184 research outputs found
Resistivity phase diagram of cuprates revisited
The phase diagram of the cuprate superconductors has posed a formidable
scientific challenge for more than three decades. This challenge is perhaps
best exemplified by the need to understand the normal-state charge transport as
the system evolves from Mott insulator to Fermi-liquid metal with doping. Here
we report a detailed analysis of the temperature (T) and doping (p) dependence
of the planar resistivity of simple-tetragonal HgBaCuO
(Hg1201), the single-CuO-layer cuprate with the highest optimal . The
data allow us to test a recently proposed phenomenological model for the
cuprate phase diagram that combines a universal transport scattering rate with
spatially inhomogeneous (de)localization of the Mott-localized hole. We find
that the model provides an excellent description of the data. We then extend
this analysis to prior transport results for several other cuprates, including
the Hall number in the overdoped part of the phase diagram, and find little
compound-to-compound variation in (de)localization gap scale. The results point
to a robust, universal structural origin of the inherent gap inhomogeneity that
is unrelated to doping-related disorder. They are inconsistent with the notion
that much of the phase diagram is controlled by a quantum critical point, and
instead indicate that the unusual electronic properties exhibited by the
cuprates are fundamentally related to strong nonlinearities associated with
subtle nanoscale inhomogeneity.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figure
Measurement of exciton correlations using electrostatic lattices
We present a method for determining correlations in a gas of indirect
excitons in a semiconductor quantum well structure. The method involves
subjecting the excitons to a periodic electrostatic potential that causes
modulations of the exciton density and photoluminescence (PL). Experimentally
measured amplitudes of energy and intensity modulations of exciton PL serve as
an input to a theoretical estimate of the exciton correlation parameter and
temperature. We also present a proof-of-principle demonstration of the method
for determining the correlation parameter and discuss how its accuracy can be
improved.Comment: 10 pages, 11 figure
Exciton gas transport through nano-constrictions
An indirect exciton is a bound state of an electron and a hole in spatially
separated layers. Two-dimensional indirect excitons can be created optically in
heterostructures containing double quantum wells or atomically thin
semiconductors. We study theoretically transmission of such bosonic
quasiparticles through nano-constrictions. We show that quantum transport
phenomena, e.g., conductance quantization, single-slit diffraction, two-slit
interference, and the Talbot effect, are experimentally realizable in systems
of indirect excitons. We discuss similarities and differences between these
phenomena and their counterparts in electronic devices.Comment: (v2) Updated title, text, and references; 12 pages, 9 figure
Indirect excitons in a potential energy landscape created by a perforated electrode
We report on the principle and realization of an excitonic device: a ramp that directs the transport of indirect excitons down a potential energy gradient created by a perforated electrode at a constant voltage. The device provides an experimental proof of principle for controlling exciton transport with electrode density gradients. We observed that the exciton transport distance along the ramp increases with increasing exciton density. This effect is explained in terms of disorder screening by repulsive exciton-exciton interactions
The rate of quasiparticle recombination probes the onset of coherence in cuprate superconductors
The condensation of an electron superfluid from a conventional metallic state
at a critical temperature is described well by the BCS theory. In the
underdoped copper-oxides, high-temperature superconductivity condenses instead
from a nonconventional metallic "pseudogap" phase that exhibits a variety of
non-Fermi liquid properties. Recently, it has become clear that a charge
density wave (CDW) phase exists within the pseudogap regime, appearing at a
temperature just above . The near coincidence of and
, as well the coexistence and competition of CDW and superconducting
order below , suggests that they are intimately related. Here we show that
the condensation of the superfluid from this unconventional precursor is
reflected in deviations from the predictions of BSC theory regarding the
recombination rate of quasiparticles. We report a detailed investigation of the
quasiparticle (QP) recombination lifetime, , as a function of
temperature and magnetic field in underdoped HgBaCuO
(Hg-1201) and YBaCuO (YBCO) single crystals by ultrafast
time-resolved reflectivity. We find that exhibits a local
maximum in a small temperature window near that is prominent in
underdoped samples with coexisting charge order and vanishes with application
of a small magnetic field. We explain this unusual, non-BCS behavior by
positing that marks a transition from phase-fluctuating SC/CDW composite
order above to a SC/CDW condensate below. Our results suggest that the
superfluid in underdoped cuprates is a condensate of coherently-mixed
particle-particle and particle-hole pairs
Transport of indirect excitons in high magnetic fields
We present spatially and spectrally resolved photoluminescence measurements of indirect excitons in high magnetic fields. Long indirect exciton lifetimes give the opportunity to measure magnetoexciton transport by optical imaging. Indirect excitons formed from electrons and holes at zeroth Landau levels (0e−0h indirect magnetoexcitons) travel over large distances and form a ring emission pattern around the excitation spot. In contrast, the spatial profiles of 1e−1h and 2e−2h indirect magnetoexciton emission closely follow the laser excitation profile. The 0e−0h indirect magnetoexciton transport distance reduces with increasing magnetic field. These effects are explained in terms of magnetoexciton energy relaxation and effective mass enhancement
Connection between charge-density-wave order and charge transport in the cuprate superconductors
Charge-density-wave (CDW) correlations within the quintessential CuO
planes have been argued to either cause [1] or compete with [2] the
superconductivity in the cuprates, and they might furthermore drive the
Fermi-surface reconstruction in high magnetic fields implied by quantum
oscillation (QO) experiments for YBaCuO (YBCO) [3] and
HgBaCuO (Hg1201) [4]. Consequently, the observation of bulk
CDW order in YBCO was a significant development [5,6,7]. Hg1201 features
particularly high structural symmetry and recently has been demonstrated to
exhibit Fermi-liquid charge transport in the relevant temperature-doping range
of the phase diagram, whereas for YBCO and other cuprates this underlying
property of the CuO planes is partially or fully masked [8-10]. It
therefore is imperative to establish if the pristine transport behavior of
Hg1201 is compatible with CDW order. Here we investigate Hg1201 ( = 72 K)
via bulk Cu L-edge resonant X-ray scattering. We indeed observe CDW
correlations in the absence of a magnetic field, although the correlations and
competition with superconductivity are weaker than in YBCO. Interestingly, at
the measured hole-doping level, both the short-range CDW and Fermi-liquid
transport appear below the same temperature of about 200 K. Our result points
to a unifying picture in which the CDW formation is preceded at the higher
pseudogap temperature by = 0 magnetic order [11,12] and the build-up of
significant dynamic antiferromagnetic correlations [13]. Furthermore, the
smaller CDW modulation wave vector observed for Hg1201 is consistent with the
larger electron pocket implied by both QO [4] and Hall-effect [14]
measurements, which suggests that CDW correlations are indeed responsible for
the low-temperature QO phenomenon
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