Contrasting Nodal and Anti-Nodal Behavior in the Cuprates Via Multiple Gap Spectroscopies

Using a precursor superconductivity scenario for the cuprates we present a theory for the temperature dependent behavior of the spectral gaps associated with four distinct spectroscopies: angle resolved photoemission (ARPES), differential conductance $dI/dV$, quasi-particle interference spectroscopy, and the autocorrelated ARPES pattern. We find good agreement for a range of existing experiments and make predictions for others. Our theory, which incorporates the necessary (observed) contrast between the nodal and anti-nodal response, shows how different nodal gap shapes are associated with these alternative spectroscopies.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Microscopic Approach to Shear Viscosities in Superfluid Gases: From BCS to BEC

We compute the shear viscosity, $\eta$, at general temperatures $T$, in a BCS-BEC crossover scheme which is demonstrably consistent with conservation laws. The study of $\eta$ is important because it constrains microscopic theories by revealing the excitation spectra. The onset of a normal state pairing gap and the contribution from pair degrees of freedom imply that $\eta$ at low $T$ becomes small, rather than exhibiting the upturn predicted by most others. Using the local density approximation, we find quite reasonable agreement with just-published experiments.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure