Theoretical de Haas-van Alphen Data and Plasma Frequencies of MgB2 and TaB2

The de Haas-van Alphen-frequencies as well as the effective masses for a magnetic field parallel to the crystallographic c-axis are calculated within the local spin density approximation (LSDA) for MgB2 and TaB2. In addition, we analyze the plasma frequencies computed for each Fermi surface sheet. We find a large anisotropy of Fermi velocities in MgB2 in difference to the nearly isotropic behavior in TaB2. We compare calculations performed within the relativistic non-full potential augmented-spherical-wave (ASW) scheme and the scalar-relativistic full potential local orbital (FPLO) scheme. A significant dependence for small cross sections on the bandstructure method is found. The comparison with the first available experimental de Haas-van Alphen-data by Yelland et al. (Ref. 19) shows deviations from the electronic structure calculated within both L(S)DA approaches although the cross section predicted by FPLO are closer to the experimental data. The elucidation of the relevant many-body effects beyond the standard LDA is considered as a possible key problem to understand the superconductivity in MgB2.Comment: Typos corrected, 3references added. Extended and corrected version of S. Elgazzar et al., Solid State Comm. v. 121, 99 (2002). 7pages, 4figures, AIP Conference Proc. "Correlated Electron Systems and High-Tc Superconductors" (ed. F. Mancini) (October 2001, Salerno, Italy

Anisotropic superexchange of a 90 degree Cu-O-Cu bond

The magnetic anisotropy af a rectangular Cu-O-Cu bond is investigated in second order of the spin-orbit interaction. Such a bond is characteristic for cuprates having edge sharing CuO_2 chains, and exists also in the Cu_3O_4 plane or in ladder compounds. For a ferromagnetic coupling between the copper spins an easy axis is found perpendicular to the copper oxygen plaquettes in agreement with the experimental spin structure of Li_2CuO_2. In addition, a pseudo-dipolar interaction is derived. Its estimation in the case of the Cu_3O_4 plane (which is present for instance in Ba_2Cu_3O_4Cl_2 or Sr_2Cu_3O_4Cl_2) gives a value which is however two orders of magnitude smaller than the usual dipole-dipole interaction.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures, improved referenc

Magnetic Anisotropy of Co2+ as Signature of Intrinsic Ferromagnetism in ZnO:Co

We report on the magnetic properties of thoroughly characterized Zn1-xCoxO epitaxial thin films, with low Co concentration, x=0.003-0.005. Magnetic and EPR measurements, combined with crystal field theory, reveal that isolated Co2+ ions in ZnO possess a strong single ion anisotropy which leads to an "easy plane" ferromagnetic state when the ferromagnetic Co-Co interaction is considered. We suggest that the peculiarities of the magnetization process of this state can be viewed as a signature of intrinsic ferromagnetism in ZnO:Co materials.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Hole motion in an arbitrary spin background: Beyond the minimal spin-polaron approximation

The motion of a single hole in an arbitrary magnetic background is investigated for the 2D t-J model. The wavefunction of the hole is described within a generalized string picture which leads to a modified concept of spin polarons. We calculate the one-hole spectral function using a large string basis for the limits of a Neel ordered and a completely disordered background. In addition we use a simple approximation to interpolate between these cases. For the antiferromagnetic background we reproduce the well-known quasiparticle band. In the disordered case the shape of the spectral function is found to be strongly momentum-dependent, the quasiparticle weight vanishes for all hole momenta. Finally, we discuss the relevance of results for the lowest energy eigenvalue and its dispersion obtained from calculations using a polaron of minimal size as found in the literature.Comment: 13 pages, 8 figures, to appear in Phys. Rev.

How chemical pressure affects the fundamental properties of rare-earth pnictides: an ARPES view

Angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy, supplemented by theoretical calculations has been applied to study the electronic structure of heavy-fermion material CeFePO, a homologue to the Fe-based high-temperature superconductors, and CeFeAs_0.7P_0.3O, where the applied chemical pressure results in a ferromagnetic order of the 4f moments. A comparative analysis reveals characteristic differences in the Fe-derived band structure for these materials, implying a rather different hybridization of valence electrons to the localized 4f orbitals. In particular, our results suggest that the ferromagnetism of Ce moments in CeFeAs_0.7P_0.3O is mediated mainly by Fe 3d_xz/yz orbitals, while the Kondo screening in CeFePO is instead due to a strong interaction of Fe 3d_3z^2-r^2 orbitals.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. B (Rapid

CeFePO: f-d hybridization and quenching of superconductivity

Being homologue to the new, Fe-based type of high-temperature superconductors, CeFePO exhibits magnetism, Kondo and heavy-fermion phenomena. We experimentally studied the electronic structure of CeFePO by means of angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. In particular, contributions of the Ce 4f-derived states and their hybridization to the Fe 3d bands were explored using both symmetry selection rules for excitation and their photoionization cross-section variations as a function of photon energy. It was experimentally found - and later on confirmed by LDA as well as DMFT calculations - that the Ce 4f states hybridize to the Fe 3d states of d_{3z^2-r^2} symmetry near the Fermi level that discloses their participation in the occurring electron-correlation phenomena and provides insight into mechanism of superconductivity in oxopnictides.Comment: 5 pages, 3 figure

Tight-binding parameters and exchange integrals of Ba_2Cu_3O_4Cl_2

Band structure calculations for Ba_2Cu_3O_4Cl_2 within the local density approximation (LDA) are presented. The investigated compound is similar to the antiferromagnetic parent compounds of cuprate superconductors but contains additional Cu_B atoms in the planes. Within the LDA, metallic behavior is found with two bands crossing the Fermi surface (FS). These bands are built mainly from Cu 3d_{x^2-y^2} and O 2p_{x,y} orbitals, and a corresponding tight-binding (TB) model has been parameterized. All orbitals can be subdivided in two sets corresponding to the A- and B-subsystems, respectively, the coupling between which is found to be small. To describe the experimentally observed antiferromagnetic insulating state, we propose an extended Hubbard model with the derived TB parameters and local correlation terms characteristic for cuprates. Using the derived parameter set we calculate the exchange integrals for the Cu_3O_4 plane. The results are in quite reasonable agreement with the experimental values for the isostructural compound Sr_2Cu_3O_4Cl_2.Comment: 5 pages (2 tables included), 4 ps-figure

Spin polaron damping in the spin-fermion model for cuprate superconductors

A self-consistent, spin rotational invariant Green's function procedure has been developed to calculate the spectral function of carrier excitations in the spin-fermion model for the CuO2 plane. We start from the mean field description of a spin polaron in the Mori-Zwanzig projection method. In order to determine the spin polaron lifetime in the self-consistent Born approximation, the self-energy is expressed by an irreducible Green's function. Both, spin polaron and bare hole spectral functions are calculated. The numerical results show a well pronounced quasiparticle peak near the bottom of the dispersion at (pi/2,pi/2), the absence of the quasiparticle at the Gamma-point, a rather large damping away from the minimum and an asymmetry of the spectral function with respect to the antiferromagnetic Brillouin zone. These findings are in qualitative agreement with photoemission data for undoped cuprates. The direct oxygen-oxygen hopping is responsible for a more isotropic minimum at (pi/2,pi/2).Comment: 18 pages, 13 figure