arXiv subjects

A. McCollam

Publications and source records attributed to A. McCollam.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2023

Multi-band description of the upper critical field of bulk FeSe

The upper critical field of multi-band superconductors can be an essential quantity to unravel the nature of superconducting pairing and its interplay with the electronic structure. Here we experimentally map out the complete upper critical field phase diagram of FeSe for different magnetic field orientations at temperatures down to 0.3 K using both resistivity and torque measurements. The temperature dependence of the upper critical field reflects that of a multi-band superconductor and requires a two-band description in the clean limit with band coupling parameters favouring interband over intraband interactions. Despite the relatively small Maki parameter in FeSe of $\alpha \sim 1.6$, the multi-band description of the upper critical field is consistent with the stabilization of a FFLO state below $T/T_{\rm c}\sim 0.3$. We find that the anomalous behaviour of the upper critical field is linked to a departure from the single-band picture, and FeSe provides a clear example where multi-band effects and the strong anisotropy of the superconducting gap need to be taken into account.

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arXiv2022

Unconventional localization of electrons inside of a nematic electronic phase

The magnetotransport behaviour inside the nematic phase of bulk FeSe reveals unusual multiband effects that cannot be reconciled with a simple two-band approximation proposed by surface-sensitive spectroscopic probes. In order to understand the role played by the multiband electronic structure and the degree of two-dimensionality we have investigated the electronic properties of exfoliated flakes of FeSe by reducing their thickness. Based on magnetotransport and Hall resistivity measurements, we assess the mobility spectrum that suggests an unusual asymmetry between the mobilities of the electrons and holes with the electron carriers becoming localized inside the nematic phase. Quantum oscillations in magnetic fields up to 38 T indicate the presence of a hole-like quasiparticle with a lighter effective mass and a quantum scattering time three times shorter, as compared with bulk FeSe. The observed localization of negative charge carriers by reducing dimensionality can be driven by orbitally-dependent correlation effects, enhanced interband spin-fluctuations or a Lifshitz-like transition which affect mainly the electron bands. The electronic localization leads to a fragile two-dimensional superconductivity in thin flakes of FeSe, in contrast to the two-dimensional high-Tc induced with electron doping via dosing or using a suitable interface.

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arXiv2022

The drastic effect of the impurity scattering on the electronic and superconducting properties of Cu-doped FeSe

Non-magnetic impurities in iron-based superconductors can provide an important tool to understand the pair symmetry and they can influence significantly the transport and the superconducting behaviour. Here, we present a study of the role of strong impurity potential in the Fe plane, induced by Cu substitution, on the electronic and superconducting properties of single crystals of FeSe. The addition of Cu quickly suppresses both the nematic and superconducting states, and increases the residual resistivity due to enhanced impurity scattering. Using magnetotransport data up to 35 T for a small amount of Cu impurity, we detect a significant reduction in the mobility of the charge carriers by a factor of ~3. While the electronic conduction is strongly disrupted by Cu substitution, we identify additional signatures of anisotropic scattering which manifest in linear resistivity at low temperatures and $H^{1.6}$ dependence of magnetoresistance. The suppression of superconductivity by Cu substitution is consistent with a sign-changing $s_{\pm}$ order parameter. Additionally, in the presence of compressive strain, the superconductivity is enhanced, similar to FeSe.

