42 research outputs found
Edge and Bulk Transport in the Mixed State of a Type-II Superconductor
By comparing the voltage-current (V-I) curves obtained before and after
cutting a sample of 2H-NbSe2, we separate the bulk and edge contributions to
the transport current at various dissipation levels and derive their respective
V- I curves and critical currents. We find that the edge contribution is
thermally activated across a current dependent surface barrier. By contrast the
bulk V-I curves are linear, as expected from the free flux flow model. The
relative importance of bulk and edge contributions is found to depend on
dissipation level and sample dimensions. We further show that the peak effect
is a sharp bulk phenomenon and that it is broadened by the edge contribution
Metals in high magnetic field: a new universality class of Fermi liquids
Parquet equations, describing the competition between superconducting and
density-wave instabilities, are solved for a three-dimensional isotropic metal
in a high magnetic field when only the lowest Landau level is filled. In the
case of a repulsive interaction between electrons, a phase transition to the
density-wave state is found at finite temperature. In the opposite case of
attractive interaction, no phase transition is found. With decreasing
temperature , the effective vertex of interaction between electrons
renormalizes toward a one-dimensional limit in a self-similar way with the
characteristic length (transverse to the magnetic field) decreasing as
( is a cutoff). Correlation functions have
new forms, previously unknown for conventional one-dimensional or
three-dimensional Fermi-liquids.Comment: 13 pages + 4 figures (included
Effects of Magnetic Order on the Upper Critical Field of UPt
I present a Ginzburg-Landau theory for hexagonal oscillations of the upper
critical field of UPt near . The model is based on a
representation for the superconducting order parameter,
, coupled to an in-plane AFM order parameter,
. Hexagonal anisotropy of arises from the weak in-plane
anisotropy energy of the AFM state and the coupling of the superconducting
order parameter to the staggered field. The model explains the important
features of the observed hexagonal anisotropy [N. Keller, {\it et al.}, Phys.
Rev. Lett. {\bf 73}, 2364 (1994).] including: (i) the small magnitude, (ii)
persistence of the oscillations for , and (iii) the change in
sign of the oscillations for and (the temperature at the
tetracritical point). I also show that there is a low-field crossover
(observable only very near ) below which the oscillations should vanish.Comment: 9 pages in a RevTex (3.0) file plus 2 postscript figures (uuencoded).
Submitted to Physical Review B (December 20, 1994)
Phase Fluctuations and Vortex Lattice Melting in Triplet Quasi-One-Dimensional Superconductors at High Magnetic Fields
Assuming that the order parameter corresponds to an equal spin triplet
pairing symmetry state, we calculate the effect of phase fluctuations in
quasi-one-dimensional superconductors at high magnetic fields applied along the
y (b') axis. We show that phase fluctuations can destroy the theoretically
predicted triplet reentrant superconducting state, and that they are
responsible for melting the magnetic field induced Josephson vortex lattice
above a magnetic field dependent melting temperature Tm.Comment: 4 pages (double column), 1 eps figur
Suppression of surface barrier in superconductors by columnar defects
We investigate the influence of columnar defects in layered superconductors
on the thermally activated penetration of pancake vortices through the surface
barrier. Columnar defects, located near the surface, facilitate penetration of
vortices through the surface barrier, by creating ``weak spots'', through which
pancakes can penetrate into the superconductor. Penetration of a pancake
mediated by an isolated column, located near the surface, is a two-stage
process involving hopping from the surface to the column and the detachment
from the column into the bulk; each stage is controlled by its own activation
barrier. The resulting effective energy is equal to the maximum of those two
barriers. For a given external field there exists an optimum location of the
column for which the barriers for the both processes are equal and the
reduction of the effective penetration barrier is maximal. At high fields the
effective penetration field is approximately two times smaller than in
unirradiated samples. We also estimate the suppression of the effective
penetration field by column clusters. This mechanism provides further reduction
of the penetration field at low temperatures.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.
