arXiv subjects

Georg Knebel

Publications and source records attributed to Georg Knebel.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2022

First Observation of de Haas-van Alphen Effect and Fermi Surfaces in Unconventional Superconductor UTe2

We report the first observation of the de Haas-van Alphen (dHvA) effect in the novel spin-triplet superconductor UTe2 using high quality single crystals with the high residual resistivity ratio (RRR) over 200. The dHvA frequencies, named alpha and beta, are detected for the field directions between c and a-axes. The frequency of branch beta increases rapidly with the field angle tilted from c to a-axis, while branch alpha splits, owing to the maximal and minimal cross-sectional areas from the same Fermi surface. Both dHvA branches, alpha and beta reveal two kinds of cylindrical Fermi surfaces with a strong corrugation at least for branch alpha. The angular dependence of the dHvA frequencies is in very good agreement with that calculated by the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) method taking into account the on-site Coulomb repulsion of U = 2 eV, indicating the main Fermi surfaces are experimentally detected. The detected cyclotron effective masses are large in the range from 32 to 57 m0 . They are approximately 10-20 times lager than the corresponding band masses, consistent with the mass enhancement obtained from the Sommerfeld coefficient and the calculated density of states at the Fermi level. The local density approximation (LDA) calculations of ThTe2 assuming U4+ with the 5f^2 localized model are in less agreement with our experimental results, in spite of the prediction for two cylindrical Fermi surfaces, suggesting a mixed valence states of U4+ and U3+ in UTe2.

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arXiv2021

Magnetic Properties under Pressure in Novel Spin-Triplet Superconductor UTe2

We report the magnetic susceptibility and the magnetization under pressures up to 1.7GPa above the critical pressure, Pc ~ 1.5GPa, for H // a, b, c-axes in the novel spin triplet superconductor UTe2. The anisotropic magnetic susceptibility at low pressure with the easy magnetization a-axis changes to the quasi-isotropic behavior at high pressure, revealing a rapid suppression of the susceptibility for a-axis, and a gradual increase of the susceptibility for the b-axis. At 1.7GPa above Pc, magnetic anomalies are detected at T_MO ~ 3K and T_WMO ~ 10K. The former anomaly corresponds to long-range magnetic order, most likely antiferromagnetism, while the latter shows a broad anomaly, which is probably due to the development of short range order. The unusual decrease and increase of the susceptibility below T_WMO for H // a and b-axes, respectively, indicate the complex magnetic properties at low temperatures above Pc. This is related to the interplay between multiple fluctuations dominated by antiferromagnetism, ferroamgnetism, valence and Fermi surface instabilities.

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arXiv2021

Field-Induced Superconductivity near the Superconducting Critical Pressure in UTe2

We report the magnetoresistance in the novel spin-triplet superconductor UTe2 under pressure close to the critical pressure Pc, where the superconducting phase terminates, for field along the three a, b and c-axes in the orthorhombic structure. The superconducting phase for H // a-axis just below Pc shows a field-reentrant behavior due to the competition with the emergence of magnetic order at low fields. The upper critical field Hc2 for H // c-axis shows a quasi-vertical increase in the H-T phase diagram just below Pc, indicating that superconductivity is reinforced by the strong fluctuations which persist even at high fields above 20T. Increasing pressure leads to the disappearance of superconductivity at zero field with the emergence of magnetic order. Surprisingly, field-induced superconductivity is observed at high fields, where a spin-polarized state is realized due to the suppression of the magnetic ordered phases; the spin-polarized state is favorable for superconductivity, whereas the magnetic ordered phase at low field seems to be unfavorable. The huge Hc2 in the spin-polarized state seems to imply a spin-triplet state. Contrary to the a- and c-axes, no field-reinforcement of superconductivity occurs for magnetic field along the b-axis. We compare the results with the field-reentrant superconductivity above the metamagnetic field, Hm for the field direction tilted by about 30 deg. from b to c-axis at ambient pressure as well as the field-reentrant (-reinforced) superconductivity in ferromagnetic superconductors, URhGe and UCoGe.

