Van Hove singularity in Raman scattering spectra of high-T c superconductors

Experimental data are presented which supporting observation of an extended van Hove singularity in Raman spectra of high-T _c superconductors. Excitation of large-momentum electron-hole pairs is proposed as a possible mechanism of the scattering. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 40, 27–31 (January 1998)     

Dynamical nature of chaos in electron systems of high-T c superconductors

A model of the fermion-condensation phase transition forming a plateau in the spectrum of single-particle excitations near the Fermi surface at T=0 is used to analyze those features of the spectral functions of normal states of high-T _c superconductors which are inherent in a marginal Fermi liquid contaminated by impurities. With this model, such a behavior is shown to be due to the fermion condensate, which acts as an impurity subsystem because its energy spectrum at T=0 is dispersionless. The influence of the anisotropy of condensate distribution in the Brillouin zone on the spectral functions is discussed.     

Magnetization of high-T c superconductors

We have tried to understand the field dependence of magnetization of high temperature superconductors in the light of phenomenological theory. Especially, the field dependence of dM/d lnB of polycrystalline Bi(2212) is understood by incorporating the overlap of vortices in the London theory.     

Short range order in high-T c superconductors investigated by electron diffraction

Observation of modulated diffuse streaks in electron diffraction patterns of Tl₂Ba₂CuO₆ and YBa₂Cu₃O_7– ceramic superconductors is reported. These streaks are parallel with the c-axis and the intensity modulation has a period in reciprocal space which is larger than the c*-parameter. This behaviour is interpreted in terms of disordered sublattices. It is shown that the fine structure results from short range order in two successive homologous layers forming one bi-layer and that the intensity modulation in the diffuse streaks therefore allows one to determine which of the bi-layers in the material exhibit disorder.Research assistant of the National Fund for Scientific Research, Belgium     

Flux diffusion in high-T c superconductors

In type-II superconductors in the flux flow (J J _c ), flux creep (J _c J _c ), and thermally activated flux flow (TAFF) (J J _c ) regimes the inductionB(r,t), averaged over several penetration depths , in general follows from a nonlinear equation of motion into which enter the nonlinear resistivities (B, J ,T) caused by flux motion and (B, J ,T) caused by other dissipative processes.J andJ are the current densities perpendicular and parallel toB,B=|B|, andT is the temperature. For flux flow and TAFF in isotropic superconductors with weak relative spatial variation ofB, this equation reduces to the diffusion equation plus a correction term which vanishes whenJ =0 (this means B××B=0) or when – = 0 (isotropic normal conductor). When this diffusion equation holds the material anisotropy may be accounted for by a tensorial . The response of a superconductor to an applied current or to a change of the applied magnetic field is considered for various geometries. Such perturbations affect only a surface layer of thickness where a shielding current flows which pulls at the flux lines; the resulting deformation of the vortex lattice diffuses into the interior until a new equilibrium or a new stationary state is reached. The a.c. response, in particular the frequency with maximum damping, depends thus on the geometry and size of the superconductor.     

Strong-coupling effects in high-T c superconductors

It is conceivable that the high-T _c superconducting perovskites are conventional electronphonon superconductors. In this case one expects significant strong-coupling effects because of the unusually high ratiok _B T _c / of the order 0.1 and greater. We use a set of reasonable models for the Eliashberg function ² F() (which takes into account available information on the phonon spectra and which fit the measuredT _c 's) and calculate strong-coupling effects in the specific heatc _s (T)/T _c , the ratio ₀/k _B T _c , the critical fieldsH _c (T) andH _c2 (T) including Pauli limiting, and other measurable quantities. Strongcoupling corrections turn out to be in the range of 0 to about 100%, depending on the quantity of interest. We discuss the perspectives of using strong-coupling effects as indicators for conventional electron-phonon superconductivity in the new materials.     

Low-temperature scanning electron microscopy for studying inhomogeneities in thin-film high-T c superconductors

Low-temperature scanning electron microscopy can provide important information on the local superconducting properties of thin-iilm high-T _c superconductors. The principle of this method is outlined, including the spatial resolution limit. The spatial variations observation of the local values of the critical temperature and of the critical current density represent highly important applications of this method. The spatial variations of flux pinning and flux flow can be also studied.     

Superposition structure of crystal field spectra in high-T c superconductors: Overdoped regime

Experiments on inelastic scattering of neutrons show that the crystal field spectra for high-T _c super-conductors R_1?y Ca_yBa₂Cu₃O _x≈7 (R=Ho, Er; 0 > y > 0.25) have two spectral components associated with optimally doped and overdoped clusters, respectively. An increase in the calcium concentration does not affect the local density of charge carriers in clusters, but changes the concentration of clusters themselves and, hence, the spectral weights of the spectral components. In light of such a “two-phase” pattern observed earlier for cuprate-based superconductors with a doping level below optimal, an increase in the charge carrier concentration leads to a smooth transition (crossover) from the underdoped regime to the overdoped one. The obtained results show, however, that these two regions of the phase diagram differ qualitatively in the form of charge distribution in CuO₂ planes responsible for superconductivity.     

