductors, quasi-one-dimensional organic conductors, and liquid metals.     

Observation of lateral long range order in superconducting FeTe thin films

<正>We find that the superconductivity in the thin films of the formerly believed non-superconducting parent compound FeTe is accompanied by an emergence of second order with a correlation length of 742 nm and 258 nm at 10 K and 300 K,respectively.The structural phase transition found in iron pnictide superconductors,in non-superconducting FeTe bulk samples,and in FeSe superconducting thin films is not observed in the superconducting FeTe thin films.The interplay between superconductivity and long range order may suggest the crucial role of competition between electronic localization and itinerancy which leads to strong quantum fluctuations in the FeTe system.     

Superconductivity and spin fluctuations

In the conventional superconductors, the Cooper pairs are mediated by phonons, which is a process where only the correlations between the phonons and the charge properties of the electrons are needed. However, superconductivity can also be derived from other types of elementary excitations. The spin fluctuations are arguably the most promising candidate that can mediate such unconventional superconductivity. In some of the important systems such as cuprates, Fe-based superconductors and heavy-fermion superconductors, spin fluctuations play a key role in the mechanism of their superconductivity although there are still many debates. In this paper, we will give a brief review on the correlation between the spin fluctuations and superconductivity.     

Piezomagnetism and stress-induced paramagnetic Meissner effect in mechanically loaded high-T c granular superconductors

Two novel phenomena in a weakly coupled granular superconductor under an applied stress are predicted on the basis of a recently suggested piezophase effect (a macroscopic quantum analog of the piezo-electric effect). Namely, the existence of a stress-induced paramagnetic moment in zero applied magnetic field (piezomagnetism) is considered, and its influence on the low-field magnetization (leading to a mechanically induced paramagnetic Meissner effect) is investigated. The conditions under which these effects can be experimentally measured in high-T _c granular superconductors are discussed. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 70, No. 1, 36–41 (10 July 1999) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Edited by Steve Torstveit.     

Phase fluctuations in strongly coupled d-wave superconductors

We present a numerically exact solution for the BCS Hamiltonian at any temperature, including the degrees of freedom associated with classical phase, as well as amplitude fluctuations via a Monte Carlo integration. This allows for an investigation over the whole range of couplings: from weak attraction, as in the well-known BCS limit, to the mainly unexplored strong-coupling regime of pronounced phase fluctuations. In the latter, two characteristic temperatures T(*) and T(c), associated with short- and long-range ordering, respectively, can be identified in a mean-field-motivated Hamiltonian. T(*) at the same time corresponds to the opening of a gap in the excitation spectrum. In addition to introducing a novel procedure to study strongly coupled d-wave superconductors, our results indicate that classical phase fluctuations are not sufficient to explain the pseudogap features of high-temperature superconductors.     

高温超导体中的赝隙与超导位相涨落

高温超导体赝隙态与超导态之间的关系一直是研究的焦点.交流电导和能斯特（Nernst）效应测量相继探测到超导转变温度Tc0以上温区一定范围内存在磁通涡旋激发,利用力矩技术的磁化率测量则探测到超导涨落引起的弱抗磁性.这些发现都支持了高温超导体赝隙相中存在有限的超导序参量振幅和强烈的位相涨落的图像,说明Tc0处的相变是由库珀对之间长程位相关联的消失所驱动的.文章首先简短地介绍高温超导体的电子态相图和赝隙态,以及能斯特效应的原理和测量方法,然后对能斯特效应的测量结果作一评述性介绍,还讨论了相关的理论模型.     

Pseudogap Fermi-Bose Kondo model

We consider a magnetic impurity coupled to both fermionic quasiparticles with a pseudogap density of states and bosonic spin fluctuations. Using renormalization group and large-N calculations we investigate the phase diagram of the resulting Fermi-Bose Kondo model. We show that the Kondo temperature is strongly reduced by low-energy spin fluctuations, and make connections to experiments in cuprate superconductors. Furthermore, we derive an exact exponent for the critical behavior of the conduction electron T matrix, and propose our findings to be relevant for certain scenarios of local quantum criticality in heavy-fermion metals.     

