Coexistence of antiferromagnetism and superconductivity near the quantum criticality of the heavy-fermion compound CeRhIn5

We report a study on the interplay between antiferromagnetism (AFM) and superconductivity (SC) in a heavy-fermion compound CeRhIn5 under pressure P=1.75 GPa. The onset of the magnetic order is evidenced from a clear split of 115In nuclear quadrupole resonance spectrum due to the spontaneous internal field below the Néel temperature T(N)=2.5 K. Simultaneously, bulk SC below T(c)=2.0 K is demonstrated by the observation of the Meissner diamagnetism signal whose size is the same as in the exclusively superconducting phase. These results indicate that the AFM coexists homogeneously with the SC at a microscopic level.     

Effect of antiferromagnetic planes on the superconducting properties of multilayered high-Tc cuprates

We propose a mechanism for high critical temperature (T(c)) in the coexistent phase of superconducting (SC) and antiferromagnetic (AFM) CuO2 planes in multilayered cuprates. The Josephson coupling between the SC planes separated by an AFM insulator (Mott insulator) is calculated perturbatively up to the fourth order in terms of the hopping integral between adjacent CuO2 planes. It is shown that the AFM exchange splitting in the AFM plane suppresses the so-called pi-Josephson coupling, and the long-ranged 0-Josephson coupling leads to coexistence with a rather high value of T(c).     

Evidence for a novel state of superconductivity in noncentrosymmetric CePt3Si: a 195Pt-NMR study

We report on novel antiferromagnetic (AFM) and superconducting (SC) properties of noncentrosymmetric CePt3Si through measurements of the 195Pt nuclear spin-lattice relaxation rate 1/T(1). In the normal state, the temperature (T) dependence of 1/T(1) unraveled the existence of low-lying levels in crystal-electric-field multiplets and the formation of a heavy-fermion (HF) state. The coexistence of AFM and SC phases that emerge at T(N)=2.2 K and T(c)=0.75 K, respectively, takes place on a microscopic level. CePt3Si is the first HF superconductor that reveals a peak in 1/T(1) just below T(c) and, additionally, does not follow the T3 law that used to be reported for most unconventional HF superconductors. We remark that this unexpected SC characteristic may be related to the lack of an inversion center in its crystal structure.     

Gapless magnetic and quasiparticle excitations due to the coexistence of antiferromagnetism and superconductivity in CeRhIn5: a study of 115In NQR under pressure

We report systematic measurements of ac susceptibility, nuclear-quadrupole-resonance spectrum, and nuclear-spin-lattice-relaxation time (T1) on the pressure (P)-induced heavy-fermion superconductor CeRhIn5. The temperature (T) dependence of 1/T(1) at P=1.6 GPa has revealed that antiferromagnetism (AFM) and superconductivity (SC) coexist microscopically, exhibiting the respective transition at T(N)=2.8 K and T(MF)(c)=0.9 K. It is demonstrated that SC does not yield any trace of gap opening in low-lying excitations below T(onset)(c)=2 K, but T(MF)(c)=0.9 K, followed by a T(1)T=const law. These results point to the unconventional characteristics of SC coexisting with AFM. We highlight that both of the results deserve theoretical work on the gapless nature in the low-lying excitation spectrum due to the coexistence of AFM and SC and the lack of the mean-field regime below T(onset)(c)=2 K.     

Local moment formation in the superconducting state of a doped Mott insulator

A microscopic theory is presented for the local moment formation near a nonmagnetic impurity or a copper defect in high-Tc superconductors. We use a renormalized mean-field theory of the t-J model for a doped Mott insulator and study the fully self-consistent, spatially unrestricted solutions of the d-wave superconducting (SC) state in both the spin S=0 and S=1/2 sectors. We find a transition from the singlet d-wave SC state to a spin doublet SC state when the renormalized exchange coupling exceeds a doping dependent critical value. The induced S=1/2 moment is staggered and localized around the impurity. It arises from the binding of an S=1/2 nodal quasiparticle to the impurity. The local density of states is calculated and connections to NMR and STM experiments are discussed.     

