Probing Pseudogap by Josephson Tunneling

We propose here an experiment aimed to determine whether there are superconducting pairing fluctuations in the pseudogap regime of the high-$T_c$ materials. In the experimental setup, two samples above $T_c$ are brought into contact at a single point and the differential AC conductivity in the presence of a constant applied bias voltage between the samples, $V$, should be measured. We argue the the pairing fluctuations will produce randomly fluctuating Josephson current with zero mean, however the current-current correlator will have a characteristic frequency given by Josephson frequency $\omega_J = 2 e V /\hbar$. We predict that the differential AC conductivity should have a peak at the Josephson frequency with the width determined by the phase fluctuations time.Comment: 4 pages, 2 eps figure

Spin excitations in a single La2_2CuO4_4 layer

The dynamics of S=1/2 quantum spins on a 2D square lattice lie at the heart of the mystery of the cuprates \cite{Hayden2004,Vignolle2007,Li2010,LeTacon2011,Coldea2001,Headings2010,Braicovich2010}. In bulk cuprates such as \LCO{}, the presence of a weak interlayer coupling stabilizes 3D N\'{e}el order up to high temperatures. In a truly 2D system however, thermal spin fluctuations melt long range order at any finite temperature \cite{Mermin1966}. Further, quantum spin fluctuations transfer magnetic spectral weight out of a well-defined magnon excitation into a magnetic continuum, the nature of which remains controversial \cite{Sandvik2001,Ho2001,Christensen2007,Headings2010}. Here, we measure the spin response of \emph{isolated one-unit-cell thick layers} of \LCO{}. We show that coherent magnons persist even in a single layer of \LCO{} despite the loss of magnetic order, with no evidence for resonating valence bond (RVB)-like spin correlations \cite{Anderson1987,Hsu1990,Christensen2007}. Thus these excitations are well described by linear spin wave theory (LSWT). We also observe a high-energy magnetic continuum in the isotropic magnetic response. This high-energy continuum is not well described by 2 magnon LSWT, or indeed any existing theories.Comment: Revised version to appear in Nature Materials; 6 pages,4 figure

Scale-invariant magnetoresistance in a cuprate superconductor

The anomalous metallic state in high-temperature superconducting cuprates is masked by the onset of superconductivity near a quantum critical point. Use of high magnetic fields to suppress superconductivity has enabled a detailed study of the ground state in these systems. Yet, the direct effect of strong magnetic fields on the metallic behavior at low temperatures is poorly understood, especially near critical doping, $x=0.19$. Here we report a high-field magnetoresistance study of thin films of \LSCO cuprates in close vicinity to critical doping, $0.161\leq x\leq0.190$. We find that the metallic state exposed by suppressing superconductivity is characterized by a magnetoresistance that is linear in magnetic field up to the highest measured fields of $80$T. The slope of the linear-in-field resistivity is temperature-independent at very high fields. It mirrors the magnitude and doping evolution of the linear-in-temperature resistivity that has been ascribed to Planckian dissipation near a quantum critical point. This establishes true scale-invariant conductivity as the signature of the strange metal state in the high-temperature superconducting cuprates.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figure

The optical response of Ba_{1-x}K_xBiO_3: Evidence for an unusual coupling mechanism of superconductivity?

We have analysed optical reflectivity data for Ba_{1-x}K_xBiO_3 in the far-infrared region using Migdal-Eliashberg theory and found it inconsistent with standard electron-phonon coupling: Whereas the superconducting state data could be explained using moderate coupling, \lambda=0.7, the normal state properties indicate \lambda \le 0.2. We have found that such behaviour could be understood using a simple model consisting of weak standard electron-phonon coupling plus weak coupling to an unspecified high energy excitation near 0.4 eV. This model is found to be in general agreement with the reflectivity data, except for the predicted superconducting gap size. The additional high energy excitation suggests that the dominant coupling mechanism in Ba_{1-x}K_xBiO_3 is not standard electron-phonon.Comment: 5 pages REVTex, 5 figures, 32 refs, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Non-Fermi liquid behavior of SrRuO_3 -- evidence from infrared conductivity

The reflectivity of the itinerant ferromagnet SrRuO_3 has been measured between 50 and 25,000 cm-1 at temperatures ranging from 40 to 300 K, and used to obtain conductivity, scattering rate, and effective mass as a function of frequency and temperature. We find that at low temperatures the conductivity falls unusually slowly as a function of frequency (proportional to \omega^{-1/2}), and at high temperatures it even appears to increase as a function of frequency in the far-infrared limit. The data suggest that the charge dynamics of SrRuO_3 are substantially different from those of Fermi-liquid metals.Comment: 4 pages, 3 postscript figure

