Skyrmionic state and stable half-quantum vortices in chiral p-wave superconductors

Julien Garaud; Egor Babaev

doi:10.1103/physrevb.86.060514

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arXiv · 1201.2946

Skyrmionic state and stable half-quantum vortices in chiral p-wave superconductors

Julien Garaud·Egor Babaev

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Abstract

Observability of half-quantum vortices and skyrmions in p-wave superconductors is an outstanding open question. Under the most common conditions, fractional flux vortices are not thermodynamically stable in bulk samples. Here we show that in chiral p-wave superconductors, there is a regime where, in contrast lattices of integer flux vortices are not thermodynamically stable. Instead skyrmions made of spatially separated half-quantum vortices are the topological defects produced by an applied external field.

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Julien Garaud, Egor Babaev. 2012-01-13. Skyrmionic state and stable half-quantum vortices in chiral p-wave superconductors. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.86.060514

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