1
|
Aoki D, Brison JP, Flouquet J, Ishida K, Knebel G, Tokunaga Y, Yanase Y. Unconventional superconductivity in UTe 2. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2022; 34:243002. [PMID: 35203074 DOI: 10.1088/1361-648x/ac5863] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2021] [Accepted: 02/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The novel spin-triplet superconductor candidate UTe2was discovered only recently at the end of 2018 and already attracted enormous attention. We review key experimental and theoretical progress which has been achieved in different laboratories. UTe2is a heavy-fermion paramagnet, but following the discovery of superconductivity, it has been expected to be close to a ferromagnetic instability, showing many similarities to the U-based ferromagnetic superconductors, URhGe and UCoGe. This view might be too simplistic. The competition between different types of magnetic interactions and the duality between the local and itinerant character of the 5fUranium electrons, as well as the shift of the U valence appear as key parameters in the rich phase diagrams discovered recently under extreme conditions like low temperature, high magnetic field, and pressure. We discuss macroscopic and microscopic experiments at low temperature to clarify the normal phase properties at ambient pressure for field applied along the three axis of this orthorhombic structure. Special attention will be given to the occurrence of a metamagnetic transition atHm= 35 T for a magnetic field applied along the hard magnetic axisb. Adding external pressure leads to strong changes in the magnetic and electronic properties with a direct feedback on superconductivity. Attention is paid on the possible evolution of the Fermi surface as a function of magnetic field and pressure. Superconductivity in UTe2is extremely rich, exhibiting various unconventional behaviors which will be highlighted. It shows an exceptionally huge superconducting upper critical field with a re-entrant behavior under magnetic field and the occurrence of multiple superconducting phases in the temperature-field-pressure phase diagrams. There is evidence for spin-triplet pairing. Experimental indications exist for chiral superconductivity and spontaneous time reversal symmetry breaking in the superconducting state. Different theoretical approaches will be described. Notably we discuss that UTe2is a possible example for the realization of a fascinating topological superconductor. Exploring superconductivity in UTe2reemphasizes that U-based heavy fermion compounds give unique examples to study and understand the strong interplay between the normal and superconducting properties in strongly correlated electron systems.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- D Aoki
- IMR, Tohoku University, Oarai, Ibaraki, 311-1313, Japan
| | - J-P Brison
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CEA, Grenoble INP, IRIG, PHELIQS, F-38000 Grenoble, France
| | - J Flouquet
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CEA, Grenoble INP, IRIG, PHELIQS, F-38000 Grenoble, France
| | - K Ishida
- Department of Physics, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan
| | - G Knebel
- Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CEA, Grenoble INP, IRIG, PHELIQS, F-38000 Grenoble, France
| | - Y Tokunaga
- ASRC, Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Tokai, Ibaraki 319-1195, Japan
| | - Y Yanase
- Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan
- Institute for Molecular Science, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Enhancing Superconductivity of the Nonmagnetic Quasiskutterudites by Atomic Disorder. MATERIALS 2020; 13:ma13245830. [PMID: 33371360 PMCID: PMC7767374 DOI: 10.3390/ma13245830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Revised: 12/12/2020] [Accepted: 12/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
We investigated the effect of enhancement of superconducting transition temperature Tc by nonmagnetic atom disorder in the series of filled skutterudite-related compounds (La3M4Sn13, Ca3Rh4Sn13, Y5Rh6Sn18, Lu5Rh6Sn18; M= Co, Ru, Rh), where the atomic disorder is generated by various defects or doping. We have shown that the disorder on the coherence length scale ξ in these nonmagnetic quasiskutterudite superconductors additionally generates a non-homogeneous, high-temperature superconducting phase with Tc⋆>Tc (dilute disorder scenario), while the strong fluctuations of stoichiometry due to increasing doping can rapidly increase the superconducting transition temperature of the sample even to the value of Tc⋆∼2Tc (dense disorder leading to strong inhomogeneity). This phenomenon seems to be characteristic of high-temperature superconductors and superconducting heavy fermions, and recently have received renewed attention. We experimentally documented the stronger lattice stiffening of the inhomogeneous superconducting phase Tc⋆ in respect to the bulk Tc one and proposed a model that explains the Tc⋆>Tc behavior in the series of nonmagnetic skutterudite-related compounds.