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arXiv2020

Multiple Superconducting Phases and Unusual Enhancement of the Upper Critical Field in UTe2

We performed AC calorimetry and magnetoresistance measurements under pressure for H || a-axis (easy-magnetization axis) in the novel heavy-fermion superconductor UTe2. Thanks to the thermodynamic information, multiple superconducting phases have been revealed under pressure and magnetic field. The (H,T) phase diagram of superconductivity under pressure displays an abrupt increase of the upper critical field (Hc2) at low temperature and in the high field region, and a strong convex curvature of Hc2 at high temperature. This behavior of Hc2 and the multiple superconducting phases require a state for the superconducting order parameter more complex than a spin-triplet equal spin pairing. Above the superconducting critical pressure, Pc, we find strong indications that the possible magnetic order is closer to antiferromagnetism than to ferromagnetism.

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arXiv2020

Evidence of Fermi-Surface Reconstruction at the Metamagnetic Transition of the Strongly Correlated Superconductor UTe2

Thermoelectric power ($S$) and Hall effect ($R_\mathrm{H}$) measurements on the paramagnetic superconductor UTe$_2$ with magnetic field applied along the hard magnetization $b$-axis are reported. The first order nature of the metamagnetic transition at $H_\mathrm{m}=H^b_\mathrm{c2}=35$~T leads to drastic consequences on $S$ and $R_\mathrm{H}$. In contrast to the field dependence of the specific heat in the normal state through $H_\mathrm{m}$, $S(H)$ is not symmetric with respect to $H_\mathrm{m}$. This implies a strong interplay between ferromagnetic (FM) fluctuations and a Fermi-surface reconstruction at $H_\mathrm{m}$. $R_\mathrm{H}$ is very well described by incoherent skew scattering above the coherence temperature $T_\mathrm{m}$ corresponding roughly to the temperature of the maximum in the susceptibility $T_{χ_\mathrm{max}}$ and coherent skew scattering at lower temperatures. The discontinuous field dependence of both, $S(H)$ and the ordinary Hall coefficient $R_0$, at $H_\mathrm{m}$ and at low temperature, provides evidence of a change in the band structure at the Fermi level.

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arXiv2020

Anisotropy of the Upper Critical Field in the Heavy-Fermion Superconductor UTe2 under Pressure

We studied the anisotropy of the superconducting upper critical field $H_{\rm c2}$ in the heavy-fermion superconductor UTe$_2$ under hydrostatic pressure by magnetoresistivity measurements. In agreement with previous experiments we confirm that superconductivity disappears near a critical pressure $p_{\rm c} \approx 1.5$~GPa, and a magnetically ordered state appears. The unusual $H_{\rm c2}(T)$ at low temperatures for $H \parallel a$ suggests that the multiple superconducting phases which appear under pressure have quite different $H_{\rm c2}$. For a field applied along the hard magnetization $b$ axis $H_{\rm c2} (0)$ is glued to the metamagnetic transition $H_{\rm m}$ which is suppressed near $p_{\rm c}$. The suppression of $H_{\rm m}$ with pressure follows the decrease of temperature $T_χ^{\rm max}$, at the maximum in the susceptibility along $b$. The strong reinforcement of $H_{\rm c2}$ at ambient pressure for $H \parallel b$ above 16~T is rapidly suppressed under pressure due to the increase of $T_{\rm sc}$ and the decrease of $H_{\rm m}$. The change in the hierarchy of the anisotropy of $H_{\rm c2}(0)$ on approaching $p_{\rm c}$ points out that the $c$ axis becomes the hard magnetization axis.

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arXiv2020

Structural, magnetic and insulator-to-metal transitions under pressure in the GaV4S8 Mott insulator: A rich phase diagram up to 14.7 GPa

In addition to its promising potential for applications, GaV4S8 shows very interesting physical properties with temperature and magnetic field. These properties can be tuned by applying hydrostatic pressure in order to reveal and understand the physics of these materials. Not only pressure induces an insulator-to-metal transition in GaV4S8 but it also has an interesting effect on the structural and magnetic transitions. Using a combination of AC calorimetry, capacitance, and resistivity measurements under pressure, we determine the evolution of the structural and magnetic transitions with pressure and thus establish the T-P phase diagram of GaV4S8. To detect the insulator-to-metal transition, we use optical conductivity and DC resistivity measurements and we follow the evolution of the Mott gap under pressure. The structural transition temperature increases with pressure and a second transition appears above 6 GPa indicating a possible new phase with a very small gap. Pressure has surprisingly a very weak effect on the ferromagnetic transition that persists even very close to the IMT that occurs at around 14 GPa, implying that the metallic state may also be magnetic.

