223 research outputs found

    Quantum criticality in inter-band superconductors

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    In fermionic systems with different types of quasi-particles, attractive interactions can give rise to exotic superconducting states, as pair density wave (PDW) superconductivity and breached pairing. In the last years the search for these new types of ground states in cold atom and in metallic systems has been intense. In the case of metals the different quasi-particles may be the up and down spin bands in an external magnetic field or bands arising from distinct atomic orbitals that coexist at a common Fermi surface. These systems present a complex phase diagram as a function of the difference between the Fermi wave-vectors of the different bands. This can be controlled by external means, varying the density in the two-component cold atom system or, in a metal, by applying an external magnetic field or pressure. Here we study the zero temperature instability of the normal system as the Fermi wave-vectors mismatch of the quasi-particles (bands) is reduced and find a second order quantum phase transition to a PDW superconducting state. From the nature of the quantum critical fluctuations close to the superconducting quantum critical point (SQCP), we obtain its dynamic critical exponent. It turns out to be z=2z=2 and this allows to fully characterize the SQCP for dimensions d2d \ge 2.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figur

    "Fingerprinting" molecular de linhagens de milho.

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    Asymmetric superconductivity in metallic systems

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    Different types of superfluid ground states have been investigated in systems of two species of fermions with Fermi surfaces that do not match. This study is relevant for cold atomic systems, condensed matter physics and quark matter. In this paper we consider this problem in the case the fermionic quasi-particles can transmute into one another and only their total number is conserved. We use a BCS approximation to study superconductivity in two-band metallic systems with inter and intra-band interactions. Tuning the hybridization between the bands varies the mismatch of the Fermi surfaces and produces different instabilities. For inter-band attractive interactions we find a first order normal-superconductor and a homogeneous metastable phase with gapless excitations. In the case of intra-band interactions, the transition from the superconductor to the normal state as hybridization increases is continuous and associated with a quantum critical point. The case when both interactions are present is also considered.Comment: new enlarged version, new title, 7 pages, 7 figure

    Fluctuations in a superconducting quantum critical point of multi-band metals

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    In multi-band metals quasi-particles arising from different atomic orbitals coexist at a common Fermi surface. Superconductivity in these materials may appear due to interactions within a band (intra-band) or among the distinct metallic bands (inter-band). Here we consider the suppression of superconductivity in the intra-band case due to hybridization. The fluctuations at the superconducting quantum critical point (SQCP) are obtained calculating the response of the system to a fictitious space and time dependent field, which couples to the superconducting order parameter. The appearance of superconductivity is related to the divergence of a generalized susceptibility. For a single band superconductor this coincides with the \textit{Thouless criterion}. For fixed chemical potential and large hybridization, the superconducting state has many features in common with breached pair superconductivity with unpaired electrons at the Fermi surface. The T=0 phase transition from the superconductor to the normal state is in the universality class of the density-driven Bose-Einstein condensation. For fixed number of particles and in the strong coupling limit, the system still has an instability to the normal sate with increasing hybridization.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figure

    Pressure induced FFLO instability in multi-band superconductors

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    Multi-band systems as intermetallic and heavy fermion compounds have quasi-particles arising from different orbitals at their Fermi surface. Since these quasi-particles have different masses or densities, there is a natural mismatch of the Fermi wave-vectors associated with different orbitals. This makes these materials potential candidates to observe exotic superconducting phases as Sarma or FFLO phases, even in the absence of an external magnetic field. The distinct orbitals coexisting at the Fermi surface are generally hybridized and their degree of mixing can be controlled by external pressure. In this Communication we investigate the existence of an FFLO phase in a two-band BCS superconductor controlled by hybridization. At zero temperature, as hybridization (pressure) increases we find that the BCS state becomes unstable with respect to an inhomogeneous superconducting state characterized by a single wave-vector q.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figur
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