Collapse
|
3
|
Ghosh SK, Smidman M, Shang T, Annett JF, Hillier AD, Quintanilla J, Yuan H. Recent progress on superconductors with time-reversal symmetry breaking. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2020; 33:033001. [PMID: 32721940 DOI: 10.1088/1361-648x/abaa06] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2019] [Accepted: 07/28/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Superconductivity and magnetism are adversarial states of matter. The presence of spontaneous magnetic fields inside the superconducting state is, therefore, an intriguing phenomenon prompting extensive experimental and theoretical research. In this review, we discuss recent experimental discoveries of unconventional superconductors which spontaneously break time-reversal symmetry and theoretical efforts in understanding their properties. We discuss the main experimental probes and give an extensive account of theoretical approaches to understand the order parameter symmetries and the corresponding pairing mechanisms, including the importance of multiple bands.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sudeep Kumar Ghosh
- Physics of Quantum Materials, School of Physical Sciences, University of Kent, Canterbury CT2 7NH, United Kingdom
| | - Michael Smidman
- Center for Correlated Matter and Department of Physics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, People's Republic of China
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Quantum Technology and Device, Department of Physics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, People's Republic of China
| | - Tian Shang
- Laboratory for Multiscale Materials Experiments, Paul Scherrer Institut, Villigen CH-5232, Switzerland
- Physik-Institut, Universität Zürich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057 Zürich, Switzerland
| | - James F Annett
- H. H. Wills Physics Laboratory, University of Bristol, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TL, United Kingdom
| | - Adrian D Hillier
- ISIS Facility, STFC Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, Didcot OX11 0QX, United Kingdom
| | - Jorge Quintanilla
- Physics of Quantum Materials, School of Physical Sciences, University of Kent, Canterbury CT2 7NH, United Kingdom
| | - Huiqiu Yuan
- Center for Correlated Matter and Department of Physics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, People's Republic of China
- Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Quantum Technology and Device, Department of Physics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, People's Republic of China
- State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, People's Republic of China
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093, People's Republic of China
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Juraszek J, Wawryk R, Henkie Z, Konczykowski M, Cichorek T. Symmetry of Order Parameters in Multiband Superconductors LaRu_{4}As_{12} and PrOs_{4}Sb_{12} Probed by Local Magnetization Measurements. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2020; 124:027001. [PMID: 32004020 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.124.027001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2019] [Revised: 11/04/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The temperature dependencies of the lower critical field H_{c1}(T) of several filled-skutterudite superconductors were investigated by local magnetization measurements. While LaOs_{4}As_{12} and PrRu_{4}As_{12} exhibit the H_{c1}(T) dependencies consistent with the single-band BCS prediction, for LaRu_{4}As_{12} (the superconducting temperature T_{c}=10.4 K) with a similar three-dimensional Fermi surface, we observe a sudden increase in H_{c1}(T) deep in a superconducting state below about 0.32T_{c}. Remarkably, a rapid rise of H_{c1}(T) at approximately the same reduced temperature 0.27T_{c} is also found for the heavy-fermion compound PrOs_{4}Sb_{12} (T_{c}≃1.78 K), in fair accord with the earlier macroscopic study. We attribute the unusual H_{c1}(T) dependencies of LaRu_{4}As_{12} and PrOs_{4}Sb_{12} to a kink structure in their superfluid densities due to different contributions from two nearly decoupled bands. Whereas LaRu_{4}As_{12} is established as a two-band isotropic s-wave superconductor, nonsaturating behavior of H_{c1}(T) is observed for PrOs_{4}Sb_{12}, indicative of an anisotropic structure of a smaller gap. For this superconductor with broken time-reversal symmetry, our findings suggest a superconducting state with multiple symmetries of the order parameters.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J Juraszek
- Institute of Low Temperature and Structure Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 50-950 Wrocław, Poland
| | - R Wawryk
- Institute of Low Temperature and Structure Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 50-950 Wrocław, Poland
| | - Z Henkie
- Institute of Low Temperature and Structure Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 50-950 Wrocław, Poland
| | - M Konczykowski
- Laboratoire des Solides Irradiés, CEA/DRF/IRAMIS, École Polytechnique, CNRS, Institut Polytechnique de Paris, F-91128 Palaiseau, France
| | - T Cichorek
- Institute of Low Temperature and Structure Research, Polish Academy of Sciences, 50-950 Wrocław, Poland
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Levenson-Falk EM, Schemm ER, Aoki Y, Maple MB, Kapitulnik A. Polar Kerr Effect from Time-Reversal Symmetry Breaking in the Heavy-Fermion Superconductor PrOs_{4}Sb_{12}. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2018; 120:187004. [PMID: 29775372 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.120.187004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2017] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