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arXiv2021

Origin of the 30 T transition in CeRhIn$_5$ in tilted magnetic fields

We present a comprehensive ultrasound study of the prototypical heavy-fermion material CeRhIn$_5$, examining the origin of the enigmatic 30 T transition. For a field applied at 2$^\circ$ from the $c$ axis, we observed two sharp anomalies in the sound velocity, at $B_m \approx$ 20 T and $B^* \approx$ 30 T, in all the symmetry-breaking ultrasound modes at low temperatures. The lower-field anomaly corresponds to the well-known first-order metamagnetic incommensurate-to-commensurate transition. The higher-field anomaly takes place at 30 T, where an electronic-nematic transition was previously suggested to occur. Both anomalies, observed only within the antiferromagnetic state, are of similar shape, but the corresponding changes of the ultrasound velocity have opposite signs. Based on our experimental results, we suggest that a field-induced magnetic transition from a commensurate to another incommensurate antiferromagnetic state occurs at $B^*$. With further increasing the field angle from the $c$ axis, the anomaly at $B^*$ slowly shifts to higher fields, broadens, and becomes smaller in magnitude. Traced up to 30$^\circ$ from the $c$ axis, it is no longer observed at 40$^\circ$ below 36 T.

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arXiv2021

Quantum oscillations of the magnetic torque in the nodal-line Dirac semimetal ZrSiS

We report a study of quantum oscillations (QO) in the magnetic torque of the nodal-line Dirac semimetal ZrSiS in the magnetic fields up to 35 T and the temperature range from 40 K down to 2 K, enabling high resolution mapping of the Fermi surface (FS) topology in the $k_z=π$ (Z-R-A) plane of the first Brillouin zone (FBZ). It is found that the oscillatory part of the measured magnetic torque signal consists of low frequency (LF) contributions (frequencies up to 1000 T) and high frequency (HF) contributions (several clusters of frequencies from 7-22 kT). Increased resolution and angle-resolved measurements allow us to show that the high oscillation frequencies originate from magnetic breakdown (MB) orbits involving clusters of individual $α$ hole and $β$ electron pockets from the diamond shaped FS in the Z-R-A plane. Analyzing the HF oscillations we have unequivocally shown that the QO frequency from the dog-bone shaped Fermi pocket ($β$ pocket) amounts $β=591(15)$ T. Our findings suggest that most of the frequencies in the LF part of QO can also be explained by MB orbits when intraband tunneling in the dog-bone shaped $β$ electron pocket is taken into account. Our results give a new understanding of the novel properties of the FS of the nodal-line Dirac semimetal ZrSiS and sister compounds.

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arXiv2021

Robust Fermi-Surface Morphology of CeRhIn$_5$ across the Putative Field-Induced Quantum Critical Point

We report a comprehensive de Haas--van Alphen (dHvA) study of the heavy-fermion material CeRhIn$_5$ in magnetic fields up to 70~T. Several dHvA frequencies gradually emerge at high fields as a result of magnetic breakdown. Among them is the thermodynamically important $β_1$ branch, which has not been observed so far. Comparison of our angule-dependent dHvA spectra with those of the non-$4f$ compound LaRhIn$_5$ and with band-structure calculations evidences that the Ce $4f$ electrons in CeRhIn$_5$ remain localized over the whole field range. This rules out any significant Fermi-surface reconstruction, either at the suggested nematic phase transition at $B^{*}\approx$ 30~T or at the putative quantum critical point at $B_c \simeq$ 50~T. Our results rather demonstrate the robustness of the Fermi surface and the localized nature of the 4$f$ electrons inside and outside of the antiferromagnetic phase.

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arXiv2020

Magnetic structure of Cd-doped CeIrIn$_5$

We report the magnetic structure of nominally 10% Cd-doped CeIrIn$_5$, CeIr(In$_{0.9}$Cd$_{0.1}$)$_5$, determined by elastic neutron scattering. Magnetic intensity was observed only at the ordering wave vector $Q_{AF} = (1/2,1/2,1/2)$, commensurate with the crystal lattice. A staggered moment of 0.47(3)$μ_B$ at 1.8 K resides on the Ce ion. The magnetic moments are found to be aligned along the crystallographic $c$ axis. This is further confirmed by magnetic susceptibility data, which suggest the $c$ axis to be the easy magnetic axis. The determined magnetic structure is strikingly different from the incommensurate antiferromagnetic ordering of the closely related compound CeRhIn$_5$, in which the magnetic moments are antiferromagnetically aligned within the tetragonal basal plane.

