Heat transport in a strongly overdoped cuprate: Fermi liquid and a pure d-wave BCS superconductor

The transport of heat and charge in the overdoped cuprate superconductor Tl(2)Ba2CuO(6+delta) was measured down to low temperature. In the normal state, obtained by applying a magnetic field greater than the upper critical field, the Wiedemann-Franz law is verified to hold perfectly. In the superconducting state, a large residual linear term is observed in the thermal conductivity, in quantitative agreement with BCS theory for a d-wave superconductor. This is compelling evidence that the electrons in overdoped cuprates form a Fermi liquid, with no indication of spin-charge separation.     

Disorder driven superconductor-insulator transition in inhomogenous d-wave superconductor

We study the effect of disorder on the superconductor-insulator transition in an inhomogeneous d-wave superconductor using the kernel polynomial method. As the Bogoliubov-de Gennes equations of the two-dimensional square lattice are solved self-consistently for the cases with more than 100000 unit cells, it is possible to observe the spatial fluctuations of the superconducting order parameters at the nanoscale. We find that strong spatial fluctuation of the superconducting order parameters can be introduced by disorder, and some superconducting specific order parameters are even enhanced. Moreover, we find that some isolated superconducting "islands" can survive the strong disorder, giving a boson insulator with some localized Cooper pairs. Our numerical calculations predict the existence of two sequential transitions with the increasing disorder strength: a d-wave to s-wave superconductor transition, and then an s-wave superconductor to insulator transition. The possibility of the appearance of a metallic phase between the superconducting and insulating phases is excluded by performing the lattice-size scaling of the generalized inverse participation ratio. In addition, we also discuss the effect of disorder on the optical conductivity of the d-wave superconductors.     

Upper critical field of niobium nitride thin films

The temperature dependences of the superconducting transition of niobium nitride (NbN) thin films have been investigated via the first harmonic of the voltage in dc magnetic fields of up to 8 T. The temperature dependence of the second critical field of NbN has been determined. The parameter responsible for the effect of spin paramagnetism in this material and the temperature dependence of the upper critical field that describes well the experimental data have been found in terms of the Werthamer–Helfand–Hohenberg (WHH) theory. The key parameters of the superconductor have been estimated from the transport and optical measurements.     

Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov state in layered superconductors

The phase diagram of a layered superconductor in a large parallel magnetic field is calculated. This includes a calculation of the lower critical field beyond which the superconductor is in the FFLO-state and possesses a spatially modulated order parameter and spin polarization. The order parameter, spin polarization, free-energy density, and phase boundaries of this unconventional superconducting phase are evaluated numerically in the complete B–T plane. The analysis suggests that the transition at the lower critical field is of second order, and not of first order, as previously assumed. The order parameter of the FFLO-state merges continuously into the uniform superconducting state.     

Superconducting properties of the Fe-based layered superconductor LaFeAsO0.9F0.1-delta

We have employed a new route to synthesize single phase F-doped LaOFeAs compound and confirmed the superconductivity above 20 K in this Fe-based system. We show that the new superconductor has a rather high upper critical field of over 50 T. A clear signature of superconducting gap opening below T(c) was observed in the far-infrared reflectance spectra, with 2Delta/kT(c) approximately 3.5-4.2. Furthermore, we show that the new superconductor has electron-type conducting carriers with a rather low-carrier density.     

Macroscopic states induced in superconducting media by a transport current under flux creep

The physical features of the formation of macroscopic states of superconducting composites consisting of a superconductor and a coating under flux creep are discussed. It is demonstrated that there exist characteristic electric field strengths depending on the properties of the superconductor, cooling conditions, and characteristics of the stabilizing coating, which affect the intensity of the E-I characteristics of the superconducting composites. Analysis shows that the measurements of the critical properties of superconductors can be accompanied by a nonuniform electric field distribution over the composite cross section and high stable superheating of the superconductor, which do not lead to superconductivity breaking.     

Evidence for multiband superconductivity in the heavy Fermion compound UNi2Al3

Epitaxial thin films of the heavy fermion superconductor UNi2Al3 with Tc(max)=0.98 K were investigated. The transition temperature Tc depends on the current direction which can be related to superconducting gaps opening at different temperatures. Also the influence of the magnetic ordering at TN approximately 5 K on R(T) is strongly anisotropic, indicating different coupling between the magnetic moments and itinerant charge carriers on the multisheeted Fermi surface. The upper critical field Hc2(T) suggests an unconventional spin-singlet superconducting state.     

