Observation of Cooper pairs in high-temperature superconductors by 67Cu(67Zn) Mössbauer spectroscopy

A Mössbauer emission spectroscopy study on the ⁶⁷Cu(⁶⁷Zn) isotope showed that the superconducting transition in the Nd_1.85Ce_0.15CuO₄, La_1.85Sr_0.15CuO₄, and Tl₂Ba₂CaCu₂O₈ compounds is accompanied by an electron density redistribution in the crystal, which is considered evidence of Cooper-pair Bose condensation.     

X-ray Fluorescence Spectroscopic Studies of High TeSuperconductors

The Cu-Lβ/Cu-Lα x-ray emission intensity ratio of the following compounds have been found to show an interesting consistency: Cu, Cu₂O, CuO, La_1.85Ba_.15CuO₄ (vacuum annealed), La_1.85Ba_.15CuO₄ (air annealed, T_C = 26K), La_1.85Sr_.15CuO₄ (T_C = 35K), YBa₂Cu₃O_7-Δ (T_C = 91K), ErBa₂Cu₃O_7-Δ (T_C = 81K), and La₂CuO₄. The interesting consistency is that all of the last six compounds, all superconductors or superconductor related, have the same Lβ/Lα intensity ratio, namely, 0.33±0.01. The Cu-Lα,β spectra of CuO, air and vacuum annealed La_1.85 Ba_.15CuO₄ and YBa₂Cu₃O_7-Δ are presented. Also presented are O-K x-ray fluorescence spectra of air and vacuum annealed La_1.85 Ba_.15CuO₄, and of “new” and “old” YBa₂Cu₃O_7-Δwhich seem to show a correspondence between spectral sharpness and high T_C behavior.     

Comment on “Is Nd2−xCexCuO4 an electron-superconductor?”

A critical comment was made to the electron energy-loss spectroscopy [Z. Phys. B-Condensed Matter75, 421 (1989)] which questionedn-type superconductivity in Nd_2–xCe_xCuO₄. Comparative oxygen-K absorption and oxygen 1s photoemission spectroscopies for Nd_2–xCe_xCuO₄ and Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈ have shown that these two superconductors are classified into two different categories.     

Crystal structures of high-T c oxides

A comprehensive review of structure work on high-T _c oxides as reported during the years 1987 and 1988 is given. Thirteen structures are refined from X-ray single-crystal and/or neutron powder diffraction data:I. (Ba_1–x ,K _x )BiO₃ (T _c =30 K),II. (La_2–x , Sr _x )CuO₄ (T _c =40 K),III. (Nd, Ce, Sr)₂CuO₄ (T _c =28 K),IV. (Nd_2–x , Ce _x )CuO₄ (T _c =24 K),V. YBa₂Cu₃O₇ (T _c =90 K),VI. YBa₂Cu₄O₈ (T _c =80 K),VII. Y₂Ba₄Cu₇O₁₄ (T _c =40 K),VIII. Pb₂Sr₂NdCu₃O₈ (T _c =70 K),IX. TlBa₂CaCu₂O₇ (T _c =103 K),X. TlBa₂Ca₂Cu₃O₉ (T _c =120 K),XI. Tl₂Ba₂CuO₆ (T _c =90 K),XII. Tl₂Ba₂CaCu₂O₈ (T _c =112 K),XIII. Tl₂Ba₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀ (T _c =125 K). Except forI (perovskite type),II (K₂NiF₄ type) andIV (Nd₂CuO₄ type) they represent new structure types. Structure data, bond distances, structure drawings and calculated X-ray powder diffraction patterns are given for each compound. Structural features and correlations with superconductivity are discussed. The review contains 301 citations.     

Structural investigation of high-tc superconductors under high pressure

Abstract

The results of X-ray investigations of Tl₂Ba₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀ show a preferential c-axis decrease under high pressure, leading to a bulk modulus of B = 1370 kbar at 300 K. The results are compared to previous investigations of La₂CuO₄, La_1.8Sr_0.2CuO₄ and Pr₂CuO₄, that show a similar linear compressibility in a- and b- axis direction. The linear compressibility in c-axis direction is dominated by the degeneration of the Cu-O octohedra and by the compressibility of intercalated layers.     