Lower critical field H_c1 and barriers for vortex entry in Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+delta} crystals
The penetration field H_p of Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+delta} crystals is determined
from magnetization curves for different field sweep rates dH/dt and
temperatures. The obtained results are consistent with theoretical reports in
the literature about vortex creep over surface and geometrical barriers. The
frequently observed low-temperature upturn of H_p is shown to be related to
metastable configurations due to barriers for vortex entry. Data of the true
lower critical field H_c1 are presented. The low-temperature dependence of H_c1
is consistent with a superconducting state with nodes in the gap function.
[PACS numbers: 74.25.Bt, 74.60.Ec, 74.60.Ge, 74.72.Hs
Electric field dependence of pairing temperature and tunneling
Using the Bethe-Salpeter equation including high electric fields, the
dependence of the critical temperature of onsetting superconductivity on the
applied field is calculated analytically. The critical temperature of pairing
is shown to increase with the applied field strength. This is a new field
effect and could contribute to the explanation of recent experiments on field
induced superconductivity. From the field dependence of the Bethe-Salpeter
equation, the two--particle bound state solution is obtained as a resonance
with a tunneling probability analogous to the WKB solution of a single particle
confined in a potential and coupled to the electrical field.Comment: 4 pages 1 figure, revised version from 29.10.02, Rev. B in pres
Superconductivity and Antiferromagnetism in Quasi-one-dimensional Organic Conductors
We review the current understanding of superconductivity in the
quasi-one-dimensional organic conductors of the Bechgaard and Fabre salt
families. We discuss the interplay between superconductivity,
antiferromagnetism, and charge-density-wave fluctuations. The connection to
recent experimental observations supporting unconventional pairing and the
possibility of a triplet-spin order parameter for the superconducting phase is
also presented.Comment: (v1) 30 pages, 13 figures; Review article for the 20th anniversary of
high-Tc superconductivity, to appear in J. Low Temp. Phys. (v2) 1 Ref. adde
Possible Triplet Electron Pairing and an Anisotropic Spin Susceptibility in Organic Superconductors (TMTSF)_2 X
We argue that (TMTSF)_2 PF_6 compound under pressure is likely a triplet
superconductor with a vector order parameter d(k) \equiv (d_a(k) \neq 0, d_c(k)
= ?, d_{b'}(k) = 0); |d_a(k)| > |d_c(k)|. It corresponds to an anisotropic spin
susceptibility at T=0: \chi_{b'} = \chi_0, \chi_a \ll \chi_0, where \chi_0 is
its value in a metallic phase. [The spin quantization axis, z, is parallel to a
so-called b'-axis]. We show that the suggested order parameter explains why the
upper critical field along the b'-axis exceeds all paramagnetic limiting
fields, including that for a nonuniform superconducting state, whereas the
upper critical field along the a-axis (a \perp b') is limited by the Pauli
paramagnetic effects [I. J. Lee, M. J. Naughton, G. M. Danner and P. M.
Chaikin, Phys. Rev. Lett. 78, 3555 (1997)]. The triplet order parameter is in
agreement with the recent Knight shift measurements by I. J. Lee et al. as well
as with the early results on a destruction of superconductivity by nonmagnetic
impurities and on the absence of the Hebel-Slichter peak in the NMR relaxation
rate.Comment: 4 pages, 1 eps figur
Possible new vortex matter phases in BSCCO
The vortex matter phase diagram of BSCCO crystals is analyzed by
investigating vortex penetration through the surface barrier in the presence of
a transport current. The strength of the effective surface barrier, its
nonlinearity, and asymmetry are used to identify a possible new ordered phase
above the first-order transition. This technique also allows sensitive
determination of the depinning temperature. The solid phase below the
first-order transition is apparently subdivided into two phases by a vertical
line extending from the multicritical point.Comment: 11 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in PR