arXiv subjects

Chenglin Zhang

Publications and source records attributed to Chenglin Zhang.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2014

Short-range cluster spin glass near optimal superconductivity in BaFe$_{2-x}$Ni$_{x}$As$_{2}$

High-temperature superconductivity in iron pnictides occurs when electrons are doped into their antiferromagnetic (AF) parent compounds. In addition to inducing superconductivity, electron-doping also changes the static commensurate AF order in the undoped parent compounds into short-range incommensurate AF order near optimal superconductivity. Here we use neutron scattering to demonstrate that the incommensurate AF order in BaFe$_{2-x}$Ni$_{x}$As$_{2}$ is not a spin-density-wave arising from the itinerant electrons in nested Fermi surfaces, but consistent with a cluster spin glass in the matrix of the superconducting phase. Therefore, optimal superconductivity in iron pnictides coexists and competes with a mesoscopically separated cluster spin glass phase, much different from the homogeneous coexisting AF and superconducting phases in the underdoped regime.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2014

Spin-dependent polaron formation dynamics in Eu$_{0.75}$Y$_{0.25}$MnO$_3$ probed by femtosecond pump-probe spectroscopy

We present a femtosecond optical pump-probe study of the multiferroic manganite Eu$_{0.75}$Y$_{0.25}$MnO$_3$. The optical response of the material at pump energies of 1.55 and 3.1 eV is dominated by the $d$-$d$ and $p$-$d$ transitions of the Mn$^{3+}$ ions. The relaxation of photoexcited electrons includes the relaxation of the Jahn-Teller distortion and polaron trapping at Mn$^{2+}$ and Mn$^{4+}$ sites. Ultrafast switching of superexchange interactions due to modulated $e_g$ orbital occupancy creates a localized spin excitation, which then decays on a time scale of tens of picoseconds at low temperatures. The localized spin state decay appears as a tremendous increase in the amplitude of the photoinduced reflectance, due to the strong coupling of optical transitions to the spin-spin correlations in the crystalline $a$-$b$ plane.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2014

Evolution of London penetration depth with scattering in single crystals of K$_{1-x}$Na$_x$Fe$_2$As$_2$

London penetration depth, $λ(T)$, was measured in single crystals of K$_{1-x}$Na$_x$Fe$_2$As$_2$, $x$=0 and 0.07, down to temperatures of 50~mK, $\sim T_c/50$. Isovalent substitution of Na for K significantly increases impurity scattering, with $ρ(T_c)$ rising from 0.2 to 2.2 $μΩ$cm, and leads to a suppression of $T_c$ from 3.5~K to 2.8~K. At the same time, a close to $T$-linear $Δλ(T)$ in pure samples changes to almost $T^2$ in the substituted samples. The behavior never becomes exponential as expected for the accidental nodes, as opposed to $T^2$ dependence in superconductors with symmetry imposed line nodes. The superfluid density in the full temperature range follows a simple clean and dirty $d$-wave dependence, for pure and substituted samples, respectively. This result contradicts suggestions of multi-band scenarios with strongly different gap structure on four sheets of the Fermi surface.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2013

Close relationship between superconductivity and the bosonic mode in Ba0.6K0.4Fe2As2 and Na(Fe0.975Co0.025)As

Since the discovery of high temperature superconductivity in the iron pnictides and chalcogenides in early 2008, a central issue has been the microscopic origin of the superconducting pairing. Although previous experiments suggest that the pairing may be induced by exchanging the antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations and the superconducting order parameter has opposite signs in the electron and hole pockets as predicted by the S+- pairing model, it remains unclear whether there is a bosonic mode from the tunneling spectrum which has a close and universal relationship with superconductivity as well as the spin excitation. In this paper, based on the measurements of scanning tunneling spectroscopy, we show the clear evidence of a bosonic mode with the energy identical to that of the neutron spin resonance in two completely different systems Ba0.6K0.4Fe2As2 and Na(Fe0.975Co0.025)As with different superconducting transition temperatures. In both samples, the superconducting coherence peaks and the mode feature vanish simultaneously inside the vortex core or above Tc, indicating a close relationship between superconductivity and the bosonic mode. Our data also demonstrate a universal ratio between the mode energy and superconducting transition temperature, that is [mode energy]/kBTc ~ 4.3, which underlines the unconventional mechanism of superconductivity in the iron pnictide superconductors.

