Hidden magnetic excitation in the pseudogap phase of a high-T(c) superconductor

The elucidation of the pseudogap phenomenon of the high-transition-temperature (high-T(c)) copper oxides-a set of anomalous physical properties below the characteristic temperature T* and above T(c)-has been a major challenge in condensed matter physics for the past two decades. Following initial indications of broken time-reversal symmetry in photoemission experiments, recent polarized neutron diffraction work demonstrated the universal existence of an unusual magnetic order below T* (refs 3, 4). These findings have the profound implication that the pseudogap regime constitutes a genuine new phase of matter rather than a mere crossover phenomenon. They are furthermore consistent with a particular type of order involving circulating orbital currents, and with the notion that the phase diagram is controlled by a quantum critical point. Here we report inelastic neutron scattering results for HgBa(2)CuO(4+δ) that reveal a fundamental collective magnetic mode associated with the unusual order, and which further support this picture. The mode's intensity rises below the same temperature T* and its dispersion is weak, as expected for an Ising-like order parameter. Its energy of 52-56?meV renders it a new candidate for the hitherto unexplained ubiquitous electron-boson coupling features observed in spectroscopic studies.     

Hidden magnetism and quantum criticality in the heavy fermion superconductor CeRhIn5

With only a few exceptions that are well understood, conventional superconductivity does not coexist with long-range magnetic order (for example, ref. 1). Unconventional superconductivity, on the other hand, develops near a phase boundary separating magnetically ordered and magnetically disordered phases. A maximum in the superconducting transition temperature T(c) develops where this boundary extrapolates to zero Kelvin, suggesting that fluctuations associated with this magnetic quantum-critical point are essential for unconventional superconductivity. Invariably, though, unconventional superconductivity masks the magnetic phase boundary when T < T(c), preventing proof of a magnetic quantum-critical point. Here we report specific-heat measurements of the pressure-tuned unconventional superconductor CeRhIn5 in which we find a line of quantum-phase transitions induced inside the superconducting state by an applied magnetic field. This quantum-critical line separates a phase of coexisting antiferromagnetism and superconductivity from a purely unconventional superconducting phase, and terminates at a quantum tetracritical point where the magnetic field completely suppresses superconductivity. The T --> 0 K magnetic field-pressure phase diagram of CeRhIn5 is well described with a theoretical model developed to explain field-induced magnetism in the high-T(c) copper oxides, but in which a clear delineation of quantum-phase boundaries has not been possible. These experiments establish a common relationship among hidden magnetism, quantum criticality and unconventional superconductivity in copper oxides and heavy-electron systems such as CeRhIn5.     

Spontaneous breaking of time-reversal symmetry in the pseudogap state of a high-Tc superconductor

A change in 'symmetry' is often observed when matter undergoes a phase transition-the symmetry is said to be spontaneously broken. The transition made by underdoped high-transition-temperature (high-Tc) superconductors is unusual, in that it is not a mean-field transition as seen in other superconductors. Rather, there is a region in the phase diagram above the superconducting transition temperature Tc (where phase coherence and superconductivity begin) but below a characteristic temperature T* where a 'pseudogap' appears in the spectrum of electronic excitations. It is therefore important to establish if T* is just a cross-over temperature arising from fluctuations in the order parameter that will establish superconductivity at Tc (refs 3, 4), or if it marks a phase transition where symmetry is spontaneously broken. Here we report that, for a material in the pseudogap state, left-circularly polarized photons give a different photocurrent from right-circularly polarized photons. This shows that time-reversal symmetry is spontaneously broken below T*, which therefore corresponds to a phase transition.     

Hg系新高Tc超导体研究

我们制备了新高Ｔｃ Ｈｇ－Ｂａ－Ｃａ－Ｃｕ超导氧化物系,并用Ｘ－ｒａｙ衍射、ＴＥＭ、磁化率及电阻等实验测量对它们进行了研究。由ＴＥＭ观察,证实了在ＨＢＣＣＯ系中存在Ｈｇ－１２０１相,Ｈｇ－１２１２相和Ｈｇ－１２２３相。用高－Ｑ振动子技术,对ＨｇＢａ２ＣｕＯ４＋ｙ样品作了与磁通点阵运动有关的力学测量,从而估计出该样品的不可逆线的形状。我们还对Ｈｇ－１２２３样品作了事后退火处理研究,在氧气中退火可使该     

添加剂对电泳法制备YBa2Cu3O7-δ超导涂层的影响

第二代高温超导带材YBa2Cu3O7-δ(YBCO)具有高载流能力、高不可逆场、低交流损耗和高转变温度,成为当前的热点研究对象.采用低成本的电泳沉积技术在Hastelloy合金上成功制备了YBCO超导层.添加剂对电泳液的稳定性及涂层性能有着重要影响.实验研究了添加剂(种类选择及添加量)与YBCO超导层的关系.结果表明,添加005gPVB时所制备的样品具有较好的超导电性,其临界电流密度可达100A/cm2(0T,77K).     

