Superlight small bipolarons

Recent angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) has identified that a finite-range Fr\"ohlich electron-phonon interaction (EPI) with c-axis polarized optical phonons is important in cuprate superconductors, in agreement with an earlier proposal by Alexandrov and Kornilovitch. The estimated unscreened EPI is so strong that it could easily transform doped holes into mobile lattice bipolarons in narrow-band Mott insulators such as cuprates. Applying a continuous-time quantum Monte-Carlo algorithm (CTQMC) we compute the total energy, effective mass, pair radius, number of phonons and isotope exponent of lattice bipolarons in the region of parameters where any approximation might fail taking into account the Coulomb repulsion and the finite-range EPI. The effects of modifying the interaction range and different lattice geometries are discussed with regards to analytical strong-coupling/non-adiabatic results. We demonstrate that bipolarons can be simultaneously small and light, provided suitable conditions on the electron-phonon and electron-electron interaction are satisfied. Such light small bipolarons are a necessary precursor to high-temperature Bose-Einstein condensation in solids. The light bipolaron mass is shown to be universal in systems made of triangular plaquettes, due to a novel crab-like motion. Another surprising result is that the triplet-singlet exchange energy is of the first order in the hopping integral and triplet bipolarons are heavier than singlets in certain lattice structures at variance with intuitive expectations. Finally, we identify a range of lattices where superlight small bipolarons may be formed, and give estimates for their masses in the anti-adiabatic approximation.Comment: 31 pages. To appear in J. Phys.: Condens. Matter, Special Issue 'Mott's Physics

Mobile Bipolarons in the Adiabatic Holstein-Hubbard Model in 1 and 2 dimensions

The bound states of two electrons in the adiabatic Holstein-Hubbard model are studied numerically in one and two dimensions from the anticontinuous limit. This model involves a competition between a local electron-phonon coupling (with a classical lattice) which tends to form pairs of electrons and the repulsive Hubbard interaction $U \geq 0$ which tends to break them. In 1D, the ground-state always consists in a pair of localized polarons in a singlet state. They are located at the same site for U=0. Increasing U, there is a first order transition at which the bipolaron becomes a spin singlet pair of two polarons bounded by a magnetic interaction. The pinning mode of the bipolaron soften in the vicinity of this transition leading to a higher mobility of the bipolaron which is tested numerically. In 2D, and for any $U$, the electron-phonon coupling needs to be large enough in order to form small polarons or bipolarons instead of extended electrons. We calculate the phase diagram of the bipolaron involving first order transitions lines with a triple point. A pair of polarons can form three types of bipolarons: a) on a single site at small $U$, b) a spin singlet state on two nearest neighbor sites for larger $U$ as in 1D and c) a new intermediate state obtained as the resonant combination of four 2-sites singlet states sharing a central site, called quadrisinglet. The breathing and pinning internal modes of bipolarons in 2D generally only weakly soften and thus, they are practically not mobile. On the opposite, in the vicinity of the triple point involving the quadrisinglet, both modes exhibit a significant softening. However, it was not sufficient for allowing the existence of a classical mobile bipolaron (at least in that model)

Bloch waves of small high-Tc bipolarons

Over the last decade several competing models of high-temperature superconductivity were proposed, most of them with short-range interactions. We review a more realistic model with strong on-site repulsive correlations, the Coulomb and strong finite-range electron-phonon interactions. Bipolarons in the model exist in the itinerant Bloch states at temperatures below about half of the characteristic phonon frequency. Depending on the ratio of the inter-site Coulomb repulsion and the polaron level shift the ground state of the model is a polaronic Fermi (or Luttinger) liquid, bipolaronic high-Tc superconductor, or charge-segregated insulator for the strong, intermediate, and weak Coulomb repulsion, respectively. Two particular lattices are analysed in detail: a chain with the finite range electron-phonon interaction and a zig-zag ladder. Charge carriers in the ladder are superlight mobile intersite bipolarons. They propagate coherently without emission or absorption of phonons with about the same mass as single polarons. The model describes key features of the cuprates, in particular their Tc values, different isotope effects, normal state pseudogaps, and spectral functions measured in tunnelling and photoemission.Comment: 25 pages, 2 figures, invited paper to Festschrift in honor of Professor J.T. Devrees

Resonating bipolarons

Electrons coupled to local lattice deformations end up in selftrapped localized molecular states involving their binding into bipolarons when the coupling is stronger than a certain critical value. Below that value they exist as essentially itinerant electrons. We propose that the abrupt crossover between the two regimes can be described by resonant pairing similar to the Feshbach resonance in binary atomic collision processes. Given the intrinsically local nature of the exchange of pairs of itinerant electrons and localized bipolarons, we demonstrate the occurrence of such a resonance on a finite-size cluster made out of metallic atoms surrounding a polaronic ligand center.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, to be published in Europhysics Letter

Froehlich-Coulomb model of high-temperature superconductivity and charge segregation in the cuprates

We introduce a generic Froehlich-Coulomb model of the oxides, which also includes infinite on-site (Hubbard) repulsion, and describe a simple analytical method of solving the multi-polaron problem in complex lattice structures. Two particular lattices, a zig-zag ladder and a perovskite layer, are studied. We find that depending on the relative strength of the Froehlich and Coulomb interactions these systems are either polaronic Fermi (or Luttinger)-liquids, bipolaronic superconductors, or charge segregated insulators. In the superconducting phase the carriers are superlight mobile bipolarons. The model describes key features of the cuprates such as their Tc values, the isotope effects, the normal state diamagnetism, pseudogap, and spectral functions measured in tunnelling and photoemission. We argue that a low Fermi energy and strong coupling of carriers with high-frequency phonons is the cause of high critical temperatures in novel superconductors.Comment: IOP style (included), 17 pages, 5 figures (2 color

Periodically Driven Adiabatic Bipolarons

Small lattice bipolarons driven by external harmonic fields are considered in the adiabatic approximation. Resonant excitation of ions modulates the trapping potential and promotes hole transfer between neighboring atomic layers. It leads to a dramatic decrease of the apparent bipolaron mass compared to the undriven case. This effect offers an explanation for dynamic stabilization of superconductivity at high temperatures recently observed in layered cuprates.Comment: To be published in International Journal of Modern Physics B, article ID 165010