A model for the chain-to-plane charge transfer in YBa2Cu3O6+x

A model for the chain-to-plane charge transfer is proposed to account for the two plateaus,at 60 K and at 90 K,of the Tc(x) characteristics of the YBa2Cu3O6+x high-Tc superconductor.It is assumed that the number of holes transferred from a CuO chain of length l to two nearby CuO2 sheets is proportional to l(that is,to the number of oxygen atoms in the chain),if the chain length is greater than,or equal to,a certain critical chain length,lcr,that is required to trigger the charge transfer process.No holes are assumed to have been transferred from chains of length l相似文献   

Phase diagram of superconductivity and antiferromagnetism in high-Tc hole-doped cuprates

A phase diagram of superconductivity (SC) and antiferromagnetism (AFM) for hole-doped cuprate superconductors in presence of chemical potential (μ) by using a model Hamiltonian is reported here. The Hamiltonian of the system is a mean field one and has been solved by writing equations of motion for the single particle Green functions. The expressions for appropriate single particle correlation function are derived. It is assumed that SC arises due to BCS pairing mechanism and AFM order is simulated by staggered magnetic field in lattices of Cu–O planes. The expressions for SC order parameter, AFM order parameter and dopant concentration are calculated analytically by using Green function technique of D.N. Zubarev. The value of SC gap (z), AFM gap (h) and chemical potential (μ) are solved self consistently for different dopant concentrations (x) by changing model parameters. It is found that a disordered phase appears after antiferromagnetism is destroyed in the range of very small doping. On further increase of the doping, the SC critical temperature first increases, attains a maximum value (?39 K) and then decreases which agrees well with experimental observations for hole-doped cuprates. Our theoretical findings suggest that the AFM coupling plays the vital role of the glue for the Cooper pairs.     

Magnetism and superconductivity in R1.5Ce0.5MSr2Cu2O10‐δ (M=Ru and Fe) compounds

It is shown here, that the superconducting (SC) R_1.5Ce_0.5RuSr₂Cu₂O_10-δ (RCeRuSCO, R= Eu and Gd) materials (T_c ～ 32 and 42 K) are also antiferromagnetically (AFM) ordered at T _N(Ru) ～ 122 and 180 K, respectively, thus, T_N ? T_c, a trend which is contrary to that obtained in “magnetic‐SC” intermetallic systems. Mössbauer spectroscopy (MS) on 0.5% ⁵⁷Fe doped samples shows that all Fe ions reside in the Ru site which is magnetically ordered, whereas SC is confined to the CuO₂ planes. On the other hand, for Y_1.5Ce_0.5FeSr₂Cu₂O₉ (YCeFSCO) no SC is found and the Cu–O planes order AFM at T _N(Cu)=31 K. MS studies reveal two in equivalent Fe sites, and that Fe resides predominantly (60%) in the Cu(1) site. In both sites, the Fe does not order magnetically, and the low T _N(Cu) obtained is due to frustration of the Cu moments by the presence of Fe. T _N is sensitive to oxygen concentration and shifts toward 260 K when oxygen is depleted.     

Delocalized quasiparticles in the vortex state of an overdoped high-T(c) superconductor probed by 63Cu NMR

We report the spin Knight shift (K(s)) and the nuclear spin-lattice relaxation rate (1/T1) in the vortex state as a function of magnetic field (H) up to 28 T in the high-Tc superconductor TlSr2CaCu2O6.8 (Tc = 68 K). At low temperatures well below Tc, both K(s) and 1/T1 measured around the middle point between the two nearest vortices (saddle point) increase substantially with increasing field, which indicate that the quasiparticle states with an ungapped spectrum are extended outside the vortex cores in a d-wave superconductor. The density of states (DOS) around the saddle point is found to be kappaN(0)square root[H/H(c2)], with kappa = 0.5-0.7 and N0 being the normal-state DOS.     

Weak magnetic order in the normal state of the high-Tc superconductor La2-xSrxCuO4

We report magnetization measurements in the normal state of the high transition temperature (high-Tc) superconductor La2-xSrxCuO4. A magnetic order in the form of hysteresis in the low-field magnetization is observed at temperatures well above Tc. The doping (x) dependence of the onset and strength of this order follows Tc(x) and falls within the pseudogap regime.     