钙钛矿La2/3Ca1/3MnO3/YBa2Cu4O8/La2/3Ca1/3MnO3三层薄膜的磁输运性能

高温超导材料YBa2Cu4O8(YBCO)和铁磁材料La2／3Ca1／3MnO3(LCMO)形成的三层薄膜LCMO／YBCO／LCMO由对靶溅射技术制得．与YBCO单层薄膜相比，由于超导／铁磁系统中的磁性邻近效应，三层薄膜表现出较低的超导转变温度(Tc,ON)．与LCMO单层膜相比，三层薄膜的金属半导体转变温度(TMS)被提高并且强烈依赖于YBCO层的厚度．随中间层厚度的变化，磁电阻显示出非单调行为，长振荡周期被发现．结果表明，当YBCO处于正常态时两层LCMO膜之间存左着磁性自旋相互作用．     

An unusual phase transition to a second liquid vortex phase in the superconductor YBa2Cu3O7

A magnetic field penetrates a superconductor through an array of 'vortices', each of which carries one quantum of flux that is surrounded by a circulating supercurrent. In this vortex state, the resistivity is determined by the dynamical properties of the vortex 'matter'. For the high-temperature copper oxide superconductors (see ref.1 for a theoretical review), the vortex phase can be a 'solid', in which the vortices are pinned, but the solid can 'melt' into a 'liquid' phase, in which their mobility gives rise to a finite resistance. (This melting phenomenon is also believed to occur in conventional superconductors, but in an experimentally inaccessible part of the phase diagram.) For the case of YBa2Cu3O7, there are indications of the existence of a critical point, at which the character of the melting changes. But neither the thermodynamic nature of the melting, nor the phase diagram in the vicinity of the critical point, has been well established. Here we report measurements of specific heat and magnetization that determine the phase diagram in this material to 26 T, well above the critical point. Our results reveal the presence of a reversible second-order transition above the critical point. An unusual feature of this transition-namely, that the high-temperature phase is the less symmetric in the sense of the Landau theory-is in accord with theoretical predictions of a transition to a second vortex-liquid phase.     

Addition of nanoparticle dispersions to enhance flux pinning of the YBa2Cu3O7-x superconductor

Following the discovery of type-II high-temperature superconductors in 1986 (refs 1, 2), work has proceeded to develop these materials for power applications. One of the problems, however, has been that magnetic flux is not completely expelled, but rather is contained within magnetic fluxons, whose motion prevents larger supercurrents. It is known that the critical current of these materials can be enhanced by incorporating a high density of extended defects to act as pinning centres for the fluxons. YBa2Cu3O7 (YBCO or 123) is the most promising material for such applications at higher temperatures (liquid nitrogen). Pinning is optimized when the size of the defects approaches the superconducting coherence length ( approximately 2-4 nm for YBCO at temperatures < or =77 K) and when the areal number density of defects is of the order of (H/2) x 10(11) cm(-2), where H is the applied magnetic field in tesla. Such a high density has been difficult to achieve by material-processing methods that maintain a nanosize defect, except through irradiation. Here we report a method for achieving a dispersion of approximately 8-nm-sized nanoparticles in YBCO with a high number density, which increases the critical current (at 77 K) by a factor of two to three for high magnetic fields.     

U－Doped Y－Ba－Cu－O Melt－Processed Superconductor

Large grain Y-Ba-Cu-O (YBCO) superconductors doped with various amounts of depleted uranium oxide have been fabricated by top seeded melt growth (TSMG). The effect of depleted UO2 on the large grain microstructure has been studied systematically in samples with and without added Pt. Addition of uranium oxide results in the formation of U-phase particles of dimensions of a few hundred nanometers with an approximately spherical morphology in the superconducting YBa2Cu3O7-8(Y-123) phase matrix. Addition of Y2O3to the uranium doped precursor powder, rather than Y-211, yields a significantly finer distribution of second phase particles.The chemical composition of the U-phase particles, found in samples with no Pt addition, has been identified as Y2Ba4CuUOy, which exhibits paramagnetic behaviour. It has been confirmed experimentally that this phase forms during the peritectic solidification process. Magnetic measurements show that U-doped melt processed YBCO exhibits improved critical current densities and trapped fields compared to un-doped material.     