Evidence for Magnetic Pseudoscaling in Overdoped La(2-x)Sr(x)CuO(4)

We report the results of electronic Raman scattering experiments on an overdoped La(1.78)Sr(0.22)CuO(4) single crystal as a function of temperature. The scattering rate Gamma(w->0,T) has been determined from the normal state B(1g) spectra in the range 50 K < T < 300 K. Gamma(T) decreases linearly from 300 K to about 175 K and then undergoes a reduction with respect to the expected mean-field behavior. This trend suggests a crossover to pseudoscaling regime at about T(cr)=160 K. The results are in good agreement with the prediction of the nearly antiferromagnetic Fermi liquid model. There is no evidence of a pseudogap in the spectra obtained from this overdoped sample.Comment: RevTex, 4 pages with 3 PS figures included, replaced with minor changes in the text and reference

Anisotropic optical properties of single-crystal GdBa2Cu3O7-delta

The optical spectrum of reduced-T(c) GdBa2Cu3O7-delta has been measured for polarizations parallel and perpendicular to the ab plane. The sample was an oxygen-deficient single crystal with a large face containing the c axis. The polarized reflectance from this face was measured from 20-300 K in the spectral region from 30-3000 cm-1, with 300 K data to 30 000 cm-1. Kramers-Kronig analysis was used to determine the spectral dependence of the ab and the c components of the dielectric tensor. The optical properties are strongly anisotropic. The ab-plane response resembles that of other reduced-T(c) materials whereas the c axis, in contrast, shows only the presence of several phonons. There is a complete absence of charge carrier response along c above and below T(c). This observation allows us to set an upper limit to the free-carrier spectral weight for transport perpendicular to the CuO2 planes

Incoherent Pair Tunneling as a Probe of the Cuprate Pseudogap

We argue that incoherent pair tunneling in a cuprate superconductor junction with an optimally doped superconducting and an underdoped normal lead can be used to detect the presence of pairing correlations in the pseudogap phase of the underdoped lead. We estimate that the junction characteristics most suitable for studying the pair tunneling current are close to recently manufactured cuprate tunneling devices.Comment: ReVTeX 3.1; 4 pages, 2 EPS figures (included

Anomalous superconducting state gap size versus Tc behavior in underdoped Bi_2Sr_2Ca_1-xDy_xCu_2O_8+d

We report angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy measurements of the excitation gap in underdoped superconducting thin films of Bi_2Sr_2Ca_{1-x}Dy_xCu_2O_{8+d}. As Tc is reduced by a factor of 2 by underdoping, the superconducting state gap \Delta does not fall proportionally, but instead stays constant or increases slightly, in violation of the BCS mean-field theory result. The different doping dependences of \Delta and kT_c indicate that they represent different energy scales. The measurements also show that \Delta is highly anisotropic and consistent with a d_{x^2-y^2} order parameter, as in previous studies of samples with higher dopings. However, in these underdoped samples, the anisotropic gap persists well above T_c. The existence of a normal state gap is related to the failure of \Delta to scale with T_c in theoretical models that predict pairing without phase coherence above T_c.Comment: 10 pages, 4 postscript figures, revtex forma

Proximity induced metal/insulator transition in YBa2Cu3O7/La2/3Ca1/3MnO3Y Ba_2 Cu_3 O_7 / La_{2/3} Ca_{1/3} Mn O_3 superlattices

The far-infrared dielectric response of superlattices (SL) composed of superconducting YBa$_{2}$Cu$_{3}$O$_{7}$ (YBCO) and ferromagnetic La$_{0.67}$% Ca$_{0.33}$MnO$_{3}$ (LCMO) has been investigated by ellipsometry. A drastic decrease of the free carrier response is observed which involves an unusually large length scale of d$^{crit}\approx$20 nm in YBCO and d$^{crit}\approx$10 nm in LCMO. A corresponding suppression of metallicity is not observed in SLs where LCMO is replaced by the paramagnetic metal LaNiO$_{3}$. Our data suggest that either a long range charge transfer from the YBCO to the LCMO layers or alternatively a strong coupling of the charge carriers to the different and competitive kind of magnetic correlations in the LCMO and YBCO layers are at the heart of the observed metal/insulator transition. The low free carrier response observed in the far-infrared dielectric response of the magnetic superconductor RuSr$_{2}$GdCu$_{2}$O$_{8}$ is possibly related to this effect