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arXiv2013

Double neutron spin resonances and gap anisotropy in underdoped superconducting NaFe0.985Co0.015As

We use inelastic neutron scattering to show that superconductivity in electron-underdoped NaFe0.985Co0.015As induces a dispersive sharp resonance near Er1 = 3:25 meV and a broad dis- persionless mode at Er2 = 6 meV. However, similar measurements on overdoped superconducting NaFe0:955Co0:045As find only a single sharp resonance at Er = 7 meV. We connect these results with the observations of angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy that the superconducting gaps in the electron Fermi pockets are anisotropic in the underdoped material but become isotropic in the overdoped case. Our analysis indicates that both the double neutron spin resonances and gap anisotropy originate from the orbital dependence of the superconducting pairing in the iron pnic- tides. Our discovery also shows the importance of the inelastic neutron scattering in detecting the multiorbital superconducting gap structures of iron pnictides.

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arXiv2013

In-plane spin excitation anisotropy in the paramagnetic phase of NaFeAs

We use unpolarized and polarized inelastic neutron scattering to study low-energy spin excitations in NaFeAs, which exhibits a tetragonal-to-orthorhombic lattice distortion at $T_s\approx 58$ K followed by a collinear antiferromagnetic (AF) order below $T_N\approx 45$ K. In the AF ordered state ($T T_s$), spin excitations become more isotropic. Since similar magnetic anisotropy is also observed in the paramagnetic tetragonal phase of superconducting BaFe$_{1.904}$Ni$_{0.096}$As$_2$, our results suggest that the spin excitation anisotropy in superconducting iron pnictides originates from similar anisotropy already present in their parent compounds.

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arXiv2013

Spin excitation anisotropy as a probe of orbital ordering in the paramagnetic tetragonal phase of superconducting BaFe1.904Ni0.096As2

We use polarized neutron scattering to demonstrate that in-plane spin excitations in electron doped superconducting BaFe1.904Ni0.096As2 (Tc=19.8 K) change from isotropic to anisotropic in the tetragonal phase well above the antiferromagnetic (AF) ordering and tetragonal-to-orthorhombic lattice distortion temperatures (Tn=Ts=33 K) without an uniaxial pressure. While the anisotropic spin excitations are not sensitive to the AF order and tetragonal-to-orthorhombic lattice distortion, superconductivity induces further anisotropy for spin excitations along the [1,1,0] and [1,-1,0] directions. These results indicate that the spin excitation anisotropy is a probe of the electronic anisotropy or orbital ordering in the tetragonal phase of iron pnictides.

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arXiv2013

Doping influence of spin dynamics and magnetoelectric effect in hexagonal Y$_{0.7}$Lu$_{0.3}$MnO$_{3}$

We use inelastic neutron scattering to study spin waves and their correlation with the magnetoelectric effect in Y$_{0.7}$Lu$_{0.3}$MnO$_3$. In the undoped YMnO$_3$ and LuMnO$_3$, the Mn trimerization distortion has been suggested to play a key role in determining the magnetic structure and the magnetoelectric effect. In Y$_{0.7}$Lu$_{0.3}$MnO$_3$, we find a much smaller in-plane (hexagonal $ab$-plane) single ion anisotropy gap that coincides with a weaker in-plane dielectric anomaly at $T_N$. Since both the smaller in-plane anisotropy gap and the weaker in-plane dielectric anomaly are coupled to a weaker Mn trimerization distortion in Y$_{0.7}$Lu$_{0.3}$MnO$_3$ comparing to YMnO$_3$ and LuMnO$_3$, we conclude that the Mn trimerization is responsible for the magnetoelectric effect and multiferroic phenomenon in Y$_{1-y}$Lu$_{y}$MnO$_{3}$.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2013