Energy structure of high-temperature superconductors with the intersite Coulomb interaction

The effect of the intersite Coulomb interaction of fermions on the ground state and energy structure of high-temperature superconductors is considered within the three-band Emery model using an extended basis of the irreducible operators orthogonal on Mori. The proposed theory allows prediction of bands of the fluctuation states whose spectral intensity grows with an increase in the root-mean-square fluctuations of the occupation numbers. The increase in these fluctuations in high-temperature superconductors upon doping plays a key role in redistribution of the integrated density of the Fermi states.     

Noise, coherent fluctuations, and the onset of order in an oscillated granular fluid

We study fluctuations in a vertically oscillated layer of grains below the critical acceleration for the onset of ordered standing waves. As onset is approached, transient disordered waves with a characteristic length scale emerge and increase in power and coherence. The scaling behavior and the shift in the onset of order agrees with the Swift-Hohenberg theory for convection in fluids. However, the noise in the granular system is an order of magnitude larger than the thermal noise in the most sensitive convecting fluid experiments to date; the effect of the granular noise is observable 20% below the onset of order.     

铁基超导体系基于电子关联强度的统一相图

铁基超导和铜基超导具有诸多相似性,这为建立统一的高温超导机理图像提供了可能性.然而,对铁基超导体系中无论是进行电荷掺杂、还是等价掺杂来改变化学压力,都能产生定性上类似、而细节上纷繁复杂的相图,这对建立统一的图像造成了困难.研究化学掺杂效应如何在微观上影响电子结构和超导电性,区分主导超导电性演化的主要因素和次要因素,对建立统一图像和揭示高温超导机理至关重要.本文综述了对铁基超导体系中化学掺杂效应的一系列角分辨光电子能谱研究,涵盖了基于FeAs和FeSe面的多种代表性铁基超导体系,包括异价掺杂、等价掺杂、在元胞不同位置的化学掺杂,及其对电子体系在费米面结构、杂质散射、电子关联强度等方面的影响.实验结果表明：电子关联性或能带宽度是多个铁基超导相图背后的普适参数,不同的晶格和杂质散射效应导致了并不重要的复杂细节,而费米面拓扑结构与超导电性的关联并不强.这些结果对弱耦合机理图像提出了挑战,并促使人们通过局域反铁磁交换作用配对图像在带宽演化层面上统一地理解铁基超导.     

Theory and experimental evidence for superconductors with short coherence length

We sketch the theory of London superconductors with a complex order parameter undergoing a phase transition dominated by thermal fluctuations. This theory is essentially that of superfluid helium, appropriately modified. We derive relations between the transition temperatureT _c , the London penetration depth, the phase correlation length, the fall ofT _c with reduced thickness in thin slabs and the associated appearance of Kosterlitz-Thouless behavior. AtH _c2 thermal fluctuations drive the transition first order. Accordingly, magnetic properties will exhibit hysteresis phenomena and glassy behavior. Our analysis of recent specific heat and SR measurements and of experiments on ultrathin slabs as well as the experimental evidence for hysteresis phenomena and glassy behavior in magnetic properties reveal that this theory describes a large class of superconductors that encompasses the cuprates, bismuthates and fullerenes.     

Capillarylike fluctuations at the interface of falling granular jets

We study the interface fluctuations of a granular jet falling under gravity and show that for small scales they are the analog of the thermally induced capillary waves. Experimental results from radial height and velocity fluctuations, static correlation functions and capillary ripple velocities allow us to estimate a granular surface tension. The ultralow interfacial tensions measured (of the order of 100 microN/m) can be rationalized using a simple model.     

Giant proximity effect in a phase-fluctuating superconductor

When a tunneling barrier between two superconductors is formed by a normal material that would be a superconductor in the absence of phase fluctuations, the resulting Josephson effect can undergo an enormous enhancement. We establish this novel proximity effect by a general argument as well as a numerical simulation and argue that it may underlie recent experimental observations of the giant proximity effect between two cuprate superconductors separated by a barrier made of the same material rendered normal by severe underdoping.