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arXiv · 1301.4942

Nanoscale Surface Element Identification and Dopant Homogeneity in the High-$T_c$ Superconductor Pr$_x$Ca$_{1-x}$Fe$_2$As$_2$

Ilija Zeljkovic·Dennis Huang·Can-Li Song·Bing Lv·Ching-Wu Chu·Jennifer E. Hoffman
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Abstract

We use scanning tunneling microscopy to determine the surface structure and dopant distribution in Pr$_x$Ca$_{1-x}$Fe$_2$As$_2$, the highest-$T_c$ member of the 122 family of iron-based superconductors. We identify the cleaved surface termination by mapping the local tunneling barrier height, related to the work function. We image the individual Pr dopants responsible for superconductivity, and show that they do not cluster, but in fact repel each other at short length scales. We therefore suggest that the low volume fraction high-$T_c$ superconducting phase is unlikely to originate from Pr inhomogeneity.

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Ilija Zeljkovic, Dennis Huang, Can-Li Song, Bing Lv, Ching-Wu Chu, Jennifer E. Hoffman. 2013-05-21. Nanoscale Surface Element Identification and Dopant Homogeneity in the High-$T_c$ Superconductor Pr$_x$Ca$_{1-x}$Fe$_2$As$_2$. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.87.201108

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