Distinguishing $s^{\pm}$ and $s^{++}$ electron pairing symmetries by neutron spin resonance in superconducting NaFe$_{0.935}$Co$_{0.045}$As

A determination of the superconducting (SC) electron pairing symmetry forms the basis for establishing a microscopic mechansim for superconductivity. For iron pnictide superconductors, the $s^\pm$-pairing symmetry theory predicts the presence of a sharp neutron spin resonance at an energy below the sum of hole and electron SC gap energies ($E\leq 2Δ$) below $T_c$. On the other hand, the $s^{++}$-pairing symmetry expects a broad spin excitation enhancement at an energy above $2Δ$ below $T_c$. Although the resonance has been observed in iron pnictide superconductors at an energy below $2Δ$ consistent with the $s^\pm$-pairing symmetry, the mode has also be interpreted as arising from the $s^{++}$-pairing symmetry with $E\ge 2Δ$ due to its broad energy width and the large uncertainty in determining the SC gaps. Here we use inelastic neutron scattering to reveal a sharp resonance at E=7 meV in SC NaFe$_{0.935}$Co$_{0.045}$As ($T_c = 18$ K). On warming towards $T_c$, the mode energy hardly softens while its energy width increases rapidly. By comparing with calculated spin-excitations spectra within the $s^{\pm}$ and $s^{++}$-pairing symmetries, we conclude that the ground-state resonance in NaFe$_{0.935}$Co$_{0.045}$As is only consistent with the $s^{\pm}$-pairing, and is inconsistent with the $s^{++}$-pairing symmetry.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2013

Uniaxial pressure effect on structural and magnetic phase transitions in NaFeAs and its comparison with as-grown and annealed BaFe$_2$As$_2$

We use neutron scattering to study the effect of uniaxial pressure on the tetragonal-to-orthorhombic structural ($T_s$) and paramagnetic-to-antiferromagnetic ($T_N$) phase transitions in NaFeAs and compare the outcome with similar measurements on as-grown and annealed BaFe$_2$As$_2$. In previous work on as-grown BaFe$_2$As$_2$, uniaxial pressure necessary to detwin the sample was found to induce a significant increase in zero pressure $T_N$ and $T_s$. However, we find that similar uniaxial pressure used to detwin NaFeAs and annealed BaFe$_2$As$_2$ has a very small effect on their $T_N$ and $T_s$.Since transport measurements on these samples still reveal resistivity anisotropy above $T_N$ and $T_s$, we conclude that such anisotropy cannot be due to uniaxial strain induced $T_N$ and $T_s$ shifts, but must arise from intrinsic electronic anisotropy in these materials.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2013

A magnetic origin for high temperature superconductivity in iron pnictides

In conventional Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) superconductors, superconductivity occurs when electrons form coherent Cooper pairs below the superconducting transition temperature Tc. Although the kinetic energy of paired electrons increases in the superconducting state relative to the normal state, the reduction in the ion lattice energy is sufficient to give the superconducting condensation energy. For iron pnictide superconductors derived from electron or hole doping of their antiferromagnetic (AF) parent compounds, the microscopic origin for supercnductivity is unclear. Here we use neutron scattering to show that high-Tc superconductivity only occurs for iron pnictides with low-energy itinerant electron-spin excitation coupling and high energy spin excitations. Since our absolute spin susceptibility measurements for optimally hole-doped iron pnictide reveal that the change in magnetic exchange energy below and above Tc can account for the superconducting condensation energy, we conclude that the presence of both high-energy spin excitations giving rise to a large magnetic exchange coupling J and low-energy spin excitations coupled to the itinerant electrons is essential for high-Tc superconductivity in iron pnictides.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2013

Magnetic anisotropy in hole-doped superconducting Ba 0.67K 0.33Fe 2As2 probed by polarized inelastic neutron scattering

