Disorder Effect on the Vortex Pinning by the Cooling Process Control in the Organic Superconductor κ\kappa-(BEDT-TTF)2_2Cu[N(CN)2_2]Br

We investigate the influence of disorders in terminal ethylene groups of BEDT-TTF molecules (ethylene-disorders) on the vortex pinning of the organic superconductor $\kappa$-(BEDT-TTF)$_2$Cu[N(CN)$_2$]Br. Magnetization measurements are performed under different cooling-processes. The second peak in the magnetization hysteresis curve is observed for all samples studied, and the hysteresis width of the magnetization becomes narrower by cooling faster. In contradiction to the simple pinning effect of disorder, this result shows the suppression of the vortex pinning force by introducing more ethylene-disorders. The ethylene-disorder domain model is proposed for explaining the observed result. In the case of the system containing a moderate number of the ethylene-disorders, the disordered molecules form a domain structure and it works as an effective pinning site. On the contrary, an excess number of the ethylene-disorders may weaken the effect of the domain structure, which results in the less effective pinning force on the vortices.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figure

Cooperative dynamics in charge-ordered state of alpha-(BEDT-TTF)2I3

Electric-field-dependent pulse measurements are reported in the charge-ordered state of alpha-(BEDT-TTF)2I3. At low electric fields up to about 50 V/cm only negligible deviations from Ohmic behavior can be identified with no threshold field. At larger electric fields and up to about 100 V/cm a reproducible negative differential resistance is observed with a significant change in shape of the measured resistivity in time. These changes critically depend whether constant voltage or constant current is applied to the single crystal. At high enough electric fields the resistance displays a dramatic drop down to metallic values and relaxes subsequently in a single-exponential manner to its low-field steady-state value. We argue that such an electric-field induced negative differential resistance and switching to transient states are fingerprints of cooperative domain-wall dynamics inherent to two-dimensional bond-charge density wave with ferroelectric-like nature.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, resubmitted to Phys. Rev.

Impurity Effect on the In-plane Penetration Depth of the Organic Superconductors κ\kappa-(BEDT-TTF)2X_2X (XX = Cu(NCS)2_2 and Cu[N(CN)2_2]Br)

We report the in-plane penetration depth $\lambda_{\parallel}$ of single crystals $\kappa$-(BEDT-TTF)$_2X$ ($X=$ Cu(NCS)$_2$ and Cu[N(CN)$_2$]Br) by means of the reversible magnetization measurements under the control of cooling-rate. In $X$ = Cu(NCS)$_2$, $\lambda_{\parallel}(0)$ as an extrapolation toward $T$ = 0 K does not change by the cooling-rate within the experimental accuracy, while $T_{\textrm{c}}$ is slightly reduced. On the other hand, in $X$ = Cu[N(CN)$_2$]Br, $\lambda_{\parallel}(0)$ indicates a distinct increase by cooling faster. The different behavior of $\lambda_{\parallel}(0)$ on cooling-rate between the two salts is quantitatively explained in terms of the local-clean approximation (London model), considering that the former salt belongs to the very clean system and the later the moderate clean one. The good agreement with this model demonstrates that disorders of ethylene-group in BEDT-TTF introduced by cooling faster increase the electron(quasiparticle)-scattering, resulting in shorter mean free path.Comment: 8 pages, 9 figure

Suppression of the charge-density-wave state in Sr_14Cu_24O_41 by calcium doping

The charge response in the spin chain/ladder compound Sr_14-xCa_xCu_24O_41 is characterized by DC resistivity, low-frequency dielectric spectroscopy and optical spectroscopy. We identify a phase transition below which a charge-density wave (CDW) develops in the ladder arrays. Calcium doping suppresses this phase with the transition temperature decreasing from 210 K for x=0 to 10 K for x=9, and the CDW gap from 130 meV down to 3 meV, respectively. This suppression is due to the worsened nesting originating from the increase of the inter-ladder tight-binding hopping integrals, as well as from disorder introduced at the Sr sites. These results altogether speak in favor of two-dimensional superconductivity under pressure.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in PR