Electron density variation at copper sites at the superconducting transition in cuprates

The temperature dependence of the center of gravity S of the Mössbauer spectrum produced by ⁶⁷Zn²⁺ impurity ions occupying copper and yttrium sites in YBa₂Cu₃O_6.6, YBa₂Cu₃O_6.9, YBa₂Cu₄O₈, Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈, HgBa₂CuO₄, and HgBa₂CaCu₂O₆ at temperatures above the superconducting transition point T_c was shown to be dominated by the second-order Doppler shift. For T<T_c, the quantity S is affected by the band mechanism associated with the formation of Cooper pairs and their Bose condensation. The variation of electron density at a metal site of the crystal was found to be related to the superconducting transition temperature. The variation of electron density created by the Cooper pair Bose condensate in compounds with two structurally inequivalent copper positions was shown to be different for these copper sites. The experimental dependence of the fraction of superconducting electrons on temperature agrees with the analogous dependence following from BCS theory for all the sites studied.     

Photoemission valence band spectra and electronic density of states in copper oxides and copper based ceramic super-conductors

Photoemission valence band spectra with three different photon energies (21.2 eV, 40.8 eV, 1253.6 eV) for Cu₂O and CuO and a number of copper oxide based superconducting ceramics are investigated, namely La₂CuO₄ (LCO), Y₁Ba₂Cu₃O₇ (YBCO), Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈ (BSCCO) and Tl₂Ba₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀ (TBCCO). From the Cu₂O data it can be infered, that the He-II (40.8 eV) spectra give a fair representation of the density of states (DOS). In addition the agreement between the calculated density of states (DOS) and the He-II photoemission spectrum is almost perfect for Cu₂O. This agreement is worse for CuO and the other materials which all have a Cu groundstate close to a 3d ⁹ configuration indicating a large contribution of thed-d correlation energy to the excitation spectra which is absent in Cu₂O because of the filled 3d-shell. In all cases the experimental DOS atE _F is very small and only the spectra of BSCCO show a well defined Fermi edge. The relevance of these findings with respect to the theoretical local functional density DOS calculations is discussed.     

Investigations of the interlayer coupling in high-<Emphasis Type="Italic">T</Emphasis><Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">c</Emphasis></Subscript> cuprates

Low-field magnetizationM(H) measurements can be used to probe the nature of the screening currents and the interlayer coupling in high-T _c cuprates. Here we compare theM(H) behaviour of single crystals of Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈ and fully oxygenated and oxygen reduced YBa₂Cu₃O_7??. In YBa₂Cu₃O₇, theM(H) behaviour is consistent with anisotropic 3D superconductivity whilst in Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈, the surface screening currents are strongly affected by the presence of vortices, implying that the CuO₂ planes are coupled via a weak Josephson interaction. In oxygen-deficient YBa₂Cu₃O_6.7 (T _c =63K), theM(H) behaviour at low temperatures is similar to that found for Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈, implying that the removal of oxygen from the chains has resulted in a dimensional crossover of the superconducting state in YBa₂Cu₃O_7??. As the temperature approachesT _c , the 3D behaviour is eventually restored as thec-axis coherence length ξ _c becomes comparable with the interlayer spacingd.     

Low temperature specific heat studies on the pairing states of high-Tc superconductors: a brief review

Low temperature specific heat (LTSH) data on a variety of high-T_c superconductors, such as YBa₂Cu₃O₇, La_1−xSr_xCuO₄, Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈, and Ba_0.6K_0.4BiO₃ are reviewed. The agreement between the experimental data and theoretical predictions, such as T²-dependence of specific heat at zero magnetic field and H^1/2-dependence of electronic specific heat is widely discussed within the scenario of d-wave superconductivity. Impurity scattering effects and scaling model on d-wave superconductivity are verified using Zn- and Ni-doped La_1−xSr_xCuO₄. The low energy quasiparticle density of states N(E)=N(0)+E^1/2 are deduced from dirty d-wave superconductors. Absence of paramagnetic contribution to LTSH is found both in superconducting and non-superconducting underdoped samples suggesting that a mechanism beyond Kondo screening model maybe required to explain its magnetic property.     