We present polar Kerr effect measurements of the filled skutterudite superconductor PrOs_{4}Sb_{12}. Simultaneous ac susceptibility measurements allow us to observe the superconducting transition under the influence of heating from the optical beam. A nonzero Kerr angle θ_{K} develops below the superconducting transition, saturating at ∼300 nrad at low temperatures. This result is repeated across several measurements of multiple samples. By extrapolating the measured θ_{K}(T) to zero optical power, we are able to show that the Kerr angle onset temperature in one set of measurements is consistent with the transition to the B phase at T_{C2}. We discuss the possible explanations for this result and its impact on the understanding of multiphase and inhomogeneous superconductivity in PrOs_{4}Sb_{12}.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- E M Levenson-Falk
- Department of Applied Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA
- Geballe Laboratory for Advanced Materials, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089, USA
| | - E R Schemm
- Geballe Laboratory for Advanced Materials, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA
| | - Y Aoki
- Department of Physics, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Tokyo 192-0397, Japan
| | - M B Maple
- Department of Physics and Center for Advanced Nanoscience, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA
| | - A Kapitulnik
- Department of Applied Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA
- Department of Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA
- Stanford Institute for Materials and Energy Sciences, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, 2575 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025, USA
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Kozii V, Venderbos JWF, Fu L. Three-dimensional Majorana fermions in chiral superconductors. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2016; 2:e1601835. [PMID: 27957543 PMCID: PMC5142806 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1601835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2016] [Accepted: 11/03/2016] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Using a systematic symmetry and topology analysis, we establish that three-dimensional chiral superconductors with strong spin-orbit coupling and odd-parity pairing generically host low-energy nodal quasiparticles that are spin-nondegenerate and realize Majorana fermions in three dimensions. By examining all types of chiral Cooper pairs with total angular momentum J formed by Bloch electrons with angular momentum j in crystals, we obtain a comprehensive classification of gapless Majorana quasiparticles in terms of energy-momentum relation and location on the Fermi surface. We show that the existence of bulk Majorana fermions in the vicinity of spin-selective point nodes is rooted in the nonunitary nature of chiral pairing in spin-orbit-coupled superconductors. We address experimental signatures of Majorana fermions and find that the nuclear magnetic resonance spin relaxation rate is significantly suppressed for nuclear spins polarized along the nodal direction as a consequence of the spin-selective Majorana nature of nodal quasiparticles. Furthermore, Majorana nodes in the bulk have nontrivial topology and imply the presence of Majorana bound states on the surface, which form arcs in momentum space. We conclude by proposing the heavy fermion superconductor PrOs4Sb12 and related materials as promising candidates for nonunitary chiral superconductors hosting three-dimensional Majorana fermions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vladyslav Kozii
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Jörn W. F. Venderbos
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Liang Fu
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Bohloul S, Curnoe SH. Theory of Andreev reflection spectroscopy for tetrahedral and non-unitary superconductors. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2016; 28:045701. [PMID: 26750247 DOI: 10.1088/0953-8984/28/4/045701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
A general formula for point contact conductance from a normal metal tip into a superconductor is derived using the Blonder-Tinkham-Klapwijk theory of Andreev reflection, with special emphasis on non-unitary superconductors. The results of a comprehensive set of conductance spectrum calculations are presented: all symmetry-allowed gap functions for superconductors with tetrahedral symmetry, such as PrOs4Sb12, are considered, including several non-unitary cases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- S Bohloul
- Centre for the Physics of Materials and Department of Physics, McGill University, Montreal, PQ, H3A 2T8, Canada. Department of Physics and Physical Oceanography, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, NL, A1B 3X7, Canada
| | | |
Collapse
|
8
|
McBriarty ME, Kumar P, Stewart GR, Andraka B. Superconductivity and disorder in PrOs(4)Sb(12). JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2009; 21:385701. [PMID: 21832374 DOI: 10.1088/0953-8984/21/38/385701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
