The Nernst-Ettingshausen coefficient in hole-doped manganites

A systematic study of the Nernst-Ettingshausen coefficient (NEC) in hole-doped manganites of the LaMnO₃ and SmMnO₃ systems was carried out at temperatures both above and below the point of transition to the magnetically ordered state (T _c). The results obtained for T > T _c suggest that conduction is mediated here by small-radius polarons. For all the compositions studied, the Nernst mobilities at T = 300 K are small (of the order of 0.1–2 cm²/V s) and the carrier relaxation time at T > T _c increases with carrier energy. At temperatures below T _c, the NEC exhibits an anomalous behavior. The giant NEC effect was observed, which consists in a strong dependence of the NEC on applied magnetic field and the presence of a peak in the temperature dependence of the NEC at T ≈ T _c. Near the transition to the magnetically ordered state, the NEC follows a behavior similar to that of colossal magnetoresistance and giant magnetothermoelectric power. A possible origin of the anomalous NEC behavior at T < T _c is discussed.     

Doping effect on the carrier scattering in iron-pnictide superconductors studied by charge transport

In order to reveal the role of “carrier doping” in the iron-based superconductors, we investigated the transport properties of the oxygen-deficient iron-arsenides LnFeAsO_1−y (Ln=La, Ce, Pr and Nd) over a wide doping range. We found that the effect of “doping” in this system is mainly on the carrier scattering rather than carrier density, quite distinct from that in high-T_c cuprates. In the case of La system with lower T_c, the low temperature resistivity is dominated by T² term and fairly large magnetoresistance is observed. On the other hand, in the Nd system with higher T_c, carriers are subject to stronger scattering showing nearly T-linear resistivity and small magnetoresistance. Such strong scattering appears intimately correlated with high-T_c superconductivity in the iron-based system.     

Coherent state and superconductivity in the free carrier-bipolaron interacting system

In this paper a model to describe the free carrier-bipolaron interacting system is proposed. Effective hopping of the bipolaron is studied in the slave-boson approach, and a characteristic temperature T¹ is obtained, below which the system enters a coherent state. The density of states in the normal state and the superconductivity of the system are discussed in a quasiparticle picture. The results show that the mixing between the free carrier and the bipolaron results in an enhancement of the effective mass of the quasiparticle and meanwhile the renormalized coupling interaction, arising from the negative correlation energy in the bipolaron region, enhances the effective superconducting coupling interaction. Under the most favourable conditions, the superconducting transition temperature T_c ∼ ω_c, where ω_c is the Debye frequency related with local electron-phonon coupling. In general we have T¹ > T_c ⪢ T_c0 (T_c0 is the superconducting transition temperature of a usual superconductor). Therefore the system will firstly enter a coherent state before becoming a high-T_c superconductor.     

Superconductivity in two-band systems with a variable carrier density: The case of MgB<Subscript>2</Subscript>

A theory of the thermodynamic properties of a two-band superconductor with a low carrier density is developed; it is based on a phonon superconductivity mechanism with a strong electron-phonon coupling. This theory can describe the variation of the critical temperature T _c, the energy gaps Δ₁ and Δ₂, and the relative electronic specific heat jump (C _S ? C _N)/C _N at T = T _c with the carrier density in the compound MgB₂ when substitutional impurities of various valences are introduced into this system. The values of T _c, Δ₁, and Δ₂ are shown to decrease as this compound is doped by electrons and to remain constant (or almost constant) as it is doped by holes. This behavior follows from the mechanism of filling the σ and π energy bands, which overlap at the Fermi surface. The theory agrees qualitatively with experimental data. This agreement is found to be better when intra-and interband electron scattering by an impurity potential is taken into account.     

Nucleon propagator at finite temperature

We study the nucleon propagator at finite temperature in the framework of finite energy QCD sum rules. We find that the nucleon mass is approximately constant over a wide range of temperature, increasing sharply near the critical temperature for deconfinementT _c . The coupling of the nucleon to quarks is a monotonically decreasing function ofT, vanishing atT=T _c .     

Heat capacity of disordered and crystalline superconductors

Low temperature heat capacity measurements on disordered and crystalline Nb_0.26Zr_0.74 alloys show that the former has a much larger heat capacity jump (ΔC/γT_c ≈ 2.4) than the latter and that the disorder decreases the superconducting transition temperature (T_c) rather than enhances it.     