We use polarized inelastic neutron scattering (INS) to study spin excitations of optimally hole-doped superconductor Ba$_{0.67}$K$_{0.33}$Fe$_2$As$_{2}$ ($T_c=38$ K). In the normal state, the imaginary part of the dynamic susceptibility, $χ^{\prime\prime}(Q,ω)$, shows magnetic anisotropy for energies below $\sim$7 meV with c-axis polarized spin excitations larger than that of the in-plane component. Upon entering into the superconducting state, previous unpolarized INS experiments have shown that spin gaps at $\sim$5 and 0.75 meV open at wave vectors $Q=(0.5,0.5,0)$ and $(0.5,0.5,1)$, respectively, with a broad neutron spin resonance at $E_r=15$ meV. Our neutron polarization analysis reveals that the large difference in spin gaps is purely due to different spin gaps in the c-axis and in-plane polarized spin excitations, resulting resonance with different energy widths for the c-axis and in-plane spin excitations. The observation of spin anisotropy in both opitmally electron and hole-doped BaFe$_2$As$_2$ is due to their proximity to the AF ordered BaFe$_2$As$_2$ where spin anisotropy exists below $T_N$.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2013

Persistent high-energy spin excitations in iron pnictide superconductors

Motivated by the premise that superconductivity in iron-based superconductors is unconventional and mediated by spin fluctuations, an intense research effort has been focused on characterizing the spin excitation spectrum in the magnetically ordered parent phases of the Fe-pnictides2,3 and - chalcogenides4. For these undoped materials it is well-established that the spin excitation spectrum consists of a sharp, highly dispersive magnon spanning an energy range of up to 200 meV (ref. 3). The fate of these high-energy magnetic modes upon sizable doping is hitherto unresolved. Using resonant inelastic x-ray scattering we show that optimally doped superconducting Ba0.6K0.4Fe2As2 retains well defined, dispersive high-energy modes of magnetic origin. These paramagnon modes are softer than, though as intense as, the magnon of undoped antiferromagnetic BaFe2As2. The persistence of spin excitations well into the superconducting phase suggests that, if spin fluctuations are responsible for superconducting pairing, they originate from a distinctly correlated spin-state. This connects Fe-pnictide superconductors to the high-Tc cuprates, for which in spite of fundamental differences in the electronic structure, similar paramagnon modes are present5.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2012

Strong-Coupling Superconductivity in NaFe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$As: the Eliashberg Theory and Beyond

We study the normal-state and superconducting properties of NaFe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$As system by specific heat measurements. Both the normal-state Sommerfeld coefficient and superconducting condensation energy are strongly suppressed in the underdoped and heavily overdoped samples. The low-temperature electronic specific heat can be well fitted by either an one-gap or a two-gap BCS-type function for all the superconducting samples. The ratio $γ_NT_c^2/H_c^2(0)$ can nicely associate the neutron spin resonance as the bosons in the standard Eliashberg model. However, the value of $ΔC/T_cγ_N$ near optimal doping is larger than the maximum value the model can obtain. Our results suggest that the high-$T_c$ superconductivity in the Fe-based superconductors may be understood within the framework of boson-exchange mechanism but significant modification may be needed to account for the finite-temperature properties.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2012

Anisotropic resistivity of Na$_{1-δ}$Fe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$As

Temperature-dependent resistivity is studied in single crystals of iron-arsenide superconductor Na$_{1-δ}$Fe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$As for electrical current directions along, $ρ_a (T)$, and transverse, $ρ_c (T)$, to the Fe-As layers. Doping with Co increases stability of this compound to reaction with the environment and suppresses numerous features in both $ρ_a(T)$ and $ρ_c(T)$ compared to the stoichiometric NaFeAs. Evolution of $ρ_a (T)$ with $x$ follows a universal trend observed in other pnictide superconductors, exhibiting a $T$-linear temperature dependence close to the optimal doping and development of $T^2$ dependence upon further doping. $ρ_c (T)$ in parent compound shows a non - monotonic behavior with a crossover from non-metallic resistivity increase on cooling from room temperature down to $\sim$ 80 K to a metallic decrease below this temperature. Both $ρ_a (T)$ and $ρ_c (T)$ show several correlated crossover - like features at $T>$ 80 K. Despite a general trend towards more metallic behavior of inter - plane resistivity in Co-doped samples, the temperature of the crossover from insulating to metallic behavior (80 K) does not change much with doping.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2012

