342 research outputs found
Direct Evidence for a Magnetic f-electron Mediated Cooper Pairing Mechanism of Heavy Fermion Superconductivity in CeCoIn5
To identify the microscopic mechanism of heavy-fermion Cooper pairing is an
unresolved challenge in quantum matter studies; it may also relate closely to
finding the pairing mechanism of high temperature superconductivity.
Magnetically mediated Cooper pairing has long been the conjectured basis of
heavy-fermion superconductivity but no direct verification of this hypothesis
was achievable. Here, we use a novel approach based on precision measurements
of the heavy-fermion band structure using quasiparticle interference (QPI)
imaging, to reveal quantitatively the momentum-space (k-space) structure of the
f-electron magnetic interactions of CeCoIn5. Then, by solving the
superconducting gap equations on the two heavy-fermion bands
with these magnetic interactions as mediators of the
Cooper pairing, we derive a series of quantitative predictions about the
superconductive state. The agreement found between these diverse predictions
and the measured characteristics of superconducting CeCoIn5, then provides
direct evidence that the heavy-fermion Cooper pairing is indeed mediated by the
f-electron magnetism.Comment: 19 pages, 4 figures, Supplementary Information: 31 pages, 5 figure
Magnetic Coherence as a Universal Feature of Cuprate Superconductors
Recent inelastic neutron scattering (INS) experiments on
LaSrCuO have established the existence of a {\it magnetic
coherence effect}, i.e., strong frequency and momentum dependent changes of the
spin susceptibility, , in the superconducting phase. We show, using the
spin-fermion model for incommensurate antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations, that
the magnetic coherence effect establishes the ability of INS experiments to
probe the electronic spectrum of the cuprates, in that the effect arises from
the interplay of an incommensurate magnetic response, the form of the
underlying Fermi surface, and the opening of the d-wave gap in the fermionic
spectrum. In particular, we find that the magnetic coherence effect observed in
INS experiments on LaSrCuO requires that the Fermi surface be
closed around up to optimal doping. We present several predictions
for the form of the magnetic coherence effect in YBaCuO in
which an incommensurate magnetic response has been observed in the
superconducting state.Comment: 9 pages, 12 figures; extended version of Phys. Rev B, R6483 (2000
Impurities, Quantum Interference and Quantum Phase Transitions in s-wave superconductors
We study the effects of quantum interference in impurity structures
consisting of two or three magnetic impurities that are located on the surface
of an s-wave superconductor. By using a self-consistent Bogoliubov-de Gennes
formalism, we show that quantum interference leads to characteristic signatures
not only in the local density of states (LDOS), but also in the spatial form of
the superconducting order parameter. We demonstrate that the signatures of
quantum interference in the LDOS are qualitatively, and to a large extent
quantitatively unaffected by the suppression of the superconducting order
parameter near impurities, which illustrates the robustness of quantum
interference phenomena. Moreover, we show that by changing the interimpurity
distance, or the impurities' scattering strength, the s-wave superconductor can
be tuned through a series of first order quantum phase transitions in which the
spin polarization of its ground state changes. In contrast to the single
impurity case, this transition is not necessarily accompanied by a -phase
shift of the order parameter, and can in certain cases even lead to its
enhancement. Our results demonstrate that the superconductor's LDOS, its spin
state, and the spatial form of the superconducting order parameter are
determined by a subtle interplay between the relative positions of the
impurities and their scattering strength
Quantum Interference between Impurities: Creating Novel Many-Body States in s-wave Superconductors
We demonstrate that quantum interference of electronic waves that are
scattered by multiple magnetic impurities in an s-wave superconductor gives
rise to novel bound states. We predict that by varying the inter-impurity
distance or the relative angle between the impurity spins, the states' quantum
numbers, as well as their distinct frequency and spatial dependencies, can be
altered. Finally, we show that the superconductor can be driven through
multiple local crossovers in which its spin polarization, , changes
between and 1.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Impurity-induced spin polarization and NMR line broadening in underdoped cuprates
We present a theory of magnetic (S=1) Ni and nonmagnetic Zn impurities in
underdoped cuprates. Both types of impurities are shown to induce S=1/2 moments
on Cu sites in the proximity of the impurity, a process which is intimately
related to the spin gap phenomenon in cuprates. Below a characteristic Kondo
temperature, the Ni spin is partially screened by the Cu moments, resulting in
an effective impurity spin S=1/2. We further analyze the
Ruderman-Kittel-Kasiya-Yosida-type response of planar Cu spins to a
polarization of the effective impurity moments and derive expressions for the
corresponding ^{17}O NMR line broadening. The peculiar aspects of recent
experimental NMR data can be traced back to different spatial characteristics
of Ni and Zn moments as well as to an inherent temperature dependence of local
antiferromagnetic correlations.Comment: PRB B1 01June9
Bound states in d-density-wave phases
We investigate the quasiparticle spectrum near surfaces in a two-dimensional
system with d-density-wave order within a mean-field theory. For Fermi surfaces
with perfect nesting for the ordering wave vector of the d-density-wave, a zero
energy bound state occurs at [110] surfaces, in close analogy with the known
effect in d-wave superconducting states or graphite. When the shape of the
Fermi surface is changed by doping, the bound state energy moves away from the
Fermi level. Furthermore, away from half-filling we find inhomogeneous phases
with domain walls of the d-density-wave order parameter. The domain walls also
support low energy bound states. These phenomena might provide an experimental
test for hidden d-density-wave order in the high-Tc cuprates.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figure
Defect and anisotropic gap induced quasi-one-dimensional modulation of local density of states in YBaCuO
Motivated by recent angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES)
measurement that superconducting YBaCuO (YBCO) exhibits a
-symmetry gap, we show possible quasi-one-dimensional
modulations of local density of states in YBCO. These aniostropic gap and
defect induced stripe structures are most conspicuous at higher biases and
arise due to the nesting effect associated with a Fermi liquid. Observation of
these spectra by scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) would unify the picture
among STM, ARPES, and inelastic neutron scattering for YBCO.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Spatial Current Patterns, Dephasing and Current Imaging in Graphene Nanoribbons
Using the non-equilibrium Keldysh Green's function formalism, we investigate
the local, non-equilibrium charge transport in graphene nanoribbons (GNRs). In
particular, we demonstrate that the spatial current patterns associated with
discrete transmission resonances sensitively depend on the GNRs' geometry,
size, and aspect ratio, the location and number of leads, and the presence of
dephasing. We identify a relation between the spatial form of the current
patterns, and the number of degenerate energy states participating in the
charge transport. Furthermore, we demonstrate a principle of superposition for
the conductance and spatial current patterns in multiple-lead configurations.
We demonstrate that scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) can be employed to
image spatial current paths in GNR with atomic resolution, providing important
insight into the form of local charge transport. Finally, we investigate the
effects of dephasing on the spatial current patterns, and show that with
decreasing dephasing time, the current patterns evolve smoothly from those of a
ballistic quantum network to those of classical resistor network.Comment: 25 pages, 12 figure
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