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arXiv2020

Quantum oscillations probe the Fermi surface topology of the nodal-line semimetal CaAgAs

Nodal semimetals are a unique platform to explore topological signatures of the unusual band structure that can manifest by accumulating a nontrivial phase in quantum oscillations. Here we report a study of the de Haasvan Alphen oscillations of the candidate topological nodal line semimetal CaAgAs using torque measurements in magnetic fields up to 45 T. Our results are compared with calculations for a toroidal Fermi surface originating from the nodal ring. We find evidence of a nontrivial Berry phase shift only in one of the oscillatory frequencies. We interpret this as a Berry phase arising from the semi-classical electronic Landau orbit which links with the nodal ring when the magnetic field lies in the mirror (ab) plane. Furthermore, additional Berry phase accumulates while rotating the magnetic field for the second orbit in the same orientation which does not link with the nodal ring. These effects are expected in CaAgAs due to the lack of inversion symmetry. Our study experimentally demonstrates that CaAgAs is an ideal platform for exploring the physics of nodal line semimetals and our approach can be extended to other materials in which trivial and nontrivial oscillations are present.

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arXiv2019

Unusual phase boundary of the magnetic-field-tuned valence transition in CeOs$_4$Sb$_{12}$

The phase diagram of the filled skutterudite CeOs$_4$Sb$_{12}$ has been mapped in fields $H$ of up to 60 T and temperatures $T$ down to 0.5 K using resistivity, magnetostriction, and MHz conductivity. The valence transition separating the semimetallic, low-$H$, low-$T$, $\cal{L}$ phase from the metallic high-$H$, high-$T$ $\cal{H}$ phase exhibits a very unusual, wedge-shaped phase boundary, with a non-monotonic gradient alternating between positive and negative. This is quite different from the text-book "elliptical" phase boundary usually followed by valence transitions. Analysis of Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations within the $\cal{H}$ phase reveals an effective mass that increases as $H$ drops toward the $\cal{H-L}$ phase boundary, suggesting proximity to a quantum-critical point. The associated magnetic fluctuations may be responsible for the anomalous $H,T$ dependence of the valence transition at high $H$, whereas the low$-H$, high$-T$ portion of the phase boundary may rather be associated with the proximity of CeOs$_4$Sb$_{12}$ to a topological semimetal phase induced by uniaxial stress.

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arXiv2019

An ideal Weyl semimetal induced by magnetic exchange

Weyl semimetals exhibit exceptional quantum electronic transport due to the presence of topologically-protected band crossings called Weyl nodes. The nodes come in pairs with opposite chirality, but their number and location in momentum space is otherwise material specific. Following the initial discoveries there is now a need for better material realizations, ideally comprising a single pair of Weyl nodes located at or very close to the Fermi level and in an energy window free from other overlapping bands. Here we propose the layered intermetallic EuCd$_2$As$_2$ to be such a system. We show that Weyl nodes in EuCd$_2$As$_2$ are magnetically-induced via exchange coupling, emerging when the Eu spins are aligned by a small external magnetic field. The identification of EuCd$_2$As$_2$ as a model magnetic Weyl semimetal, evidenced here by ab initio calculations, photoemission spectroscopy, quantum oscillations and anomalous Hall transport measurements, opens the door to fundamental tests of Weyl physics.