Temperature dependence of the resonance and low energy spin excitations in superconducting FeTe$_{0.6}$Se$_{0.4}$

We use inelastic neutron scattering to study the temperature dependence of the low-energy spin excitations in single crystals of superconducting FeTe$_{0.6}$Se$_{0.4}$ ($T_c=14$ K). In the low-temperature superconducting state, the imaginary part of the dynamic susceptibility at the electron and hole Fermi surfaces nesting wave vector $Q=(0.5,0.5)$, $χ^{\prime\prime}(Q,ω)$, has a small spin gap, a two-dimensional neutron spin resonance above the spin gap, and increases linearly with increasing $\hbarω$ for energies above the resonance. While the intensity of the resonance decreases like an order parameter with increasing temperature and disappears at temperature slightly above $T_c$, the energy of the mode is weakly temperature dependent and vanishes concurrently above $T_c$. This suggests that in spite of its similarities with the resonance in electron-doped superconducting BaFe$_{2-x}$(Co,Ni)$_x$As$_2$, the mode in FeTe$_{0.6}$Se$_{0.4}$ is not directly associated with the superconducting electronic gap.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Neutron Scattering Studies of spin excitations in hole-doped Ba0.67K0.33Fe2As2 superconductor

We report inelastic neutron scattering experiments on single crystals of superconducting Ba0.67K0.33Fe2As2 (Tc = 38 K). In addition to confirming the resonance previously found in powder samples, we find that spin excitations in the normal state form longitudinally elongated ellipses along the QAFM direction in momentum space, consistent with density functional theory predictions. On cooling below Tc, while the resonance preserves its momentum anisotropy as expected, spin excitations at energies below the resonance become essentially isotropic in the in-plane momentum space and dramatically increase their correlation length. These results suggest that the superconducting gap structures in Ba0.67Ka0.33Fe2As2 are more complicated than those suggested from angle resolved photoemission experiments.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Evolution of normal and superconducting properties of single crystals of Na$_{1-δ}$FeAs upon interaction with environment

Iron-arsenide superconductor Na$_{1-δ}$FeAs is highly reactive with the environment. Due to the high mobility of Na ions, this reaction affects the entire bulk of the crystals and leads an to effective stoichiometry change. Here we use this effect to study the doping evolution of normal and superconducting properties of \emph{the same} single crystals. Controlled reaction with air increases the superconducting transition temperature, $T_c$, from the initial value of 12 K to 27 K as probed by transport and magnetic measurements. Similar effects are observed in samples reacted with Apiezon N-grease, which slows down the reaction rate and results in more homogeneous samples. In both cases the temperature dependent resistivity, $ρ_a(T)$, shows a dramatic change with exposure time. In freshly prepared samples, $ρ_a(T)$ reveals clear features at the tetragonal-to-orthorhombic ($T_s$ $\approx$ 60 K) and antiferromagnetic ($T_m$=45 K) transitions and superconductivity with onset $T_{c,ons}$=16 K and offset $T_{c,off}$=12 K. The exposed samples show $T-$linear variation of $ρ_a(T)$ above $T_c,ons$=30 K ($T_{c,off}$=26 K), suggesting bulk character of the observed doping evolution and implying the existence of a quantum critical point at the optimal doping. The resistivity for different doping levels is affected below $\sim$200 K suggesting the existence of a characteristic energy scale that terminates the $T-$linear regime, which could be identified with a pseudogap.

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