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arXiv2020

Spin-Triplet Superconductivity in UTe2 and Ferromagnetic Superconductors

The spin-triplet state is most likely realized in uranium ferromagnetic superconductors, UGe2, URhGe, UCoGe. The microscopic coexistence of ferromagnetism and superconductivity means that the Cooper pair should be realized under the strong internal field due the ferromagnetism, leading to the spin-triplet state with equal spin pairing. The field-reinforced superconductivity, which is observed in all three materials when the ferromagnetic fluctuations are enhanced, is one of the strong evidences for the spin-triplet superconductivity. We present here the results of a newly discovered spin-triplet superconductor, UTe2, and compare those with the results of ferromagnetic superconductors. Although no magnetic order is found in UTe2, there are similarities between UTe2 and ferromagnetic superconductors. For example, the huge upper critical field exceeding the Pauli limit and the field-reentrant superconductivity for H || b-axis are observed in UTe2, URhGe and UCoGe. We also show the specific heat results on UTe2 in different quality samples, focusing on the residual density of states in the superconducting phase.

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arXiv2019

Transport Spectroscopy of the Field Induced Cascade of Lifshitz Transitions in YbRh2Si2

A series of strong anomalies in the thermoelectric power is observed in the heavy fermion compound YbRh$_2$Si$_2$ under the effect of magnetic field varying in the range from 9.5~T to 13~T. We identify these features with a sequence of topological transformations of the sophisticated Fermi surface of this compound, namely a cascade of Lifshitz topological transitions. In order to undoubtedly attribute these anomalies to the specific topological changes of the Fermi surface, we employ the renormalized band method. Basing on its results we suggest a simplified model consisting of the large peripheral Fermi surface sheet and the number of continuously appearing (disappearing) small "voids" or "necks". We account for the multiple electron scattering processes between various components of the Fermi surface, calculate the corresponding scattering times, and, finally, find the magnetic field dependence of the Seebeck coefficient. The obtained analytical expression reproduces reasonably the observed positions of the maxima and minima as well as the overall line shapes and allows us to identify the character of corresponding topological transformations.

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arXiv2019

Fermi-Surface Instabilities in the Heavy-Fermion Superconductor UTe2

We present different transport measurements up to fields of 29~T in the recently discovered heavy-fermion superconductor UTe$_{2}$ with magnetic field $H$ applied along the easy magnetization a-axis of the body-centered orthorhombic structure. The thermoelectric power varies linearly with temperature above the superconducting transition, $T_{SC}= 1.5$ K, indicating that superconductivity develops in a Fermi liquid regime. As a function of field the thermolelectric power shows successive anomalies which are attributed to field-induced Fermi surface instabilities. These Fermi-surface instabilities appear at critical values of the magnetic polarization. Remarkably, the lowest magnetic field instability for $H\parallel a$ occurs for the same critical value of the magnetization (0.4 $μ_B$) than the first order metamagnetic transition at 35~T for field applied along the $b$-axis. The estimated number of charge carriers at low temperature reveals a metallic ground state distinct from LDA calculations indicating that strong electronic correlations are a major issue in this compound.

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arXiv2019

Field-reentrant superconductivity close to a metamagnetic transition in the heavy-fermion superconductor UTe$_2$

We present a study of the upper critical field of the newly discovered heavy fermion superconductor UTe$_2$ by magnetoresistivity measurements in pulsed magnetic fields up to 60~T and static magnetic fields up to 35~T. We show that superconductivity survives up to the metamagnetic transition at $H_{\rm m} \approx 35$~T at low temperature. Above $H_{\rm m}$ superconductivity is suppressed. At higher temperature superconductivity is enhanced under magnetic field leading to reentrance of superconductivity or an almost temperature independent increase of $H_{\rm c2}$. By studying the angular dependence of the upper critical field close to the $b$ axis (hard magnetization axis) we show that the maximum of the reentrant superconductivity temperature is depinned from the metamagnetic field. A key ingredient for the field-reinforcement of superconductivity on approaching $H_{\rm m}$ appears to be an immediate interplay with magnetic fluctuations and a possible Fermi-surface reconstruction.