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arXiv2019

Anomalous high-magnetic field electronic state of the nematic superconductors FeSe$_{1-x}$S$_x$

Understanding superconductivity requires detailed knowledge of the normal electronic state from which it emerges. A nematic electronic state that breaks the rotational symmetry of the lattice can potentially promote unique scattering relevant for superconductivity. Here, we investigate the normal transport of superconducting FeSe$_{1-x}$S$_x$ across a nematic phase transition using high magnetic fields up to 69 T to establish the temperature and field-dependencies. We find that the nematic state is an anomalous non-Fermi liquid, dominated by a linear resistivity at low temperatures that can transform into a Fermi liquid, depending on the composition $x$ and the impurity level. Near the nematic end point, we find an extended temperature regime with $T^{1.5}$ resistivity. The transverse magnetoresistance inside the nematic phase has as a $H^{1.55}$ dependence over a large magnetic field range and it displays an unusual peak at low temperatures inside the nematic phase. Our study reveals anomalous transport inside the nematic phase, driven by the subtle interplay between the changes in the electronic structure of a multi-band system and the unusual scattering processes affected by large magnetic fields and disorder

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arXiv2017

Quasi-two-dimensional Fermi surfaces with localized $f$ electrons in the layered heavy-fermion compound CePt$_2$In$_7$

We report measurements of the de Haas-van Alphen effect in the layered heavy-fermion compound CePt$_2$In$_7$ in high magnetic fields up to 35 T. Above an angle-dependent threshold field, we observed several de Haas-van Alphen frequencies originating from almost ideally two-dimensional Fermi surfaces. The frequencies are similar to those previously observed to develop only above a much higher field of 45 T, where a clear anomaly was detected and proposed to originate from a change in the electronic structure [M. M. Altarawneh et al., Phys. Rev. B 83, 081103 (2011)]. Our experimental results are compared with band structure calculations performed for both CePt$_2$In$_7$ and LaPt$_2$In$_7$, and the comparison suggests localized $f$ electrons in CePt$_2$In$_7$. This conclusion is further supported by comparing experimentally observed Fermi surfaces in CePt$_2$In$_7$ and PrPt$_2$In$_7$, which are found to be almost identical. The measured effective masses in CePt$_2$In$_7$ are only moderately enhanced above the bare electron mass $m_0$, from 2$m_0$ to 6$m_0$.

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arXiv2017

Phase transition from a composite fermion liquid to a Wigner solid in the lowest Landau level of ZnO

Interactions between the constituents of a condensed matter system can drive it through a plethora of different phases due to many-body effects. A prominent platform for this type of behavior is a two-dimensional electron system in a magnetic field, which evolves intricately through various gaseous, liquid and solids phases governed by Coulomb interaction. Here we report on the experimental observation of a phase transition between the Laughlin liquid of composite fermions and the adjacent insulating phase of a magnetic field-induced Wigner solid. The experiments are performed in the lowest Landau level of a MgZnO/ZnO two-dimensional electron system with attributes of both a liquid and a solid. An in-plane magnetic field component applied on top of the perpendicular magnetic field extends the Wigner phase further into the liquid phase region. Our observations indicate the direct competition between a Wigner solid and a Laughlin liquid both formed by composite particles rather than bare electrons.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2017

Theoretical models of Rashba spin splitting in asymmetric SrTiO3-based heterostructures

Rashba spin splitting in two-dimensional (2D) semiconductor systems is generally calculated in a ${\bf k} \cdot {\bf p}$ Luttinger-Kohn approach where the spin splitting due to asymmetry emerges naturally from the bulk band structure. In recent years, several new classes of 2D systems have been discovered where electronic correlations are believed to have an important role. In these correlated systems, the effects of asymmetry leading to Rashba splitting have typically been treated phenomenologically. We compare these two approaches for the case of 2D electron systems in SrTiO$_3$-based heterostructures, and find that the two models produce fundamentally different behavior in regions of the Brillouin zone that are particularly relevant for magnetotransport. Our results demonstrate the importance of identifying the correct approach in the quantitative interpretation of experimental data, and are likely to be relevant to a range of 2D systems in correlated materials.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2016

A de Haas van Alphen study of the role of 4f electrons in antiferromagnetic CeZn11 as compared to its non-magnetic analogue LaZn11

