Zinc impurities in d-wave superconductors

We study the two-dimensional Hubbard model with nonmagnetic Zn impurities modeled by binary diagonal disorder using quantum Monte Carlo within the dynamical cluster approximation. With increasing Zn content we find a strong suppression of d-wave superconductivity and an enhancement of antiferromagnetic spin correlations. T(c) vanishes linearly with Zn impurity concentration. The spin susceptibility changes from pseudogap to Curie-Weiss-like behavior indicating the existence of free magnetic moments in the Zn doped system. We interpret these results within the resonating-valence-bond picture.     

Nodal Cooper-pair stabilized phase dynamics in granular d-wave superconductors

Scanning tunneling microscope measurements on single crystals of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x materials have shown that the d-wave superconductivity in cuprates has nanoscale inhomogeneities and is still robust in spite of their presence. We study the dynamics of Josephson coupling between such granular d-wave superconductors, focusing on the effect of nodal Cooper pairs and disorder. We find that the nodal Cooper pairs give rise to a power-law Josephson coupling which leads to the stabilization of the superconducting phase. Our findings suggest that the d-wave superconductivity in an array of grains is unexpectedly robust against a disordering transition, as observed in the experiments. Furthermore, we predict the existence of a planar Josephson-plasmon mode with characteristic frequency that decreases with temperature.     

Superconductivity close to the Mott state: From condensed-matter systems to superfluidity in optical lattices

Since the discovery of high-temperature superconductivity in 1986 by Bednorz and Müller, great efforts have been devoted to finding out how and why it works. From the d-wave symmetry of the order parameter, the importance of antiferromagnetic fluctuations, and the presence of a mysterious pseudogap phase close to the Mott state, one can conclude that high-T_c superconductors are clearly distinguishable from the well-understood BCS superconductors. The d-wave superconducting state can be understood through a Gutzwiller-type projected BCS wavefunction. In this review article, we revisit the Hubbard model at half-filling and focus on the emergence of exotic superconductivity with d-wave symmetry in the vicinity of the Mott state, starting from ladder systems and then studying the dimensional crossovers to higher dimensions. This allows to confirm that short-range antiferromagnetic fluctuations can mediate superconductivity with d-wave symmetry. Ladders are also nice prototype systems allowing to demonstrate the truncation of the Fermi surface and the emergence of a Resonating Valence Bond (RVB) state with preformed pairs in the vicinity of the Mott state. In two dimensions, a similar scenario emerges from renormalization group arguments. We also discuss theoretical predictions for the d-wave superconducting phase as well as the pseudogap phase, and address the crossover to the overdoped regime. Finally, cold atomic systems with tunable parameters also provide a complementary insight into this outstanding problem.     

Competition between antiferromagnetism and superconductivity in high-Tc cuprates

Using variational cluster perturbation theory we study the competition between d-wave superconductivity (dSC) and antiferromagnetism (AF) in the t-t(')-t(')-U Hubbard model. Large scale computer calculations reproduce the overall ground-state phase diagram of the high-temperature superconductors as well as the one-particle excitation spectra for both hole and electron doping. We identify clear signatures of the Mott gap as well as of AF and of dSC that should be observable in photoemission experiments.     

Superconductivity in strongly repulsive fermions: the role of kinetic-energy frustration

We discuss a physical mechanism of a non-BCS nature which can stabilize a superconducting state in a strongly repulsive electronic system. By considering the two-dimensional Hubbard model with spatially modulated electron hoppings, we demonstrate how kinetic-energy frustration can lead to robust d-wave superconductivity at arbitrarily large on-site repulsion. This phenomenon should be observable in experiments using fermionic atoms, e.g. 40K, in specially prepared optical lattices.     

Superconducting phase and pairing fluctuations in the half-filled two-dimensional Hubbard model

The two-dimensional Hubbard model exhibits superconductivity with d-wave symmetry even at half-filling in the presence of a next-nearest neighbor hopping. Using plaquette cluster dynamical mean-field theory with a continuous-time quantum Monte Carlo impurity solver, we reveal the non-Fermi liquid character of the metallic phase in proximity to the superconducting state. Specifically, the low-frequency scattering rate for momenta near (π, 0) varies nonmonotonically at low temperatures, and the dc conductivity is T linear at elevated temperatures with an upturn upon cooling. Evidence is provided that pairing fluctuations dominate the normal-conducting state even considerably above the superconducting transition temperature.     