Luminescence spectra and crystal structure of high-temperature superconductors

The luminescence spectra are obtained in the visible region for the high-T _c superconductors La₂CuO₄, YBA₂Cu₃O_7−δ , Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O_8±δ , and YBa₂Cu₃O_8±δ and for the secondary phases BaCuO_2±γ and Y₂Cu₂O₅. The presence of a luminescence band with energy E _lum∼2.4 eV in the spectra of all the investigated compounds is established. The nature of the observed luminescence bands is discussed on the basis of a comparative analysis of the crystal structures and luminescence spectra and on the basis of notions as to the presence of bands in the spectra accompanied by photoinduced diffusion of weakly bound oxygen and photoinduced charge transfer in the CuO₂ planes. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 39, 1739–1746 (October 1997)     

Magnetic order in La2-x Bax CuO4 and La1.6-x Nd0.4 Srx CuO4 for x=0.125

We present μSR experiments on La_2-x Ba_x CuO₄ and La_1.6-x Nd_0.4 Sr_x CuO₄ for x=0.125. Both of these materials order magnetically with T_N\approx30\ K, while a superconducting sample of La_1.4 Nd_0.4 Sr_0.2 CuO₄ showed no evidence for static copper moments. Our results support the conclusion that the so‐called “1/8” anomaly in La_2-x Ba_x CuO₄ is a result of static (pinned) charge segregation. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Copper and oxygen vibrations in La2CuO4 and YBa2Cu3O7

We perform eV neutron scattering experiments (neutron energy > 1 eV) on copper metal, CuO, La₂CuO₄ and YBa₂Cu₃O₇, and neutron absorption experiments of HoBa₂Cu₃O₇, and determined the mean kinetic energy of O, Cu and other atoms in these materials. The Debye temperatures of Cu atoms in La₂CuO₄ and YBa₂Cu₃O₇ were estimated to be extremely large, about 1500 and 2000 K, respectively.     

In-plane London penetration depths near the critical temperature of Tl2Ba2Ca n−1Cu n O2n+4 and (Bi,Pb)2Sr2Ca n−1 Cu n O2n+4 (n=2,3)

From isothermalM(H) curves nearT _c , measured on polycrystalline Tl₂Ba₂Ca _n–1Cu _n O_2n +4 and (Bi, Pb)₂Sr₂Ca _n–1Cu _n O_2n+4 (n=2,3) samples, we deduce the in-plane penetration depths _ab as functions of temperature. An estimate according to the BCS weak-coupling clean-limit fit, which produces the data nearT _c very well, yields _ab(0)=3100 Å, 2320 Å 2210 Å, and 1960 Å for Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈, Bi_1.6Pb_0.4Sr₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀, Tl₂Ba₂CaCu₂O₈, and Tl₂Ba₂Ca₂Cu₃O₁₀, respectively. A comparison between strong-coupling and weak coupling fitting curves clearly favours the weak-coupling temperature dependence of _ab nearT _c .     

Superconducting gap of overdoped Tl2Ba2CuO6+δ observed by Raman scattering

We report Raman scattering spectra for single crystals of overdoped Tl₂Ba₂CuO_6+δ (Tl-2201) at low temperatures. It was observed that the pair-breaking peaks in A_1g and B_1g spectra radically shift to lower energy with carrier doping. We interpret it as s-wave component mixing into d-wave, although the crystal structure is tetragonal. Since similar phenomena were observed also in YBa₂Cu₃O_y and Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O_z, we conclude that s-wave mixing is a common property for overdoped high-T_c superconductors.     

