Phase fluctuations and pseudogap phenomena

This article reviews the current status of precursor superconducting phase fluctuations as a possible mechanism for pseudogap formation in high-temperature superconductors. In particular we compare this approach which relies on the two-dimensional nature of the superconductivity to the often used T-matrix approach. Starting from simple pairing Hamiltonians we present a broad pedagogical introduction to the BCS–Bose crossover problem. The finite temperature extension of these models naturally leads to a discussion of the Berezinskii–Kosterlitz–Thouless superconducting transition and the related phase diagram including the effects of quantum phase fluctuations and impurities. We stress the differences between simple Bose–BCS crossover theories and the current approach where one can have a large pseudogap region even at high carrier density where the Fermi surface is well-defined. Green's function and its associated spectral function, which explicitly show non-Fermi liquid behavior, is constructed in the presence of vortices. Finally different mechanisms including quasi-particle–vortex and vortex–vortex interactions for the filling of the gap above T_c are considered.     

Stripes, electron fractionalization, and ARPES

Although structurally the high temperature superconductors are quasi-two-dimensional, there is both theoretical and experimental evidence of a substantial range of temperatures in which ‘stripe’ correlations make the electronic structure locally quasi-one-dimensional. We consider an array of Josephson coupled, spin gapped one dimensional electron gases as a model of the high temperature superconductors. For temperatures above T_c, this system exhibits electron fractionalization, yielding a single particle spectral response which is sharp as a function of momentum, but broad as a function of energy. For temperatures below the spin gap but above T_c, there are enhanced one-dimensional superconducting fluctuations and pseudogap phenomena. Pair tunneling induces a crossover to three-dimensional physics as T_c is approached. Below T_c, solitons are confined in multiplets with quantum numbers which are simply related to the electron, and a coherent piece of the single particle spectral function appears. The weight of this coherent piece vanishes in the neighborhood of T_c in proportion to a positive power of the interchain superfluid density. This behavior is highly reminiscent of recent ARPES measurements on the high temperature superconductors.     

Self-consistent approximations for correlation functions in the theory of triplet pairing superfluidity in3He

A self-consistent and “spin conserving” approximation scheme is developed for the two-particle correlation functions in superfluid³He. It is shown that the irreducible vertex part occuring in the Bethe-Salpeter equation for the generalized correlation function (having 4⁴ components) must be equal to the functional derivative of the approximate self-energy part with respect to the Green's function. The theory is specialized to the Hartree-Fock approximation yielding the RPA susceptibility belowT _c . An important feature of the resulting diagrammatic expansion is that the spin-fluctuation effects in the superfluid phase arise from infinite iteration of pairs of anomalous propagators inboth the particle-hole and in the particle-particle channels.     

The vortex-like excitations detected by Nernst signals in high-T c superconductors

The nature of the pseudogap state and its relation to the d-wave superconductivity in high-T _c superconductors is still an open issue. The vortex-like excitations detected by the Nernst effect measurements exist in a certain temperature range above superconducting transition temperature T _c, which strongly support that the pseudogap phase is characterized by finite pairing amplitude with strong phase fluctuations and imply that the phase transition at T _c is driven by the loss of long-range phase coherence. We first briefly introduce the electronic phase diagram and pseudogap state of high-T _c superconductors, and then review the results of Nernst effect for different high-T _c superconductors. Related theoretical models are also discussed.     

Pseudogap phenomena in ultracold atomic Fermi gases

The pairing and superfluid phenomena in a two-component ultracold atomic Fermi gas is an analogue of Cooper pairing and superconductivity in an electron system, in particular, the high Tc superconductors. Owing to the various tunable parameters that have been made accessible experimentally in recent years, atomic Fermi gases can be explored as a prototype or quantum sinmlator of superconductors. It is hoped that, utilizing such an analogy, the study of atomic Fermi gases may shed light to the mysteries of high Tc superconductivity. One obstacle to the ultimate understand- ing of high Tc superconductivity, from day one of its discovery, is the anomalous yet widespread pseudogap phenomena, for which a consensus is yet to be reached within the physics comnnmity, after over 27 years of intensive research efforts. In this article, we shall review the progress in the study of pseudogap phenomena in atomic Fermi gases in terms of both theoretical understanding and experimental observations. We show that there is strong, unambiguous evidence for the existence of a pseudogap in strongly interacting Fermi gases. In this context, we shall present a pairing fuctuation theory of the pseudogap physics and show that it is indeed a strong candidate theory for high Tc superconductivity.     

