Negative Refraction in Ferromagnet/Superconductor Superlattices

Negative refraction, which reverses many fundamental aspects of classical optics, can be obtained in systems with negative magnetic permeability and negative dielectric permittivity. This Letter documents an experimental realization of negative refraction at millimeter waves, finite magnetic fields and cryogenic temperatures utilizing a multilayer stack of ferromagnetic and superconducting thin films. In the present case the superconducting YBa_2Cu_3O_7 layers provide negative permittivity while negative permeability is achieved via ferromagnetic (La:Sr)MnO_3 layers for frequencies and magnetic fields close to the ferromagnetic resonance. In these superlattices the refractive index can be switched between positive and negative regions using external magnetic field as tuning parameter.Comment: 4 Pages, 3 Figures, Phys. Rev. Lett., accepte

Proximity induced metal/insulator transition in YBa2Cu3O7/La2/3Ca1/3MnO3Y Ba_2 Cu_3 O_7 / La_{2/3} Ca_{1/3} Mn O_3 superlattices

The far-infrared dielectric response of superlattices (SL) composed of superconducting YBa$_{2}$Cu$_{3}$O$_{7}$ (YBCO) and ferromagnetic La$_{0.67}$% Ca$_{0.33}$MnO$_{3}$ (LCMO) has been investigated by ellipsometry. A drastic decrease of the free carrier response is observed which involves an unusually large length scale of d$^{crit}\approx$20 nm in YBCO and d$^{crit}\approx$10 nm in LCMO. A corresponding suppression of metallicity is not observed in SLs where LCMO is replaced by the paramagnetic metal LaNiO$_{3}$. Our data suggest that either a long range charge transfer from the YBCO to the LCMO layers or alternatively a strong coupling of the charge carriers to the different and competitive kind of magnetic correlations in the LCMO and YBCO layers are at the heart of the observed metal/insulator transition. The low free carrier response observed in the far-infrared dielectric response of the magnetic superconductor RuSr$_{2}$GdCu$_{2}$O$_{8}$ is possibly related to this effect

Fabrication and Ferroelectric Properties of BiFeO₃/BaTiO₃ Heterostructures

We report on preparation and electrical characterization of the epitaxial BaTiO₃ (BTO), BiFeO₃ (BFO) thin films and BFO/BTO bi- and multilayers, grown on (001) SrTiO₃ (STO) and $(LaAlO_3)_{0.3}(Sr_2TaAlO_6)_{0.7}$ (LSAT) substrates. The ferroelectric properties were characterized using the electric force microscopy method to image and switch the electric domains. This fabrication process opens the routes towards wide study of magnetoelectric effect in complex oxide heterostructures

Enhancement of the superconducting transition temperature by an external magnetic field parallel to the plane of La

We investigate the superconducting transition temperature of epitaxial La0.7Sr0.3MnO3/YBa2Cu3O7/La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 (LSMO/YBCO/LSMO) trilayers as a function of the magnetic field parallel to the layer structure. In these structures, the magnetic moment of the half-metallic ferromagnet LSMO is parallel to the plane of the film. The coercivity- and saturation field of the top and bottom LSMO layer could be independently tuned by adjusting their thickness. The application of a magnetic field increased the superconducting transition temperature by about 1.6 K with respect to the demagnetized state of the LSMO. Three possible mechanisms of the enhancement are considered. These are the stray fields due to domain walls, spin polarization of the current, and the formation of an odd triplet superconducting state

Superconductivity and Ferromagnetism in La0.67Sr0.33MnO3//YBa2Cu3O7La_{0.67}Sr_{0.33}MnO_3//YBa_2Cu_3O_7 Nanosized Heterostructures

In this work we present recent experimental studies of heterostructures composed of ferromagnetic $La_{0.67}Sr_{0.33}MnO_3$ (LSMO) and superconducting $YBa_2Cu_3O_7$ (YBCO) multilayers grown by dc sputtering method. The transport and magnetic properties of the large set of heterostructures were investigated in a wide temperature range from 2 to 400 K and in fields up to 12.5 T. The resistivity and the upper critical field were measured for samples with the plane active dimensions 1.5× 5 mm². The Nernst effect was studied in the mixed state revealing the characteristic temperature dependence of the Nernst signal which was correlated with variation of the upper critical field. We have observed an influence of the magnetic LSMO layer on the superconducting properties of the adjacent YBCO layer which consists in a substantial reduction of the superconducting critical temperature and a small lowering of the upper critical field

Signature of the Spin Triplet Phase in La0.7Sr0.3MnO3La_{0.7}Sr_{0.3}MnO_3/Yba2Cu3O7Yba_2Cu_3O_7/La0.7Sr0.3MnO3La_{0.7}Sr_{0.3}MnO_3 Trilayers

Differential dynamical subgap transport measurements were performed on LSMO/YBCO/LSMO trilayers to probe local evolution of the Andreev bound states which are manifested as the zero bias conductance peak. Dynamical conductivity dI/dV vs. magnetic field measured in current in plane and current perpendicular to plane geometries show nonmonotonic behavior with maximum at about 500 Oe. The shape of the zero bias conductance peak measured in current in plane geometry is sharp, whereas zero bias conductance peak measured in current perpendicular to plane geometry demonstrates V shape. These shapes of the zero bias conductance peak were predicted theoretically for unconventional p-wave spin triplet phase superconductor and superconductor with d-wave symmetry of the order parameter, respectively