Direct observation of the scaling relation between density of states and pairing gap in a dirty superconductor

Theories and experiments on dirty superconductors are complex but important in terms of both theoretical fundamentals and practical applications. These activities are even more challenging when magnetic fields are present because the field distribution, electron density of states, and superconducting pairing potentials become nonuniform. Here, we present tunneling microspectroscopic experiments on Nb C single crystals and demonstrate that Nb C is a homogeneous dirty superconductor. When applying magnetic fields to the samples, we found that the zero-energy local density of states and the pairing energy gap followed the explicit scaling relation proposed by de Gennes for homogeneous dirty superconductors in high magnetic fields. More significantly, our experimental findings indicate that the validity of the scaling relation extends to magnetic field strengths far below the upper critical field, calling for a new nonperturbative understanding of this fundamental property in dirty superconductors. On the practical side, we used the observed scaling relation to derive a simple and straightforward experimental scheme for estimating the superconducting coherence length of a dirty superconductor in magnetic fields.     

Superconductivity in Li OHFe S single crystals with a shrunk c-axis lattice constant

By using a hydrothermal ion-exchange method, we have successfully grown superconducting crystals of Li OHFe S with Tcof about 2.8 K. Being different from the sister sample(Li1-xFex)OHFe Se, the energy dispersion spectrum analysis on Li OHFe S shows that the Fe/S ratio is very close to 1:1, suggesting an almost charge neutrality and less electron doping in the Fe S planes of the system. Comparing with the non superconducting Li OHFe S crystal, each peak of the X-ray diffraction pattern of the superconducting crystal splits into two, and the diffraction peaks locating at lower reflection angles are consistent with that of non-superconducting ones. The rest set of diffraction peaks with higher reflection angles is corresponding to the superconducting phase, suggesting that the superconducting phase may has a shrunk c-axis lattice constant. Magnetization measurements indicate that the magnetic shielding due to superconductivity can be quite high under a weak magnetic field. The resistivity measurements under various magnetic fields show that the upper critical field is quite low, which is similar to the tetragonal Fe S superconductor.     

Superconductivity in high Debye temperature material

The theoretical upper limit of the critical temperature of superconducting materials is discussed. It is concluded that a metal that does not have a high Debye temperature (as do metallic H, B, Be or their alloys) cannot become a high Tc superconductor. Various attempts at enhancing the Tc of Be by quench condensing with various elements, by coevaporation with Li and by treatment in an alloyed form : Be₂₂Re, are presented. Probably for metallurgical reasons, we were unable to approach the predicted maximum critical temperature but believe we have somewhat clarified the question and the field remains promising.     

Superconductivity in the Einstein solid V Al(10.1)

We used magnetic susceptibility, resistivity and heat capacity measurements to characterize the superconducting state in the Einstein solid V Al(10.1). We find that V Al(10.1) is a weak-coupling, type-II superconductor with T(c)?=?1.53?K and an upper critical field of H(c2)(0)?=?800?Oe. The heat capacity data in the range 0.07?K?相似文献   

Size effect in the formation and failure of stable current states in composites based on high-temperature superconductors

The influence of the transverse size of a composite wire based on a high-temperature superconductor on the dynamics of its thermoelectrodynamic properties at constant-rate current input has been studied. The physical mechanism behind the formation of stable regimes, which are characterized by the nonuniform distribution of the electric field and transport current over the cross-sectional area of the composite, has been determined. It has been shown that the critical current density of the superconducting composites determined from their current–voltage characteristic have lower and upper boundaries of electric voltages, which outline the allowable measurement range. It has been found that, when the input current completely penetrates into the composite, conditions for its stability are governed by the size effect. The essence of this effect is that conditions for current state stability in superconducting composites with the same cross-sectional area but various cross size differ. The conditions for the absence of unstable states in the composite the cross section of which is partially filled with the transport current have been formulated.     

Theory for the upper critical field in superconducting multilayers with interface irregularities

The upper critical field in superconducting multilayers, which are composed of two kinds of superconducting layers with different diffusion constants and contain interface irregularities, investigated in the direction parallel to the layers. The interface irregularities enhance the upper critical field. The crossover temperature at which the superconducting nucleation position moves from one layer to another is increased as the effect of the irregularities becomes strong. As a result, the two-dimensional region where the nucleation position of the superconducting order is inside a layer with the larger diffusion constant is greatly reduced by the irregularities.     