Experimental observation of Bose condensation in high-temperature superconductors

Emission Mössbauer spectroscopy on ⁶⁷Cu (⁶⁷Zn) and ⁶⁷Ga (⁶⁷Zn) isotopes was used to show that for the superconductors Nd_1.85Ce_0.15CuO₄, La_1.85 Sr_0.15CuO₄, and Tl₂Ba₂ CaCuO₈ in the temperature range T > T _c the temperature dependence of the center of gravity S of the Mössbauer spectrum is determined by the second-order Doppler shift, while in the range T < T _c the Bose condensation of Cooper pairs influences the value of S (here T _c is the superconducting transition temperature). The spatial nonuniformity produced in the electron density by a Bose condensate of Cooper pairs was observed for La_1.85 Sr_0.15CuO₄.     

Magnetization anomaly and anisotropy of Bi2Sr2CaCu2−xNixO8 single crystals

We have observed the anomalous magnetization of Bi₂Sr₂CaCu_2−xNi_xO₈ (x = 0 and 0.02) single crystals. Anisotropy decreases with iodine intercalation although it expands the space between CuO₂ layers. Iodine intercalation seems to suppress the magnetization anomaly for Ni = 1% crystals, but not for Ni = 1% substituted crystals. We have discussed these results in terms of the increase of anisotropy by Ni substitution and the dimensional crossover of flux lines. Effects of both oxygen concentration and substitution of a magnetic element for the Cu site on the anisotropy of Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈ crystals show the same tendency as the case of the YBa₂Cu₃O₇ superconductor.     

Andreev bound states in high temperature superconductors

Andreev bound states at the surface of superconductors are expected for any pair potential showing a sign change in different k-directions with their spectral weight depending on the relative orientation of the surface and the pair potential. We report on the observation of Andreev bound states in high temperature superconductors (HTS) employing tunneling spectroscopy on bicrystal grain boundary Josephson junctions (GBJs). The tunneling spectra were studied as a function of temperature and applied magnetic field. The tunneling spectra of GBJ formed by YBa₂Cu₃O (YBCO), Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O(BSCCO), and La_1.85Sr_0.15CuO₄ (LSCO) show a pronounced zero bias conductance peak that can be interpreted in terms of Andreev bound states at zero energy that are expected at the surface of HTS having a d-wave symmetry of the order parameter. In contrast, for the most likely s-wave HTS Nd_1.85Ce_0.15CuO_4-y (NCCO) no zero bias conductance peak was observed. Applying a magnetic field results in a shift of spectral weight from zero to finite energy. This shift is found to depend nonlinearly on the applied magnetic field. Further consequences of the Andreev bound states are discussed and experimental evidence for anomalous Meissner currents is presented. Received: 17 February 1998 / Revised: 27 April 1998 / Accepted: 23 June 1998     

Influence of interatomic forces on the lattice dynamics of YBa2Cu3O7 (molecular dynamics method)

The method of molecular dynamics is used to study the dynamic properties of the high-temperature superconductor YBa₂Cu₃O₇. It is shown in the system La_2−x Sr_xCuO₄ that, due to the presence of strong anharmonism and a substantial difference in the interatomic forces, local “hot” regions arise around the Ba⁴⁺ charge defects in the CuO₂ and CuO planes, where the mean kinetic energy of the vibrations of the oxygen atoms reaches ∼0.5 eV. All other types of defects: oxygen and copper vacancies, substitutional atoms, and charge defects, do not lead to such effects. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 41, 1729–1733 (October 1999)     

Dimensional crossover in a BiSrCaCuO single crystal vibrating reed experiment

With the vibrating reed technique we have measured the depinning lines (DLs) of vortices in Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈ and Y(6%Gd)Ba₂Cu₃O_6.83 single crystals for magnetic fields parallel to the [CuO₂] planes. The DLs of the two compounds have similar slopes for reduced temperaturest>0.98 and magnetic fieldsB<0.1 T. AtB0.1 T we observe a pronounced change in the slope of the DL of the Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈ sample which may indicate a crossover from a three to a two dimensional superconductor.