We present a de Haas-van Alphen study of the Fermi surface of the low temperature antiferromagnet CeZn11 and its non-magnetic analogue LaZn11, measured by torque magnetometry up to fields of 33T and at temperatures down to 320 mK. Both systems possess similar de Haas-van Alphen frequencies, with three clear sets of features - ranging from 50T to 4kT - corresponding to three bands of a complex Fermi surface, with an expected fourth band also seen weakly in CeZn11. The effective masses of the charge carriers are very light (<1 me) in LaZn11 but a factor of 2 - 4 larger in CeZn11, indicative of stronger electronic correlations. We perform detailed density functional theory (DFT) calculations for CeZn11 and find that only DFT+U calculations with U=1.5 eV, which localize the 4f states, provide a good match to the measured de Haas-van Alphen frequencies, once the presence of magnetic breakdown orbits is also considered. Our study suggests that the Fermi surface of CeZn11 is very close to that of LaZn11 being dominated by Zn 3d, as the Ce 4f states are localised and have little influence on its electronic structure, however, they are responsible for its magnetic order and contribute to enhance electronic correlations.

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arXiv2016

Evolution of the Fermi surface of the nematic superconductors FeSe1-xSx

We investigate the evolution of the Fermi surfaces and electronic interactions across the nematic phase transition in single crystals of FeSe1-xSx using Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations in high magnetic fields up to 45 tesla in the low temperature regime. The unusually small and strongly elongated Fermi surface of FeSe increases monotonically with chemical pressure, x, due to the suppression of the in-plane anisotropy except for the smallest orbit which suffers a Lifshitz-like transition once nematicity disappears. Even outside the nematic phase the Fermi surface continues to increase, in stark contrast to the reconstructed Fermi surface detected in FeSe under applied external pressure. We detect signatures of orbital-dependent quasiparticle mass renomalization suppressed for those orbits with dominant dxz=yz character, but unusually enhanced for those orbits with dominant dxy character. The lack of enhanced superconductivity outside the nematic phase in FeSe1-xSx suggest that nematicity may not play the essential role in enhancing Tc in these systems.

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arXiv2015

Field-Induced Lifshitz Transition without Metamagnetism in CeIrIn$_5$

We report high magnetic field measurements of magnetic torque, thermoelectric power (TEP), magnetization, and de Haas-van Alphen (dHvA) effect in CeIrIn$_5$ across 28 T, where a metamagnetic transition was suggested in previous studies. The TEP displays two maxima at 28 T and 32 T. Above 28 T, a new, low dHvA frequency with strongly enhanced effective mass emerges, while the highest frequency observed at low field disappears entirely. This suggests a field-induced Lifshitz transition. However, longitudinal magnetization does not show any anomaly up to 33 T, thus ruling out a metamagnetic transition at 28 T.

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arXiv2015

Magnetization of underdoped YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{y}$ above the irreversibility field

Torque magnetization measurements on YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_{y}$ (YBCO) at doping $y=6.67$($p=0.12$), in DC fields ($B$) up to 33 T and temperatures down to 4.5 K, show that weak diamagnetism persists above the extrapolated irreversibility field $H_{\rm irr} (T=0) \approx 24$ T. The differential susceptibility $dM/dB$, however, is more rapidly suppressed for $B\gtrsim 16$ T than expected from the properties of the low field superconducting state, and saturates at a low value for fields $B \gtrsim 24$ T. In addition, torque measurements on a $p=0.11$ YBCO crystal in pulsed field up to 65 T and temperatures down to 8 K show similar behaviour, with no additional features at higher fields. We discuss several candidate scenarios to explain these observations: (a) superconductivity survives but is heavily suppressed at high field by competition with CDW order; (b) static superconductivity disappears near 24 T and is followed by a region of fluctuating superconductivity, which causes $dM/dB$ to saturate at high field; (c) the stronger 3D ordered CDW that sets in above 15 T may suppress the normal state spin susceptibility sufficiently to give an apparent diamagnetism of the magnitude observed.

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