High-transition-temperature superconductivity in the absence of the magnetic-resonance mode

The fundamental mechanism that gives rise to high-transition-temperature (high-T(c)) superconductivity in the copper oxide materials has been debated since the discovery of the phenomenon. Recent work has focused on a sharp 'kink' in the kinetic energy spectra of the electrons as a possible signature of the force that creates the superconducting state. The kink has been related to a magnetic resonance and also to phonons. Here we report that infrared spectra of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta (Bi-2212), shows that this sharp feature can be separated from a broad background and, interestingly, weakens with doping before disappearing completely at a critical doping level of 0.23 holes per copper atom. Superconductivity is still strong in terms of the transition temperature at this doping (T(c) approximately 55 K), so our results rule out both the magnetic resonance peak and phonons as the principal cause of high-T(c) superconductivity. The broad background, on the other hand, is a universal property of the copper-oxygen plane and provides a good candidate signature of the 'glue' that binds the electrons.     

Spontaneous macroscopic magnetization at the superconducting transition temperature of YBa2Cu3O(7-delta)

A noteworthy feature of the high-temperature superconductors is the unconventional symmetry of the superconducting order parameter. Several experiments have established that the order parameter has a four-fold d(x2 - y2) symmetry under rotation of the lattice (the order parameter of conventional superconductors is, in contrast, isotropic). An intriguing and much debated possibility is that, in certain cases, an additional imaginary component might be present, having an isotropic s-wave or d(xy) symmetry. A consequence of a complex order parameter of the form d(x2 - y2) + id(xy) is that it would break both reflection (parity, P) symmetry and time-reversal (T) symmetry, a clear signature of which would be the spontaneous appearance of a macroscopic magnetization at the superconducting transition temperature. Broken T symmetry has been reported, but searches for the effects of combined P and T symmetry breaking have so far yielded null results. Here we report the observation of a weak (approximately 10(-5) gauss) magnetic field that appears spontaneously at the superconducting transition temperature of epitaxial thin films of YBa2Cu3O(7-delta). The magnetic signal originates near the edges of the samples. One interpretation for this observation is that the order parameter carries an intrinsic angular momentum, related to the breaking of P and T symmetries, but other possibilities cannot yet be excluded.     

YBCNO中相变、超导转变温度和结构块的关联

用热重分析,扫描量热分析,直流磁测量和变温X, 射线衍射对固态反应法制作的YBa₂Cu_3-xNi_xO_7-δ (x=0, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15, 0.20, 0.25)多晶样品进行了物性分析和Rietveld拟合。热分析发现熔化前在400℃和850℃分别存在2个相变,仔细测量得出相变发生时随掺杂量增加,失重量和吸热量减少,超导转变温度T_c降低。结合YBCO中氧扩散机制和块模型,相变机理解释如下:400℃的相变直接来自于岩盐块,对应于正交- 四方转变的起点;850℃相变对应于正交- 四方转变的终点,此时Cu(2), O面中的O(2)和O(3)重排,一些O通过O(4)桥原子进入O(1)位,最后逸出晶胞,因而850℃相变与钙钛矿关系密切。拟合结果证实了这点。钙钛矿块和岩盐块的块间结合能计算表明:随掺Ni量增加,块间结合能升高,T_c降低。说明局域结构变化对超导电性和热性能具有独特的影响。     

Locally critical quantum phase transitions in strongly correlated metals.

When a metal undergoes a continuous quantum phase transition, non-Fermi-liquid behaviour arises near the critical point. All the low-energy degrees of freedom induced by quantum criticality are usually assumed to be spatially extended, corresponding to long-wavelength fluctuations of the order parameter. But this picture has been contradicted by the results of recent experiments on a prototype system: heavy fermion metals at a zero-temperature magnetic transition. In particular, neutron scattering from CeCu6-x Aux has revealed anomalous dynamics at atomic length scales, leading to much debate as to the fate of the local moments in the quantum-critical regime. Here we report our theoretical finding of a locally critical quantum phase transition in a model of heavy fermions. The dynamics at the critical point are in agreement with experiment. We propose local criticality to be a phenomenon of general relevance to strongly correlated metals.     