Threshold electric field in unconventional density waves

As it is well known most of charge density wave (CDW) and spin density wave (SDW) exhibit the nonlinear transport with well defined threshold electric field E_T. Here we study theoretically the threshold electric field of unconventional density waves. We find that the threshold field increases monotonically with temperature without divergent behaviour at T_c, unlike the one in conventional CDW. The present result in the 3D weak pinning limit appears to describe rather well the threshold electric field observed recently in the low-temperature phase (LTP) of alpha-(BEDT-TTF)_2KHg(SCN)_4.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure

Charge-density wave formation in Sr_{14}Cu_{24}O_{41}

The electrodynamic response of the spin-ladder compound Sr$_{14-x}$Ca$_x$Cu$_{24}$O$_{41}$ ($x=0, 3, 9$) has been studied from radiofrequencies up to the infrared. At temperatures below 250 K a pronounced absorption peak appears around 12 cm$^{-1}$ in Sr$_{14}$Cu$_{24}$O$_{41}$ for the radiation polarized along the chains/ladders (${\bf E}\parallel {\bf c}$). In addition a strongly temperature dependent dielectric relaxation is observed in the kHz - MHz range. We explain this behavior by a charge density wave which develops in the ladders sub-system and produces a mode pinned at 12 cm$^{-1}$. With increasing Ca doping the mode shifts up in frequency and eventually disappears for $x=9$ because the dimensionality of the system crosses over from one to two dimensions, giving way to the superconducting ground state under pressure.Comment: One name added to author list 4 pages, 2 figures, email: [email protected]

Influence of internal disorder on the superconducting state in the organic layered superconductor kappa-(BEDT-TTF)2Cu[N(CN)2]Br

We report high-sensitivity AC susceptibility measurements of the penetration depth in the Meissner state of the layered organic superconductor kappa-(BEDT-TTF)2Cu[N(CN)2]Br. We have studied nominally pure single crystals from the two different syntheses and employed controlled cooling procedures in order to minimize intrinsic remnant disorder at low temperatures associated with the glass transition, caused by ordering of the ethylene moieties in BEDT-TTF molecule at T_G = 75 K. We find that the optimal cooling procedures (slow cooling of -0.2 K/h or annealing for 3 days in the region of T_G) needed to establish the ground state, depend critically on the sample origin indicating different relaxation times of terminal ethylene groups. We show that, in the ground state, the behavior observed for nominally pure single crystals from both syntheses is consistent with unconventional d-wave order parameter. The in-plane penetration depth lambda_in(T) is strongly linear, whereas the out-of-plane component lambda_out(T) varies as T^2. In contrast, the behavior of single crystals with long relaxation times observed after slow (-0.2 K/h) cooling is as expected for a d-wave superconductor with impurities (i.e. lambda_in(T) propto lambda_out(T) propto T^2) or might be also reasonably well described by the s-wave model. Our results might reconcile the contradictory findings previously reported by different authors.Comment: 13 pages, 10 figures, submitted to Phys. Rev.

Small-q phonon-mediated superconductivity in organic \kappa-BEDT-TTF compounds

We propose a mew picture for superconductivity in $\kappa-(BEDT-TTF)_2X$ salts arguing that small-{\bf q} electron-phonon scattering dominates the pairing. We reproduce the distinct X-shaped d-wave gap reported recently by magnetooptic measurements and we argue that the softness of the momentum structure of the gap and the near degeneracy of s- and d-wave gap states may be at the origin of the experimental controversy about the gap symmetry. We show that a magnetic field applied parallel to the planes may induce extended gapless-regions on the FS accounting for the experimental signatures of a Fulde-Ferrel-Larkin-Ovchinikov state and it may induce gap symmetry transitions as well.Comment: 4 pages and 7 figure

Variable-range hopping conductivity in the copper-oxygen chains of La_3Sr_3Ca_8Cu_24O_41

We show that the spin chain/ladder compound La_3Sr_3Ca_8Cu_24O_41 is an insulator with hopping transport along the chains. In the temperature range 35 - 280 K, DC conductivity sigma_{DC}(T) follows Mott's law of variable-range hopping conduction; the frequency dependence has the form sigma(\nu, T) = \sigma_{DC}(T) + A(T)\nu^{s}, where s \approx 1. The conduction mechanism changes from variable-range hopping to nearest-neighbor hopping around T_{c} =300 K. The chain array thus behaves like a one-dimensional disordered system. Disorder is due to random structural distortions of chains induced by irregular coordination of the La/Sr/Ca ions.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in PR