Highly anisotropic anomaly in the dispersion of the copper-oxygen bond-bending phonon in superconducting YBa2Cu3O7 from inelastic neutron scattering

Motivated by predictions of a substantial contribution of the "buckling" vibration of the CuO(2) layers to d-wave superconductivity in the cuprates, we have performed an inelastic neutron scattering study of this phonon in an array of untwinned crystals of YBa(2)Cu(3)O(7). The data reveal a pronounced softening of the phonon at the in-plane wave vector q=(0,0.3) upon cooling below ~105 K, but no corresponding anomaly at q=(0.3,0). Based on the observed in-plane anisotropy, we argue that the electron-phonon interaction responsible for this anomaly supports an electronic instability associated with a uniaxial charge-density modulation and does not mediate d-wave superconductivity.     

Antiferromagnetism and superconductivity in layered organic conductors: Variational cluster approach

The kappa-(ET)2X layered conductors (where ET stands for BEDT-TTF) are studied within the dimer model as a function of the diagonal hopping t' and Hubbard repulsion U. Antiferromagnetism and d-wave superconductivity are investigated at zero temperature using variational cluster perturbation theory (VCPT). For large U, Néel antiferromagnetism exists for t' < t(c2)', with t(c2)' approximately 0.9. For fixed t', as U is decreased (or pressure increased), a d(x2-y2) superconducting phase appears. When U is decreased further, then a d(xy) order takes over. There is a critical value of t(c1)' approximately 0.8 of t' beyond which the AF and dSC phases are separated by the Mott disordered phase.     

Magnetic field effect on the pseudogap temperature within precursor superconductivity

We determine the magnetic-field dependence of the pseudogap closing temperature T* within a precursor superconductivity scenario. Detailed calculations with an anisotropic lattice model with d-wave superconductivity account for a recently determined experimental relation in BSCCO between the pseudogap closing field and the pseudogap temperature at zero field, as well as for the weak initial dependence of T* at low fields. Our results indicate that the available experimental data are fully compatible with a superconducting origin of the pseudogap in cuprate superconductors.     

Superconductivity in the Two-Dimensional Hubbard Model

It is shown that the existence of d-wave superconductivity in the two-dimensional Hubbard model close to half-filling can be inferred from a renormalization group analysis at one-loop level.     

Enhancement of pairing correlation by t' in the two-dimensional extended t-J model

We investigate the effects of the next-nearest-neighbor (t') and the third-nearest-neighbor (t") hopping terms on superconductivity correlation in the 2D hole-doped extended t-J model based on the variational Monte Carlo, mean-field calculation and exact diagonalization method. Despite the diversity of the methods employed, the results all point to a consistent conclusion: While the d-wave superconductivity correlation is slightly suppressed by t' and t" in underdoped regions, it is greatly enhanced in the optimal and overdoped regions. The optimal Tc is a result of the balance of these two opposite trends.     

Diffusional coagulation of superparamagnetic particles in the presence of an external magnetic field

In this paper, we investigate the diffusional coagulation of colloidal superparamagnetic (SP) latex particles that are under the influence of an external magnetic field. The cluster size distributions (CSDs) that evolve with time were determined using an optical set-up that permits the direct visualization of particle clusters. Following the dynamic scaling analysis of van Dongen and Ernst (Phys. Rev. Lett. 54 (1985) 1396), we find that the CSDs all collapse onto a master curve when properly scaled. The bell-shape of this master curve indicates that large clusters preferentially scavenge small clusters in our system. From the time evolution of the average cluster size we infer that the reactivity between large clusters diminishes with increasing cluster size. These results are consistent with a simple mathematical formulation of the coagulation rate constant, or kernel, for the Brownian coagulation of magnetic particles. Moreover, our results support a growing body of evidence that the dynamic scaling theory developed by van Dongen and Ernst is a useful framework with which to study the microscale processes governing particle coagulation.     

Theory for superconductivity in iron pnictides at large coulomb U limit

Superconductivity in iron pnictides is studied by using a two-orbital Hubbard model in the large U limit. The Coulomb repulsion induces an orbital-dependent pairing between charge carriers. The pairing is found mainly from the scattering within the same Fermi pocket where usually one single orbital dominates. The inter-pocket pair scatterings determine the symmetry of the singlet superconductivity, which is an extended s-wave at small Hund’s coupling, and d-wave at large Hund’s coupling and large U. The former is consistent with recent experiments of ARPES and Andreev reflection spectroscopy. Spin triplet states only become important at large exchange interaction J.     