Initial suppression of Tc in optimally-doped Bi2Sr1.6RE0.4Cu1−xZnxO6+δ (RE = La,Pr, Nd,Sm, and Eu)

We have investigated the initial suppression of the superconducting transition temperature, T_c, by Zn substitution in Bi₂Sr_1.6RE_0.4CuO_6+δ (Bi(RE)-2201) with a single CuO₂ plane. We propose a phase diagram of Bi(RE)-2201 as a function of the degree of disorder outside the CuO₂ plane. Upon increasing the degree of disorder, while T_c decreased gradually, the pseudogap is significantly strengthened as a quadratic function of the degree of disorder. The initial suppression rate of T_c is well described by considering the enhancement of the pseudogap by the out-of-plane disorder.     

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 .     

Theory of high-T c superconductivity based on the fermion-condensation quantum phase transition

A theory of high-temperature superconductivity based on the combination of the fermion-condensation quantum phase transition and the conventional theory of superconductivity is presented. This theory describes maximum values of the superconducting gap, which can be as big as Δ₁～0.1ε _F , with ε _F being the Fermi level. We show that the critical temperature 2T _c ?Δ₁. If the pseudogap exists above T _c , then 2T*?Δ₁ and T* is the temperature at which the pseudogap vanishes. A discontinuity in the specific heat at T _c is calculated. The transition from conventional superconductors to high-T _c ones as a function of the doping level is investigated. The single-particle excitations and their lineshape are also considered     

The vortex-like excitations detected by Nernst signals in high-Tc superconductors

The nature of the pseudogap state and its relation to the d-wave superconductivity in high-T _c superconductors is still an open issue. The vortex-like excitations detected by the Nernst effect measurements exist in a certain temperature range above superconducting transition temperature T _c, which strongly support that the pseudogap phase is characterized by finite pairing amplitude with strong phase fluctuations and imply that the phase transition at T _c is driven by the loss of long-range phase coherence. We first briefly introduce the electronic phase diagram and pseudogap state of high-T _c superconductors, and then review the results of Nernst effect for different high-T _c superconductors. Related theoretical models are also discussed.     

Possible nature of the pseudogap anomalies in HTSC

An HTSC model, in which the interaction of valence-band electrons with diatomic negative U centers is assumed to be responsible for the anomalous properties of HTSC compounds, is proposed and used to explain the nature of the pseudogap and pseudogap anomalies (including the giant Nernst effect, the anomalous diamagnetism above T _c, the “transfer” of the optical spectral weight). For YBa₂Cu₃O_{6 + δ}, the pseudogap opening temperature T* and T _c are calculated as functions of the degree of doping δ. The calculated dependences agree quantitatively with the experimental dependences without using scale fitting parameters. The good agreement between the calculated and experimental results can serve as an argument for the proposed HTSC model.     

The origin of the pseudogap phase: precursor superconductivity versus a competing energy gap scenario

In the last few years evidence has been accumulating that there are a multiplicity of energy scales which characterize superconductivity in the underdoped cuprates. In contrast to the situation in BCS superconductors, the phase coherence temperature T_c is different from the energy gap onset temperature T^∗. In addition, thermodynamic and tunneling spectroscopies have led to the inference that the order parameter Δ_sc is to be distinguished from the excitation gap Δ; in this way, pseudogap effects persist below T_c. It has been argued by many in the community that the presence of these distinct energy scales demonstrates that the pseudogap is unrelated to superconductivity. In this paper, we show that this inference is incorrect. We demonstrate that the difference between the order parameter and excitation gap and the contrasting dependences of T^∗ and T_c on hole concentration x and magnetic field H follow from a natural generalization of BCS theory. This simple generalized form is based on a BCS-like ground state, but with self-consistently determined chemical potential in the presence of arbitrary attractive coupling g. We have applied this mean field theory with some success to tunneling, transport, thermodynamics, and magnetic field effects. We contrast the present approach with the phase fluctuation scenario and discuss key features which might distinguish our precursor superconductivity picture from that involving a competing order parameter.     

The zero-distribution of the great partition function in the complex fugacity plane of gases of point particles with logarithmic interaction

The equation of state for gases of point particles with logarithmic interaction is derived. The system exhibits a phase transition at a critical temperature T_c. The critical temperature is a function of the dimension of the system. A hard core must be added below T_c to prevent the system from collapsing. The specific heat diverges on both sides as |T_c - T|^-2 in any dimension.For T≤T_c there are no zeros of the grand partition function in the complex fugacity plane, for T >T_c all zeros occupy the whole negative real axis. The density of zeros will be calculated.     

Transverse zero sound propagation in superfluid 3He

Transverse zero sound should propagate in superfluid ³He only in a rather narrow range below T_c.     