自旋梯状化合物Sr14(Cu1-xZnx)24O41的电输运及磁学性质

采用标准固相反应法制备了Sr14(Cu1-xZnx)24O41(x=0, 0. 01, 0. 02, 0. 03)系列多晶样品. X射线衍射谱表明所有样品均呈单相,且样品晶格常数大小随Zn掺杂量x的变化存在微弱波动. X射线光电子能谱表明Sr14Cu24O41中Cu离子以+2价形式存在,Zn掺杂对体系中Cu离子化合价不造成影响. 磁化率测量结果表明在10~300 K温度范围内Zn掺杂使体系磁化率降低,拟合结果表明随着Zn掺杂量x的增大,居里-外斯项对体系磁化率贡献逐渐减弱,二聚体耦合能JD 逐渐降低,每个分子中CuO2 自旋链内二聚体个数ND 与自由Cu2+离子自旋数NF 均逐渐减少,进一步分析显示替换二聚体内Cu2+离子的Zn2+离子数少于替换自由Cu2+离子的Zn2+离子数. 电阻率测量结果表明Sr14Cu24O41体系具有半导体特性,并且Zn掺杂会使体系电阻率降低,降低程度随掺杂量x增大而增大,但并未使体系发生金属- 绝缘体转变. 认为电阻率降低可能是由于Zn2+离子掺杂使体系内CuO2 自旋链中二聚体发生退耦,破坏了电荷有序超结构,从而使更多的空穴释放出来并转移到导电性好的Cu2O3自旋梯子中所致.     

Bi_2O_3掺杂对TSMTG法单畴YBCO超导块材性能的影响

本文采用顶部籽晶熔融织构法(TSMTG)成功地将Bi2O3掺杂到YBCO超导块材中,研究了Bi2O3掺杂含量对单畴YBCO超导块材生长形貌和磁悬浮力的影响.结果表明,在YBa2Cu3O7-δ(Y123):Y2BaCuO5(Y211)=1:0.4不变的情况下,掺杂的Bi2O3粉体在样品内部均生成了Y2Ba4CuBiOx纳米粒子.当Bi2O3添加量x≤1.5wt%时,样品均可长成完整的单畴YBCO超导块材,且样品的磁悬浮力随着Bi2O3掺杂量的增加而增大;当x1.5wt%时,YBCO超导块材的单畴区域随着Bi2O3掺杂量的增加而逐渐减小,且随机成核现象严重,磁悬浮力降低;当x=1.5wt%时,样品的磁悬浮力最大.该结果对缩短样品制备的周期及进一步提高超导块材性能具有十分重要的意义.     

Abrupt onset of a second energy gap at the superconducting transition of underdoped Bi2212

The superconducting gap--an energy scale tied to the superconducting phenomena--opens on the Fermi surface at the superconducting transition temperature (T(c)) in conventional BCS superconductors. In underdoped high-T(c) superconducting copper oxides, a pseudogap (whose relation to the superconducting gap remains a mystery) develops well above T(c) (refs 1, 2). Whether the pseudogap is a distinct phenomenon or the incoherent continuation of the superconducting gap above T(c) is one of the central questions in high-T(c) research. Although some experimental evidence suggests that the two gaps are distinct, this issue is still under intense debate. A crucial piece of evidence to firmly establish this two-gap picture is still missing: a direct and unambiguous observation of a single-particle gap tied to the superconducting transition as function of temperature. Here we report the discovery of such an energy gap in underdoped Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta in the momentum space region overlooked in previous measurements. Near the diagonal of Cu-O bond direction (nodal direction), we found a gap that opens at T(c) and has a canonical (BCS-like) temperature dependence accompanied by the appearance of the so-called Bogoliubov quasi-particles, a classical signature of superconductivity. This is in sharp contrast to the pseudogap near the Cu-O bond direction (antinodal region) measured in earlier experiments.     

Fishtail phenomenon in Ho-added PMP YBCO

The Y 1-xHo xBa-2Cu-3O y superconductors were fabricated by the powder melting process (PMP) method and the magnetic hysteresis loops of these samples were measured at different temperatures by a SQUID magnetometer (up to 7 T). Critical current density was calculated by the Bean critical state model. The results indicate that the fishtail effect is observed in Y 0.6Ho 0.4Ba-2Cu-3O y below 60 K, while no fishtail can be found in Y 0.8Ho 0.2Ba-2Cu-3O y until 30 K. The peak field at which J c reaches its maximum decreases with the increasing magnetic field. In the Y 0.6Ho 0.4Ba-2Cu-3O y sample, the fishtail effect disappears when the temperature is raised to 77 K. In addition, after the Y 0.6Ho 0.4Ba-2Cu-3O y sample was re-sintered at high temperature for a long time, the fishtail can be found in two field directions (H∥C and H⊥C). It is considered that the paramagnetism in the sample may be responsible for the fishtail effect in Ho-added YBCO. Also, the cation disorder created by Ho addition may be another reason for the fishtail.     