Physical properties of SrSn(4) single crystals

We present detailed thermodynamic and transport measurements on single crystals of the recently discovered binary intermetallic superconductor, SrSn(4). We find this material to be a slightly anisotropic three-dimensional, strongly coupled, possibly multiband, superconductor. Hydrostatic pressure causes a decrease in the superconducting transition temperature at the rate of ≈?-?0.068?K?kbar(-1). Band structure calculations are consistent with experimental data on the Sommerfeld coefficient and upper superconducting critical field anisotropy, and suggest a complex, multi-sheet Fermi surface formed by four bands.     

Texture in the superconducting order parameter of CeCoIn5 revealed by nuclear magnetic resonance

We present a 115In NMR study of the quasi-two-dimensional heavy-fermion superconductor CeCoIn5 believed to host a Fulde-Ferrel-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) state. In the vicinity of the upper critical field and with a magnetic field applied parallel to the ab plane, the NMR spectrum exhibits a dramatic change below T*(H) which well coincides with the position of reported anomalies in specific heat and ultrasound velocity. We argue that our results provide the first microscopic evidence for the occurrence of a spatially modulated superconducting order parameter expected in a FFLO state. The NMR spectrum also implies an anomalous electronic structure of vortex cores.     

Nanoengineered magnetic-field-induced superconductivity

The perpendicular critical fields of a superconducting film have been strongly enhanced by using a nanoengineered lattice of magnetic dots (dipoles) on top of the film. Magnetic-field-induced superconductivity is observed in these hybrid superconductor/ferromagnet systems due to the compensation of the applied field between the dots by the stray field of the dipole array. By switching between different magnetic states of the nanoengineered field compensator, the critical parameters of the superconductor can be effectively controlled.     

Vortex dynamics and the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov state in a magnetic-field-induced organic superconductor

Under special conditions, a superconducting state where the order parameter oscillates in real space, the so-called FFLO state, is theoretically predicted to exist near the upper critical field, as first proposed by Fulde and Ferrell, and Larkin and Ovchinnikov. We report systematic measurements of the interlayer resistance in high magnetic fields to 45 T in the two-dimensional magnetic-field-induced organic superconductor lambda-(BETS)2FeCl4, where BETS is bis(ethylenedithio)tetraselenafulvalene. The resistance is found to show characteristic dip structures in the superconducting state. The results are consistent with pinning interactions between the vortices penetrating the insulating layers and the order parameter of the FFLO state. This gives strong evidence for an oscillating order parameter in real space.     

Phase transitions in uniaxial ferromagnetic film covered by superconducting layers

The phase diagram and the single-domain uniform state for a uniaxial ferromagnetic film with the superconducting layers covering one or both sides of a ferromagnet are investigated. The superconductor is supposed to be a second-order one and the interaction between the magnetic sub-system and with the conductivity electrons in a superconductor is purely electromagnetic and the vortices in a superconductor are pinned. The critical thickness of the magnetic film for which the uniform state becomes absolutely stable is calculated when the external magnetic field is supposed to be in-plane of the film. It is shown that the critical thickness of the film from the magnetic material with the quality factor Q>1 monotonically decreases as the magnetic field increases in the range from zero value to the value of the transition field where the collinear phase transforms into the angular (canted) phase. Further the critical thickness increases with the increase of the field. The quasi-single-domain magnetic film states were considered when the film thickness was close to the critical one. It is shown that for a thin isolated magnetic film the domain period exponentially increases with the decrease of the film thickness. Such dependence, however for the film with double-side superconducting cover and close to the transition into the single domain state becomes logarithmic and for the film covered by superconductor only on the one side varies as the power series. The single-domain state existence and the asymptotic behaviour of the domain structure is explained by the features of the asymptotic behaviour of the domain walls within the system. As for isolated magnetic film and for a film with the superconductor cover layers the transition from the collinear phase to the inhomogeneous state is the second-order phase transition and the transition from the uniform angular phase to the inhomogeneous phase is the first-order transition.     

The spontaneous formation of a vortex structure in a type II superconductor-ferromagnet bilayer

The conditions for the formation of a vortex structure in a thin superconducting film under the action of a stray field of stripe domain structure of a uniaxial ferromagnet are determined. The critical magnetization of the magnetic material is calculated, above which the mixed state of the superconductor becomes energetically favored over the Meissner phase. It is shown that the critical magnetization decreases monotonically with decreasing thickness of the superconducting film and is of the order of ten gauss in typical actual situations. The critical-current anisotropy in a superconducting film with an induced vortex structure is discussed qualitatively.