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arXiv2019

Magnetic-Field-Induced Phenomena in the Paramagnetic Superconductor UTe$_{2}$

We present magnetoresistivity measurements on the heavy-fermion superconductor UTe$_{2}$ in pulsed magnetic fields $μ_0H$ up to 68~T and temperatures $T$ from 1.4 to 80~K. Magnetic fields applied along the three crystallographic directions $\mathbf{a}$ (easy magnetic axis), $\mathbf{b}$, and $\mathbf{c}$ (hard magnetic axes), are found to induce different phenomena - depending on the field direction - beyond the low-field suppression of the superconducting state. For $\mathbf{H}\parallel\mathbf{a}$, a broad anomaly in the resistivity is observed at $μ_0H^*\simeq10$~T and $T = 1.4$~K. For $\mathbf{H}\parallel\mathbf{c}$, no magnetic transition nor crossover are observed. For $\mathbf{H}\parallel\mathbf{b}$, a sharp first-order-like step in the resistivity indicates a metamagnetic transition at the field $μ_0H_m \simeq 35$~T. When the temperature is raised signature of first-order metamagnetism is observed up to a critical endpoint at $T_{CEP}\simeq7$~K. At higher temperatures a crossover persists up to 28~K, i.e., below the temperature $T_χ^{max} = 35$~K where the magnetic susceptibility is maximal. A sharp maximum in the Fermi-liquid quadratic coefficient $A$ of the low-temperature resistivity is found at $H_m$. It indicates an enhanced effective mass associated with critical magnetic fluctuations, possibly coupled with a Fermi surface instability. Similarly to the URhGe case, we show that UTe$_{2}$ is a candidate for field-induced reentrant superconductivity in the proximity of $H_m$.

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arXiv2019

Fermi-Surface Selective Determination of the $\mathbf{g}$-Factor Anisotropy in URu$_2$Si$_2$

The $g$-factor anisotropy of the heavy quasiparticles in the hidden order state of URu$_2$Si$_2$ has been determined from the superconducting upper critical field and microscopically from Shubnikov-de Haas (SdH) oscillations. We present a detailed analysis of the $g$-factor for the $α$, $β$ and $γ$ Fermi-surface pockets. Our results suggest a strong $g$-factor anisotropy between the $c$ axis and the basal plane for all observed Fermi surface pockets. The observed anisotropy of the $g$-factor from the quantum oscillations is in good agreement with the anisotropy of the superconducting upper critical field at low temperatures, which is strongly limited by the paramagnetic pair breaking along the easy magnetization axis $c$. However, the anisotropy of the initial slope of the upper critical field near $T_c$ cannot be explained by the anisotropy of the effective masses and Fermi velocities derived from quantum oscillations.

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arXiv2019

Unconventional Superconductivity in Heavy Fermion UTe2

We grew single crystals of the recently discovered heavy fermion superconductor UTe2, and measured the resistivity, specific heat and magnetoresistance. Superconductivity (SC) was clearly detected at Tsc=1.65K as sharp drop of the resistivity in a high quality sample of RRR=35. The specific heat shows a large jump at Tsc indicating strong coupling. The large Sommerfeld coefficient, 117mJ K-2mol-1 extrapolated in the normal state and the temperature dependence of C/T below Tsc are the signature of unconventional SC. The discrepancy in the entropy balance at Tsc between SC and normal states points out that hidden features must occur. Surprisingly, a large residual value of the Sommerfeld coefficient seems quite robust (gamma_0/gamma ~ 0.5). The large upper critical field Hc2 along the three principal axes favors spin-triplet SC. For H // b-axis, our experiments do not reproduce the huge upturn of Hc2 reported previously. This discrepancy may reflect that Hc2 is very sensitive to the sample quality. A new perspective in UTe2 is the proximity of a Kondo semiconducting phase predicted by the LDA band structure calculations.