The specific heat, and dc and ac magnetic susceptibility are reported for a large single crystal of PrOs(4)Sb(12) and, after grinding, its powder. The physical properties of the crystal are typical of the majority of reported PrOs(4)Sb(12) samples. The room temperature effective paramagnetic moment of the crystal was consistent with the Pr(3+) ionic configuration and full (or nearly full) occupancy of the Pr sublattice. The crystal showed two distinct anomalies in the specific heat and an overall discontinuity in C/T of approximately 1000 mJ K(-2) mol(-1). The upper transition (at T(c1)) was characteristically rounded. The anomaly at T(c2) was very sharp, consistent with a good quality for the crystal. We observed a shoulder in χ(') and two peaks in χ('') below T(c1). However, there were no signatures in χ(') of the lower temperature transition. Grinding to powder size smaller than 50 µm completely suppresses the upper superconducting transition in both the specific heat and magnetic susceptibility. It also strongly reduces ΔC/T(c) at T(c2). Stress annealing brings back some of this lost ΔC/T(c) but does not restore the upper temperature transition. Possible explanations of the existence of two superconducting specific heat anomalies for single crystals are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- M E McBriarty
- Department of Physics, University of Florida, PO Box 118440, Gainesville, FL 32611-8440, USA
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
9
|
Raymond S, Kuwahara K, Kaneko K, Iwasa K, Kohgi M, Hiess A, Flouquet J, Metoki N, Sugawara H, Aoki Y, Sato H. Excitation spectrum of PrOs(4)Sb(12) under a magnetic field. JOURNAL OF PHYSICS. CONDENSED MATTER : AN INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS JOURNAL 2009; 21:215702. [PMID: 21825559 DOI: 10.1088/0953-8984/21/21/215702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
The evolution of the magnetic excitation spectrum of the heavy fermion superconductor PrOs(4)Sb(12) was studied by inelastic neutron scattering on crossing the critical field H(c2) for superconductivity at low temperature. The peak positions in energy and the peak intensities of the modes of the triplet split by magnetic field confirm the known crystal field parameters for PrOs(4)Sb(12) in T(h) symmetry. A selective broadening of the lineshape occurs on increasing the magnetic field: the linewidth of the upper mode of the triplet increases while the one of the middle mode does not.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- S Raymond
- CEA-DSM/INAC/SPSMS, F-38054 Grenoble, France
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
Taylor BJ, Maple MB. Formula for the critical temperature of superconductors based on the electronic density of states and the effective mass. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2009; 102:137003. [PMID: 19392396 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.102.137003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2008] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
A formula for the superconducting transition temperature T(c) is developed by comparing the total condensation energy contained within the coherence volume of a Cooper pair to the number of electronic states at the Fermi surface within the same coherence volume. It is found that T(c) is proportional to the ratio of the condensation energy density and normal state charge carrier density. We find that this relation holds for over 2 orders of magnitude in temperature for numerous well-known superconducting compounds belonging to distinctly different classes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- B J Taylor
- Department of Physics and Institute for Pure and Applied Physical Sciences, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
11
|
Hill RW, Li S, Maple MB, Taillefer L. Multiband order parameters for the PrOs4Sb12 and PrRu4Sb12 skutterudite superconductors from thermal conductivity measurements. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2008; 101:237005. [PMID: 19113585 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.101.237005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2007] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Thermal conductivity measurements were performed on single crystal samples of the superconducting filled-skutterudite compounds PrOs4Sb12 and PrRu4Sb12 both as a function of temperature and transverse magnetic field. In a zero magnetic field, the low temperature electronic thermal conductivity of PrRu4Sb12 is consistent with a fully gapped Fermi surface. For PrOs4Sb12, residual electronic conduction in the zero-temperature limit is consistent with the presence of nodes in the superconducting energy gap. The electronic thermal conductivity for both compounds shows a rapid rise at low magnetic fields. In PrRu4Sb12, this is interpreted in terms of multiband effects. In PrOs4Sb12, we consider the Doppler shift of nodal quasiparticles and multiband effects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- R W Hill
- Guelph-Waterloo Physics Institute, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
12
|
Seyfarth G, Brison JP, Knebel G, Aoki D, Lapertot G, Flouquet J. Multigap superconductivity in the heavy-Fermion system CeCoIn5. PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2008; 101:046401. [PMID: 18764344 DOI: 10.1103/physrevlett.101.046401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2008] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
New thermal conductivity experiments on the heavy-fermion superconductor CeCoIn5 down to 10 mK rule out the suggested existence of unpaired electrons. Moreover, they reveal strong multigap effects with a remarkably low "critical" field Hc2S for the small gap band, showing that the complexity of heavy-fermion band structure has a direct impact on their response under magnetic field.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- G Seyfarth
- CNRS, Néel Institute, 25 avenue des Martyrs, BP166, 38042 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
| | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|