Uniform mixing of antiferromagnetism and high-temperature superconductivity in electron-doped layers of four-layered Ba(2)Ca(3)Cu(4)O(8)F(2): a new phenomenon in an electron underdoped regime

We report (63,65)Cu- and (19)F-NMR studies on a four-layered high-temperature superconductor Ba(2)Ca(3)Cu(4)O(8)F(2)((0234F(2.0)) with apical fluorine (F(-1)), an undoped 55 K superconductor with a nominal Cu(2+) valence on average. We reveal that this compound exhibits the antiferromagnetism (AFM) with a Néel temperature T(N)=100 K despite being a T(c)=55 K superconductor. Through a comparison with a related trilayered cuprate Ba(2)Ca(3)Cu(4)O(8)F(2)(0233F(2.0)), it is demonstrated that electrons are transferred from the inner plane (IP) to the outer plane (OP) in 0234F(2.0) and 0223F(2.0), confirming the self-doped high-temperature superconductivity (HTSC) having electron and hole doping in a single compound. Remarkably, uniform mixing of AFM and HTSC takes place in both the electron-doped OPs and the hole-doped IPs in 0234F(2.0).     

Neutron-spin resonance in the optimally electron-doped superconductor Nd1.85Ce0.15CuO4-delta

We use inelastic neutron scattering to probe magnetic excitations of an optimally electron-doped superconductor Nd1.85Ce0.15CuO4-delta above and below its superconducting transition temperature Tc=25 K. In addition to gradually opening a spin pseudogap at the antiferromagnetic ordering wave vector Q=(1/2,1/2,0), the effect of superconductivity is to form a resonance centered also at Q=(1/2,1/2,0) but at energies above the spin pseudogap. The intensity of the resonance develops like a superconducting order parameter, similar to those for hole-doped superconductors and electron-doped Pr0.88LaCe0.12CuO4. The resonance is therefore a general phenomenon of cuprate superconductors, and must be fundamental to the mechanism of high-Tc superconductivity.     

Field and temperature dependence of the superfluid density in LaFeAsO1-xFx superconductors: a muon spin relaxation study

We present zero field and transverse field muon spin relaxation experiments on the recently discovered Fe-based superconductor LaFeAsO1-xFx (x=0.075 and x=0.1). The temperature dependence of the deduced superfluid density is consistent with a BCS s-wave or a dirty d-wave gap function, while the field dependence strongly evidences unconventional superconductivity. We obtain the in-plane penetration depth of lambda ab(0)=254(2) nm for x=0.1 and lambda ab(0)=364(8) nm for x=0.075. Further evidence for unconventional superconductivity is provided by the ratio of Tc versus the superfluid density, which is close to the Uemura line of high-Tc cuprates.     

Competitive coexistence of superconductivity with antiferromagnetism in CeRhIn5

We carried out ac magnetic susceptibility measurements under pressures P on the heavy fermion antiferromagnet CeRhIn5. We report bulk superconductivity (SC) at ambient pressure with a transition temperature Tc approximately or equal to 90 mK. The degraded SC in a powdered or polished sample was restored by annealing, showing that the SC state is sensitive to inhomogeneity. In a coexistence region of the SC with antiferromagnetism (AF), we find that Tc(P)(n)TN(P)(1-n) = const where TN indicates a Néel temperature and n denotes a ratio of electronic specific heat coefficients below and above TN, indicating the competition of the SC and the AF for states at the Fermi surface.     

Enhancing the superconducting transition temperature of CeRh 1-x IrxIn5 due to the strong-coupling effects of antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations: an 115In nuclear quadrupole resonance study

We report on systematic evolutions of antiferromagnetic (AFM) spin fluctuations and unconventional superconductivity (SC) in heavy-fermion (HF) compounds CeRh(1-x)Ir(x)In(5) via an (115)In nuclear-quadrupole-resonance experiment. The nuclear spin-lattice relaxation rate 1/T(1) has revealed the marked development of AFM spin fluctuations as approaching an AFM ordered state. Concomitantly, the superconducting transition temperature T(c) and the energy gap Delta0 increase drastically from T(c)= 0.4K and 2Delta0/k(B)T(c)=5 in CeIrIn(5) up to T(c) =1.2K and 2Delta0/k(B)T(c) =8.3 in CeRh(0.3)Ir(0.7)In5 , respectively. The present work suggests that the AFM spin fluctuations in close proximity to the AFM quantum critical point are indeed responsible for the strong-coupling unconventional SC in HF compounds.     