Metallic nonsuperconducting phase and D-wave superconductivity in Zn-substituted La1.85Sr0.15CuO4

Measurements of the resistivity, magnetoresistance, and penetration depth were made on films of La1.85Sr0.15CuO4, with up to 12 at. % of Zn substituted for the Cu. The results show that the quadratic temperature dependence of the inverse square of the penetration depth, indicative of d-wave superconductivity, is not affected by doping. The suppression of superconductivity leads to a metallic nonsuperconducting phase, as expected for a pairing mechanism related to spin fluctuations. The metal-insulator transition occurs in the vicinity of k(F)l approximately 1, and appears to be disorder driven, with the carrier concentration unaffected by doping.     

Zero bias conductance peak enhancement in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8/Pb tunneling junctions

Recently, there has been tremendous interest on a tunneling feature called zero bias conductance peak (ZBCP) commonly found in high T_csuperconductor tunnel junctions. The interest stemmed from the feature’s root in the d-wave symmetry of high T_csuperconductors. In this paper we will review results of our study on ZBCP within a Pb/Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈(BSCCO) tunneling junction. This allows us to investigate the intricate interactions between s- and d-wave superconductivity. The ZBCP indeed demonstrates interesting properties when Pb becomes superconducting. We attribute these results to the suppression of the d-wave phase on the surface of BSCCO by the s-wave superconductivity from Pb through a proximity effect. We will also report some recent results on the magnetic field dependence of the ZBCP.     

Generalizing the Cooper-pair instability to doped Mott insulators

Copper oxides become superconductors rapidly upon doping with electron holes, suggesting a fundamental pairing instability. The Cooper mechanism explains normal superconductivity as an instability of a fermi-liquid state, but high-temperature superconductors derive from a Mott-insulator normal state, not a fermi liquid. We show that precocity to pair condensation with doping is a natural property of competing antiferromagnetism and d-wave superconductivity on a singly-occupied lattice, thus generalizing the Cooper instability to doped Mott insulators, with significant implications for the high-temperature superconducting mechanism.     

Excluded volumes of clusters in tetrahedral particle packing

We investigate the excluded volumes of clusters in tetrahedral particle packing using an ideal tetrahedron model and Monte Carlo simulation. Both the influences of the size and topology of clusters on the excluded volume are studied. We find that the excluded volumes of the dimer composed of two tetrahedra and the wagon wheel composed of five tetrahedra are relatively lower than other cluster forms. For large clusters, the excluded volume decreases when the topology of a cluster approaches the wagon-wheel geometry. The results give an explanation to the cluster distribution which demonstrates that the dimer and wagon wheel are the dominative cluster forms in the packing structure of tetrahedra.     

Increasing d-wave superconductivity by on-site repulsion

We study, through the variational Monte Carlo technique, an extended Hubbard model away from half filled band density which contains two competing nearest-neighbor interactions: a superexchange J favoring d-wave superconductivity and a repulsion V opposing it. We find that the on-site repulsion U effectively enhances the strength of J while suppressing that of V, thus favoring superconductivity. This result shows that attractions which do not involve charge fluctuations are very well equipped against strong electron-electron repulsion so much to get advantage from it.     

s+d混合波对称性下联合模型的超导电性

提出一个联合模型，在ｓ＋ｄ混合波对称性下，合并考虑电子间配对相互作用的各向异性及二维电子结构上Ｖａｎ Ｈｏｖｅ奇异性对超导电性的影响．理论结果表明：Ｖａｎ Ｈｏｖｅ奇异性及配对相互作用的各向异性都是使Ｔ_c提高的重要因素；各向异性的电子配对相互作用自然导致序参量的ｄ波成分，当此各向异性增强时，ｄ波成分也增大．高温超导体的较高２Δ（０）／ｋ_ＢＴ_c值可能预示着在这些材料中ｓ波的权重远小于ｄ波权重．联合效应模型下的Ｔ_c处比热跳跃行为与经典的ＢＣＳ理论也完全不同 关键词：     

双能隙介观超导体的涡旋结构模拟

本文运用了含时Ginzburg-Landau理论研究了双能带结构的介观超导体在外磁场作用下涡旋随时间的演化. 给出了实际温度在s波和d波的临界温度之间s波、d波以及磁场的分布, 从 理论上模拟得到涡旋进入和退出样品的磁场"过热"与"过冷"现象, 以及介观超导样品边界对涡旋结构分布的影响. 关键词： 涡旋结构 双能带 含时Ginzburg-Landau理论 超导