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arXiv2017

Dimensionality driven enhancement of ferromagnetic superconductivity in URhGe

In most unconventional superconductors, like the high-Tc cuprates, iron pnictides, or heavy fermion systems, superconductivity emerges in the proximity of an electronic instability. Identifying unambiguously the pairing mechanism remains nevertheless an enormous challenge. Among these systems, the orthorhombic uranium ferromagnetic superconductors have a unique position, notably because magnetic fields couple directly to ferromagnetic order, leading to the fascinating discovery of the re-emergence of superconductivity in URhGe at high field. Here we show that uniaxial stress is a remarkable tool allowing fine-tuning of the pairing strength. With a relatively small stress, the superconducting phase diagram is spectacularly modified, with a merging of the low and high field superconducting states and a significant enhancement of superconductivity. The superconducting critical temperature increases both at zero field and under field, reaching 1K, more than twice higher than at ambient pressure. The enhancement of superconductivity is directly related to a change of the magnetic dimensionality with an increase of the transverse magnetic susceptibility, demonstrating that in addition to the Ising-type longitudinal ferromagnetic fluctuations, transverse magnetic fluctuations also play an important role in the superconducting pairing.

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arXiv2017

Fermi Surfaces in the Antiferromagnetic, Paramagnetic and Polarized Paramagnetic States of CeRh2Si2 Compared with Quantum Oscillation Experiments

The large quantum oscillations observed in the thermoelectric power in the antiferromagnetic (AF) state of the heavy-fermion compound CeRh2Si2 disappear suddenly when entering in the polarized paramagnetic (PPM) state at Hc=26.5 T, indicating an abrupt reconstruction of the Fermi surface. The electronic band structure was [LDA+U] for the AF state taking the correct magnetic structure into account, for the PPM state, and for the paramagnetic state (PM). Different Fermi surfaces were obtained for the AF, PM, and PPM states. Due to band folding, a large number of branches was expected and observed in the AF state. The LDA+U calculation was compared with the previous LDA calculations. Furthermore, we compared both calculations with previously published de Haas-van Alphen experiments. The better agreement with the LDA approach suggests that above the critical pressure pc CeRh2Si2 enters in a mixed-valence state. In the PPM state under a high magnetic field, the 4f contribution at the Fermi level EF drops significantly compared with that in the PM state, and the 4f electrons contribute only weakly to the Fermi surface in our approach.

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arXiv2017

Anisotropic B-T Phase Diagram of Non-Kramers System PrRh2Zn20

We have investigated the low temperature quadrupolar phenomena of the non-Kramers system PrRh2Zn20 under magnetic fields in the [100] and [110] directions. Our experiments reveal the B-T phase diagram of PrRh2Zn20 involving four electronic states regardless of the field direction, namely, a non-Fermi liquid (NFL) state, an antiferro-quadrupolar (AFQ) ordered state, a novel heavy-fermion (HF) state, and a field-induced singlet (FIS) state. In the wide range of the NFL state, the resistivity can be well scaled by a characteristic temperature, suggesting the realization of the quadrupole Kondo effect. The HF state exhibits a Fermi liquid behavior with a large A coefficient of the T^2 term in the resistivity, suggesting the formation of nontrivial heavy quasi-particles. The FIS state results from the considerable splitting of a non-Kramers doublet by a magnetic field. The phase diagram shows a large anisotropy with respect to the field direction. It is found that the anisotropy of the phase diagram can be explained in terms of that of the energy splitting of the non-Kramers doublet by a magnetic field. This indicates that the low temperature properties of PrRh2Zn20 are governed by the non-Kramers doublet, namely, quadrupole degrees of freedom. Since a similar phase diagram has been obtained for the related compound PrIr2Zn20, it is expected that the B-T phase diagram constructed in this work is universal throughout non-Kramers systems.

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arXiv2016

Lifshitz Transitions in the Ferromagnetic Superconductor UCoGe

We present high field magnetoresistance, Hall effect and thermopower measurements in the Ising-type ferromagnetic superconductor UCoGe. Magnetic field is applied along the easy magnetization $c$ axis of the orthorhombic crystal. In the different experimental probes we observed five successive anomalies at $H \approx 4$, 9, 12, 16, and 21~T. Magnetic quantum oscillations were detected both in resistivity and thermoelectric power. At most of the anomalies, significant changes of the oscillation frequencies and the effective masses have been observed indicating successive Fermi surface instabilities induced by the strong magnetic polarization under magnetic field.

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