Heat Capacity Under Pressure of CeCoIn 5

Among heavy-fermion (HF) superconductors, CeCoIn 5 exhibits a record high value of T c =2.3 K at ambient pressure [1]. CeCoIn 5 belongs to a new class of HF-superconductors that crystallize in the tetragonal HoCoGa 5 -structure. This structure can be regarded as alternating layers of CeIn 3 and CoIn 2 . Bulk CeIn 3 undergoes a transition from an antiferromagnetic (AFM) state at ambient pressure ( T N =10.2 K) to a superconducting state with very low T C =0.15 K at a critical pressure p c =2.8 GPa [2] at which long range magnetic order vanishes. It is, therefore, regarded as a possible candidate for magnetically mediated superconductivity (SC). We report on measurements of the heat capacity of CeCoIn 5 at hydrostatic pressures p h 1.5 GPa. While T c increases with increasing pressure, the effective mass of the quasi-particles m eff decreases, as indicated by the ratio C / T | T c . As a working hypothesis based on theories of a nearly antiferromagnetic Fermi-liquid (NAFFL), this may be interpreted as the stabilization of the superconducting state by an increase of the characteristic spin fluctuation temperature T_{SF} (T_{SF}\propto k_F^2/m_{\rm eff}).     

In-plane and out-of-plane anisotropic magnetoresistances in La1 − x Pb x MnO3 thin films

The temperature and field dependences of in-plane (IP) and out-of-plane (OP) anisotropic magnetoresistances (AMRs) have been measured in La_{1 ? x} Pb _x MnO₃ (LPMO) thin films having different microstructures, namely the single-crystal (SC), nanocrystalline (NC) and polycrystalline (PC) microstructures. The OP AMR, irrespective of the microstructure, is found to be considerably larger than the IP AMR. The magnetization data show that the larger OP AMR arises because magnetization is favoured in the film plane owing to strain anisotropy. In addition, the temperature and field dependences of both IP and OP AMRs are governed by the crystallinity of the films, indicating that the AMRs are strongly influenced by the magnetization process.     

Incommensurate magnetic ordering in Cu2Te2O5X2 (X = Cl,Br) studied by neutron diffraction

We present the results of the first neutron powder and single crystal diffraction studies of the coupled spin tetrahedra systems Cu2Te2O5X2 (X = Cl,Br). Incommensurate antiferromagnetic order with the propagation vectors kCl approximately [0.150,0.422,1/2], kBr approximately [0.158,0.354,1/2] sets in below TN = 18 K for X = Cl and 11 K for X = Br. No simple collinear antiferromagnetic or ferromagnetic spin arrangements within Cu2+ tetrahedra fit these observations. Fitting the diffraction data to more complex but physically reasonable models with multiple helices leads to a moment of 0.67(1)microB/Cu2+ at 1.5 K for the Cl compound. The reason for such a complex ground state may be geometrical frustration of the spins due to the intratetrahedral and intertetrahedral couplings having similar strengths. In neither compound has any evidence for a structural transition accompanying the magnetic ordering been found.     

The role of CALYPSO in the discovery of high-T_c hydrogen-rich superconductors

Hydrogen-rich compounds are promising candidates for high-Tc or even room-temperature superconductors. The search for high-Tc hydrides poses a major experimental challenge because there are many known hydrides and even more unknown hydrides with unusual stoichiometries under high pressure. The combination of crystal structure prediction and first-principles calculations has played an important role in the search for high-Tc hydrides, especially in guiding experimental synthesis. Crystal structure AnaLYsis by Particle Swarm Optimization(CALYPSO) is one of the most efficient methods for predicting stable or metastable structures from the chemical composition alone. This review summarizes the superconducting hydrides predicted using CALYPSO. We focus on two breakthroughs toward room-temperature superconductors initiated by CALYPSO: the prediction of high-Tc superconductivity in compressed hydrogen sulfide and lanthanum hydrides, both of which have been confirmed experimentally and have set new record Tc values. We also address the challenges and outlook in this field.     

Direct observation of the coexistence of the pseudogap and superconducting quasiparticles in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8 + y by time-resolved optical spectroscopy

We report the ultrafast optical response of quasiparticles (QPs) in both the pseudogap (PG) and superconducting (SC) states of an underdoped Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8 + y (Bi2212) single crystal measured with the time-resolved pump-probe technique. At a probe energy variant planck's over omegapr = 1.55 eV, it is found that the reflectivity change DeltaR/R changes its sign at exactly Tc, which allows the direct separation of the charge dynamics of PG and SC QPs. Further systematic investigations indicate that the transient signals associated with PG and SC QPs depend on the probe beam energy and polarization. By tuning them below Tc, two distinct components can be detected simultaneously, providing evidence for the coexistence of PG and SC QPs.