Mechanism of carrier generation and the origin of the pseudogap and 60 K phases in YBCO

The mechanism of hole carrier generation is considered in the framework of a model assuming the formation of negative U centers (NUCs) in HTSC materials under doping. The calculated dependences of carrier concentration on the doping level and temperature are in quantitative agreement with experiment. An explanation is proposed for the pseudogap and 60 K phases in YBa₂Cu₃O_6+δ. It is assumed that a pseudogap is of superconducting origin and arises at temperature T* > T_c∞ > T_c in small nonpercolating clusters as a result of strong fluctuations in the occupancy of NUCs (T_c∞ and T_c are the superconducting transition temperatures of an infinitely large and finite NUC clusters, respectively). The T*(δ) and T_c(δ) dependences calculated for YBa₂Cu₃O_6+δ correlate with experimental dependences. In accordance with the model, the region between T*(δ) and T_c(δ) is the range of fluctuations in which finite nonpercolation clusters fluctuate between the superconducting and normal states due to NUC occupancy fluctuations.     

含Sb的Bi系超导体的研究

Bi-Sr-Ca-Cu-O系中掺入适量的Sb,其高温相(110K相)含量明显多于不掺Sb样品。Sb具有加速高温相形成的作用。对于各义组分为Bi_2-xSb_xSr₂Ca_2.5Cu_3.7O_y的样品,x=0.1最有利于高温相的形成。用液氮中淬火后低温回火的方法,发现在865℃烧结时样品中首先形成的是低温相(80K相),然后再逐渐转变为高温相。T_c值随烧结时间的延 关键词：     

Fluctuations in superconductors belowT c

Thermal fluctuations of the order parameter in the superconducting state are investigated, particularly near the transition temperature, using the time dependent Ginzburg-Landau theory. These fluctuations give rise to a contribution of the dynamical conductivity, which strongly increases as the temperature is raised towardsT _c , in contrast to the temperature dependence of the electromagnetic response due to the static order parameter. At the transition temperature this contribution joins continuously to the extra response (conductivity, susceptibility) which has been calculated and observed in the temperature region aboveT _c , where it represents the onset of superconductivity in the normal state. Particularly the dynamical conductivity due to fluctuations is calculated and discussed for bulk material, thin films and thin wires belowT _c . The temperature and frequency dependence should be observable in microwave experiments.     

Effect of structural relaxation on low energy excitations in amorphous Zr x Cu1−x

We report on an investigation of the liquid-quenched metallic glass Zr _x Cu_1?x (0.6≦x≦0.74) subjected to heat treatments below the glass transition temperatureT _g. Annealing temperatures up to 200°C (<0.8T _g) were chosen as to achieve topological relaxation only. The superconducting transition temperaturesT _c are lowered, as already observed for other metallic glasses. Low temperature measurements of the thermal conductivity (0.5 K≦T≦15 K) and of the specific heat (0.1 K≦T≦3 K) were carried out in order to determine the effect of structural relaxation on the low energy configurational excitations characteristic of the amorphous state. The annealed samples show no detectable (<20%) change in the specific heat forT?T _c, but an increase of the thermal conductivity by a factor of 2 forT?T _c is observed. Within the tunneling model of two level systems (TLS) for the low energy excitations, this behavior can be qualitatively understood in terms of a change of the TLS relaxation time distribution upon annealing. This distribution differs from that of the commonly used standard tunneling model. The change of the phonon scattering by TLS directly observed forT?T_c is largely responsible for the enhancement of the thermal conductivity found also aboveT _c.     

Precursor diamagnetism in superconducting Al films

The precursor diamagnetism is studied in a stack of Al films whose thickness is much smaller than the coherence length. The magnetization shows the (T ? T_c)^?1 behavior in a finite range of temperature above T_c. At T_c, in low magnetic fields constant magnetization independent of the field strength is observed. The results are in agreement with the theories of the two-dimensional superconductor.     

Specific features of the central peak in the Raman spectra of a lithium niobate crystal

The low-frequency Raman scattering (RS) spectra of a LiNbO₃ ferroelectric crystal are studied in the temperature range 300–1423 K. The central peak characterizing the relaxation susceptibility of the crystal lattice is observed over the entire temperature range studied, including at temperatures much lower than the Curie temperature (T _c = 1470 K). Far from T _c, the characteristics of the central peak are shown to be unlike those expected in the framework of the standard approaches. (i) The central-peak width γ_R increases as the temperature increases to T ～ 1300 K, and the critical slowing down (γ_R ∝ T _c ? T) occurs only above this temperature. (ii) A central peak arises in the RS geometry where the scattering by “nonferroelectric” E phonons is allowed. The experimental results are interpreted with allowance for relaxation dynamics in local regions of the crystal lattice.     