Particle-hole mixing driven by the superconducting fluctuations

Development of the STM and ARPES spectroscopy enabled to reach the resolution sufficient for probing the particle-hole entanglement in superconducting materials, even above the critical temperature T_c. On a quantitative level one can characterize such entanglement in terms of the Bogoliubov angle which determines to what extent the particles and holes constitute the effective quasiparticles. In classical superconductors, where the phase transition is related to formation of the Cooper pairs almost simultaneously accompanied by onset of their long-range phase coherence, the Bogoliubov angle is slanted (due to finite particle-hole mixing) all the way up to T_c. In the high temperature superconductors and in superfluid ultracold fermion atoms near the Feshbach resonance the situation is different because the preformed pairs can exist above T_c albeit loosing coherence due to the strong quantum fluctuations. We discuss a generic temperature dependence of the Bogoliubov angle in such pseudogap state indicating a novel, non-BCS behavior. For analysis we use the two-component model describing the pairs coexisting with single fermions and study selfconsistently their feedback effects by the similarity transformation originating from the renormalization group approach.     

A precursor superconductivity approach to magnetic field effects in the pseudogap phase

We demonstrate that the observed dependences of T_c and T^∗ on small magnetic fields can be readily understood in a precursor superconductivity approach to the pseudogap phase. In this approach, the presence of a pseudogap at T_c (but not at T^∗) and the associated suppression of the density of states lead to very different sensitivities to pair-breaking perturbations for the two temperatures. Our semi-quantitative results address the puzzling experimental observation that the coherence length ξ is weakly dependent on hole concentration x throughout most of the phase diagram. We present our results in a form which can be compared with the recent experiments of Shibauchi et al. and argue that orbital effects contribute in an important way to the H dependence of T^∗.     

Effect of correlated disorder on the temperature of unconventional cooper pairing: 3He in aerogel

It has been shown by the example of ³He in aerogel that the correlation in the position of impurities may have a considerable effect on the transition temperature T _c of a Fermi fluid to an unconventional superfluid or superconducting state if the correlation radius of the system of impurities exceeds the correlation length ξ₀ of the emerging superfluid phase. A decrease in T _c of ³He in aerogel has been expressed in terms of the structure factor of aerogel. Taking into account the fractal structure of aerogel provides a simple formula that satisfactorily describes the observed decrease in T _c.     

Paraconductivity of doped LaOFeAs superconductors

The paraconductivity of both electron- and hole-doped LaOFeAs superconductors is studied within the existed fluctuation mechanisms. It is found that the FC data at the temperature close to T_c can be explained with the three-dimensional (3D) Aslamazov-Larkin (AL) theory. The Gaussian-Ginzburg-Landau (GGL) approach under various cutoff conditions can only account for the fluctuation conductivity (FC) data in the 3D AL regime. While the approach taking into account the pseudogap effect can describe the paraconductivity very well in the whole temperature region. This result suggests that the pseudogap state of doped LaOFeAs system is probably due to the formation of paired fermions in the form of strongly bound bosons (local pairs) at T_c<T<T^∗.     

Superconductivity in a simple model of the pseudogap state

An analysis is made of characteristics of the superconducting state (s-and d-pairing) using a simple, exactly solvable model of the pseudogap state produced by fluctuations of the short-range order (such as antiferromagnetic) based on a Fermi surface model with “hot” sections. It is shown that the superconducting gap averaged over these fluctuations is nonzero at temperatures higher than the mean-field superconducting transition temperature T _c over the entire sample. At temperatures T > T _c superconductivity evidently exists in isolated sections (“ drops”). Studies are made of the spectral density and the density of states in which superconducting characteristics exist in the range T > T _c however, in this sense the temperature T = T _c itself is no different in any way. These anomalies show qualitative agreement with various experiments using underdoped high-temperature superconducting cuprates.     

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.     

Relaxation and collective motion in superconductors: a two-fluid description

A simple, unified discussion of branch imbalance and gap relaxation in superconductors is presented. Both phenomena are treated within the framework of the ordinary Boltzmann equation, supplemented by the BCS gap equation. We show that the physics of the process commonly referred to as quasiparticle branch imbalance relaxation may be understood simply if one introduces a two-fluid model for the charge in the superconductor, and regards the process as one in which charge associated with the normal component is converted into charge associated with the superfluid. We derive in detail the exact solutions of the Boltzmann equation, which are valid near T_c, and allow for the effects of anisotropy. We discuss the comparison between relaxation rates measured in the superfluid and those obtained from normal state measurements and calculations. We then derive a set of two-fluid hydrodynamic equations based on the two-fluid model for the charge, and find that the current of charge associated with the normal component is not in general equal to the usual normal current. On the basis of these equations we derive expressions for the characteristic quasiparticle diffusion length near phase slip centers, and for the frequency of the recently observed collective mode. We compare our result with those of both microscopic and phenomenological calculations.