Spin correlations in the electron-doped high-transition-temperature superconductor Nd2-xCexCuO4+/-delta

High-transition-temperature (high-T(c)) superconductivity develops near antiferromagnetic phases, and it is possible that magnetic excitations contribute to the superconducting pairing mechanism. To assess the role of antiferromagnetism, it is essential to understand the doping and temperature dependence of the two-dimensional antiferromagnetic spin correlations. The phase diagram is asymmetric with respect to electron and hole doping, and for the comparatively less-studied electron-doped materials, the antiferromagnetic phase extends much further with doping and appears to overlap with the superconducting phase. The archetypal electron-doped compound Nd2-xCexCuO4+/-delta (NCCO) shows bulk superconductivity above x approximately 0.13 (refs 3, 4), while evidence for antiferromagnetic order has been found up to x approximately 0.17 (refs 2, 5, 6). Here we report inelastic magnetic neutron-scattering measurements that point to the distinct possibility that genuine long-range antiferromagnetism and superconductivity do not coexist. The data reveal a magnetic quantum critical point where superconductivity first appears, consistent with an exotic quantum phase transition between the two phases. We also demonstrate that the pseudogap phenomenon in the electron-doped materials, which is associated with pronounced charge anomalies, arises from a build-up of spin correlations, in agreement with recent theoretical proposals.     

Minority spin condensate in the spin-polarized superfluid 3He A1 phase

The magnetic properties of (3)He in its various phases originate from the interactions among the nuclear spins. The spin-polarized 'ferromagnetic' superfluid (3)He A(1) phase (which forms below 3 mK between two transition temperatures, T(c1) and T(c2), in an external magnetic field) serves as a material in which theories of fundamental magnetic processes and macroscopic quantum spin phenomena may be tested. Conventionally, the superfluid component of the A(1) phase is understood to contain only the majority spin condensate, having energetically favoured paired spins directed along the external field and no minority spin condensate having paired spins in the opposite direction. Because of difficulties in satisfying both the ultralow temperature and high magnetic field required to produce a substantial phase space, there exist few studies of spin dynamics phenomena that could be used to test the conventional view of the A(1) phase. Here we develop a mechanical spin density detector that operates in the required regime, enabling us to perform measurements of spin relaxation in the A(1) phase as a function of temperature, pressure and magnetic field. Our mechanical spin detector is based in principle on the magnetic fountain effect; spin-polarized superfluid motion can be induced both magnetically and mechanically, and we demonstrate the feasibility of increasing spin polarization by a mechanical spin filtering process. In the high temperature range of the A(1) phase near T(c1), the measured spin relaxation time is long, as expected. Unexpectedly, the spin relaxation rate increases rapidly as the temperature is decreased towards T(c2). Our measurements, together with Leggett-Takagi theory, demonstrate that a minute presence of minority spin pairs is responsible for this unexpected spin relaxation behaviour. Thus, the long-held conventional view that the A(1) phase contains only the majority spin condensate is inadequate.     

Visualizing pair formation on the atomic scale in the high-Tc superconductor Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta

Pairing of electrons in conventional superconductors occurs at the superconducting transition temperature T(c), creating an energy gap Delta in the electronic density of states (DOS). In the high-T(c) superconductors, a partial gap in the DOS exists for a range of temperatures above T(c) (ref. 2). A key question is whether the gap in the DOS above T(c) is associated with pairing, and what determines the temperature at which incoherent pairs form. Here we report the first spatially resolved measurements of gap formation in a high-T(c) superconductor, measured on Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta samples with different T(c) values (hole concentration of 0.12 to 0.22) using scanning tunnelling microscopy. Over a wide range of doping from 0.16 to 0.22 we find that pairing gaps nucleate in nanoscale regions above T(c). These regions proliferate as the temperature is lowered, resulting in a spatial distribution of gap sizes in the superconducting state. Despite the inhomogeneity, we find that every pairing gap develops locally at a temperature T(p), following the relation 2Delta/k(B)T(p) = 7.9 +/- 0.5. At very low doping (< or =0.14), systematic changes in the DOS indicate the presence of another phenomenon, which is unrelated and perhaps competes with electron pairing. Our observation of nanometre-sized pairing regions provides the missing microscopic basis for understanding recent reports of fluctuating superconducting response above T(c) in hole-doped high-T(c) copper oxide superconductors.