电子型掺杂高温超导体La2-xCexCuO4飞秒时间分辨动力学研究

利用飞秒时间分辨光抽运探测技术研究了电子型掺杂La_2-xCe_xCuO₄(LCCO)高温超导材料的准粒子超快动力学过程.得到低温(T<0.7T_c)、转变温度附近(0.7T_c≤T≤T_c)和高温(T>T_c)三个温区内的动力学行为.研究发 关键词： 电子型掺杂高温超导体 飞秒时间分辨 准粒子 声子瓶颈     

The effective activation energy Ueff(T,B,J) in Hg-1223 single phase superconductors

We review the methods of calculating the effective activation energy U_eff(T,B,J) for both transport measurements and magnetic decay, together with some theoretical models. Then, we apply these methods to our Hg-1223 single-phase superconductor to obtain the activation energy. Transport results give that the magnetic field and temperature dependence of the U_eff can be well described as U₀B^−α(1−T/T_c)^m. Magnetic relaxation shows that the current density dependence of U(J) can be scaled onto a single curve, which can be considered as the activation energy at some temperature T₀. The pinning mechanism in the measured temperature range does not change, and the activation energy depends separately on the three variables: T, B, and J, are responsible for the magnetic decay data scaling onto a single curve at various temperatures. As temperatures close to zero and near T_c, thermally assisted flux motion model is no longer valid since other processes dominate.     

The effectiveness of different phonon frequencies in enhancing the Tc of superconductors

It is shown that two simple equations for the superconducting transition temperature, both of which give quite accurate values of T_c and practically the same results for the isotope effect, do not agree even qualitatively when used to calculate the effectiveness of different phonon frequencies in enhancing T_c.     

High pressure study of BaPb0.7Bi0.3O3 films

The resistance R, the superconducting transition temperature T_c and the energy gap Δ(T) have been measured on the BaPb_0.7Bi_0.3O₃ films up to 14 kbar. We have found that up to 14 kbar: (1) pressure suppresses T_c and Δ(T) while enhances R, (2) the value of 2Δ(0)/kT_c is 3.8±0.1, independent of pressure, and (3) the Δ(T)/Δ(0) varies with T/T_c in a BCS fashion but only for T/T_c<0.75 and independent of pressure. The results show that BaPb_1?xBi_xO₃ is a weak-coupling superconductor, but fail to provide information about the cause for the high T_c of the compound.     

Superconducting coherent quasiparticle weight in high-Tc superconductor from angle-resolved photoemission

We study the doping and temperature dependence of the single-particle coherent weight, z_A, for high-T_c superconductors Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O_8+x using angle-resolved photoemission. We find that at low temperatures the coherent weight z_A at (π,0) is proportional to the carrier concentration x and that the temperature-dependence of z_A is similar to that of the c-axis superfluid density. We show that, for a wide range of carrier concentration, the superconducting transition temperature scales with the product of the low-temperature coherent weight and the maximum superconducting gap.     

Thermodynamics of SU(3) lattice gauge theory

The pressure and the energy density of the SU(3) gauge theory are calculated on lattices with temporal extent N_τ = 4, 6 and 8 and spatial extent N_σ = 16 and 32. The results are then extrapolated to the continuum limit. In the investigated temperature range up to five times T_c we observe a 15% deviation from the ideal gas limit. We also present new results for the critical temperature on lattices with temporal extent N_τ = 8 and 12. At the corresponding critical couplings the string tension is calculated on 32⁴ lattices to fix the temperature scale. An extrapolation to the continuum limit yields T_c/√σ = 0.629(3). We furthermore present results on the electric and magnetic condensates as well as the temperature dependence of the spatial string tension. These observables suggest that the temperature dependent running coupling remains large even at T ≅ 5T_c. For the spatial string tension we find √σ_s/T=0.566(13)g²2(T) with g² (5T_c) ≅ 1.5.     

Sb-NMR/NQR study of CeIrSb

We report Sb-NMR/NQR measurements on a valence fluctuating compound CeIrSb, which is isostructural to the Kondo semiconductors CeRhSb and CeNiSn. The nuclear spin-lattice relaxation rate divided by temperature, 1/T₁T has a maximum around 300 K and considerably decreases in proportion to T² when cooling down, followed by a 1/T₁T∼const. behavior below 20 K. These results indicate that CeIrSb has a V-shaped pseudogap with a residual density of states at the Fermi level. The size of pseudogap for CeIrSb is estimated to be about 350 K, which is one order of magnitude larger than the values of 28 K for CeRhSb and 14 K for CeNiSn. The larger size of energy gap in CeIrSb may be attributed to much stronger c-f hybridization than those for CeRhSb and CeNiSn.