Theory of magnetic phases of hexagonal rare earth manganites

The magnetic phases of hexagonal perovskites RMnO_3 (R=Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Sc, Y) are analysed using group theory and the Landau theory of phase transitions. The competition between various magnetic order parameters is discussed in the context of antiferromagnetic interactions. A phenomenological model based on four one-dimensional magnetic order parameters is developed and studied numerically. It is shown that coupling of the various order parameters leads to a complex magnetic field-temperature phase diagram and the results are compared to experiment.Comment: 11 pages, 14 figures. Manuscript with higher quality figures can be obtained here: http://www.physics.mun.ca/~curnoe/papers/RMnO3.submit.pd

Parity Effect in a mesoscopic superconducting ring

We study a mesoscopic superconducting ring threaded by a magnetic flux when the single particle level spacing is not negligible. It is shown that, for a superconducting ring with even parity, the behavior of persistent current is equivalent to what is expected in a bulk superconducting ring. On the other hand, we find that a ring with odd parity shows anomalous behavior such as fluxoid quantization at half-integral multiples of the flux quantum and paramagnetic response at low temperature. We also discuss how the parity effect in the persistent current disappears as the temperature is raised or as the size of the ring increases.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, to appear in Europhys. Let

Long-Range Order of Vortex Lattices Pinned by Point Defects in Layered Superconductors

How the vortex lattice orders at long range in a layered superconductor with weak point pinning centers is studied through a duality analysis of the corresponding frustrated XY model. Vortex-glass order emerges out of the vortex liquid across a macroscopic number of weakly coupled layers in perpendicular magnetic field as the system cools down. Further, the naive magnetic-field scale determined by the Josephson coupling between adjacent layers is found to serve as an upperbound for the stability of any possible conventional vortex lattice phase at low temperature in the extreme type-II limit.Comment: 13 pgs., 1 table, published versio

Vortex Lattice Melting of a NbSe2 single grain probed by Ultrasensitive Cantilever Magnetometry

Using dynamic cantilever magnetometry, we study the vortex lattice and its corresponding melting transition in a micrometer-size crystallite of superconducting NbSe2. Measurements of the cantilever resonance frequency as a function of magnetic field and temperature respond to the magnetization of the vortex-lattice. The cantilever dissipation depends on thermally activated vortex creep motion, whose pinning energy barrier is found to be in good agreement with transport measurements on bulk samples. This approach reveals the phase diagram of the crystallite, and is applicable to other micro- or nanometer-scale superconducting samples.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure

Delayed response of a fermion-pair condensate to a modulation of the interaction strength

The effect of a sinusoidal modulation of the interaction strength on a fermion-pair condensate is analytically studied. The system is described by a generalization of the coupled fermion-boson model that incorporates a time-dependent intermode coupling induced via a magnetic Feshbach resonance. Nontrivial effects are shown to emerge depending on the relative magnitude of the modulation period and the relaxation time of the condensate. Specifically, a nonadiabatic modulation drives the system out of thermal equilibrium: the external field induces a variation of the quasiparticle energies, and, in turn, a disequilibrium of the associated populations. The subsequent relaxation process is studied and an analytical description of the gap dynamics is obtained. Recent experimental findings are explained: the delay observed in the response to the applied field is understood as a temperature effect linked to the condensate relaxation time.Comment: 6 page

Spectrum of the Andreev Billiard and Giant Fluctuations of the Ehrenfest Time

The density of states in the semiclassical Andreev billiard is theoretically studied and shown to be determined by the fluctuations of the classical Lyapunov exponent $\lambda$. The rare trajectories with a small value of $\lambda$ give rise to an anomalous increase of the Ehrenfest time $\tau_E\approx |\ln\hbar|/\lambda$ and, consequently, to the appearance of Andreev levels with small excitation energy. The gap in spectrum is obtained and fluctuations of the value of the gap due to different positions of superconducting lead are considered.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Crossed conductance in FSF double junctions: role of out-of-equilibrium populations

We discuss a model of Ferromagnet / Superconductor / Ferromagnet (FSF) double junction in which the quasiparticles are not in equilibrium with the condensate in a region of the superconductor containing the two FS contacts. The role of geometry is discussed, as well as the role of a small residual density of states within the superconducting gap, that allows a sequential tunneling crossed current. With elastic quasiparticle transport and the geometry with lateral contacts, the crossed conductances in the sequential tunneling channel are almost equal in the normal and superconducting phases, if the distance between the FS interfaces is sufficiently small. The sequential tunneling and spatially separated processes (the so-called crossed Andreev reflection and elastic cotunneling processes) lead to different signs of the crossed current in the antiparallel alignment for tunnel interfaces.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure

Microwave Spectroscopy

Contains reports on two research projects

Possible pi-phase shift at interface of two pnictides with antiphase s-wave pairing

We examine the nature of Josephson junction between two identical Fe-pnictides with anti-phase s-wave pairing. pi-phase shift is found if the junction barrier is thick and the two Fe-pnictides are oriented in certain directions relative to the interface. Our theory provides a possible explanation for the observed half integer flux quantum transitions in a niobium/polycrystal NdFeAsO loop, and attributes the pi-phase shift to intergrain junctions of Fe-pnictides.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure

Properties of a magnetic superconductor with weak magnetization - application to ErNi2B2CErNi_2B_2C

Using a Ginsburg-Landau free energy functional, we study the $H-T$ phase diagram of a weak magnetic superconductor, where the magnetization from the magnetic component is marginal in supporting a spontaneous vortex phase in absence of external magnetic field. In particular, the competition between the spiral state and spontaneous vortex phase is analysed. Our theory is applied to understand the magnetic properties of $ErNi_2B_2C$.Comment: 13 pages, 4 postscript figure