Magnetostriction of several high-T c superconductors

We report on magnetostriction measurements of superconducting and nonsuperconducting YBa₂Cu₃O_7– and of two Bi samples with the nominal compositions Bi₂CaSr₂Cu₂O _x and Bi_0.8Pb_0.2Sr_0.8CaCu_1.5O _x . Both types of high temperature superconductors show a nearly identical strongly hysteretic field dependence of the magnetostriction (MS) (l/l+(2–6)*10^–6 at 5 T and 1.5 K). In both cases the MS is a linear function of field in the region 1–5 T, which we explain by striction due to surface currents. Between 1.5 and 35 K the hysteresis of the MS decreases strongly with increasing temperature, which implies a decrease of the pinning force. The MS of quenched nonsuperconducting YBa₂Cu₃O_7– is at least two orders of magnitude smaller than that of the superconductor.     

On the strength of electron correlations in high-T c superconducting copper oxides

We analyze the strength of electronic correlations in the half-filled antibonding Cu–O orbitals of high-T _c superconducting copper oxides by considering a Cu₁₂O ₁₇ ^n– cluster withn=8 or 10, respectively. The correlated ground state is calculated by the method of the local approach (LA) in a version which allows the treatment of stronger correlated electrons. As mean-field basis a semiempirical Hamiltonian of the ZDO (zero differential overlap) type has been adopted. It is found that the correlations are particularly strong in the Cu 3d _x ²–y² orbitals. The nonintegral orbital occupation allows for valence fluctuations between Cu⁺ and Cu²⁺ in spite of the remarkable correlations. According to the present model excess holes are located at the oxygen sites. The theoretical findings are compared with the results of spectroscopic investigations. The present electronic-structure analysis allows for a straighforward rationalization of previous experimental measurements. The strong connection between the importance of electronic correlations and the symmetry properties of the electronic wave function is emphasized.     

Possible double-pairing effect in high-T c superconductors

Based on a reexamination of experimental facts a simple model called Double-Pairing Superconductivity is set up to describe the high temperature layered superconductors (HTLS). A mean-field scenario is carried out to investigate the model Hamiltonian. Within our model some of the exotic properties of HTLS may be understood, at least qualitatively.     

Tunneling and Andreev spectroscopies of high-T c superconductors

Tunneling spectroscopic studies of high-temperature superconductors (HTSC) are overviewed. It is demonstrated, in particular, that the superconducting gaps determined from Andreev reflections and tunneling current-voltage characteristics coincide at all doping levels. Facts are presented evidencing the strong electron-phonon interaction in the HTSC systems. The nature of the so-called pseudogap, which is observed in some tunneling experiments, is briefly discussed.     

Critical temperature of low-dimensional high-T c superconductors

We generalized the Coherent Potential Approximation (CPA) method for the calculation of the critical temperature of superconductors of lower dimensionality. Two dimensional (2d) and one-dimensional (1d) models have been considered. The critical temperature is calculated as function of the electronic concentration and of the position of the Fermi level. The critical temperature can be expressed with either of these two parameters. We also calculate the dependence ofT _c on an additional parameter which is the measure of the interplane coupling.     

Synthesis and properties of Hg-based high-T c superconductors

Il Nuovo Cimento D - The formation of Hg-based HTSC materials was investigated through the development of non-conventional techniques. The former was based on a singlestep synthesis at temperatures...     

Magnetic ordering in57Fe-doped high-T c superconductors

The high-temperature superconductor, Tl₂CaBa₂(Cu_1?x Fe _x )₂O_8+δ (the 2122 compound), has been investigated by a number of techniques, including X-ray diffraction, resistance and ac susceptibility measurements, and Mössbauer spectroscopy. The procedures followed to make close to single-phase samples are described. The decrease in the critical temperature for superconductivity,T _c , is less than for the iron-doped 123 compounds. The Mössbauer spectra at 77 K and above consist of an asymmetric doublet. Below about 10 K magnetic hyperfine splitting occurs; relaxation effects are still present at 2.3 K. The spectra can be fitted with two overlapping patterns. Their origin is discussed: comparisons are made with other high-T _c superconductors.     

Fermi-condensate quantum phase transition in high-T c superconductors

The effect of a quantum phase transition associated with the appearance of fermionic condensation in an electron liquid on the properties of superconductors is considered. It is shown that the electron system in both superconducting and normal states exhibits characteristic features of a quantum protectorate after the point of this Fermi-condensate quantum phase transition. The single-particle spectrum of a superconductor can be represented by two straight lines corresponding to two effective masses M _FC * and M _L *. The M _FC * mass characterizes the spectrum up to the binding energy E ₀ , which is of the order of the superconducting gap in magnitude, and determines the spectrum at higher binding energies. Both effective masses are retained in the normal state; however, E ₀ ?4 T. These results are used to explain some remarkable properties of high-T _c superconductors and are in good agreement with recent experimental data.     

Polaronic behavior of undoped high-T(c) cuprate superconductors from angle-resolved photoemission spectra

We present angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) data on undoped La2CuO4, indicating polaronic coupling between bosons and charge carriers. Using a shell model, we calculate the electron-phonon coupling and find that it is strong enough to give self-trapped polarons. We develop an efficient method for calculating ARPES spectra in undoped systems. Using the calculated couplings, we find the width of the phonon sideband in good agreement with experiment. We analyze reasons for the observed dependence of the width on the binding energy.