arXiv subjects

Hai-Hu Wen

Publications and source records attributed to Hai-Hu Wen.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

arXiv2016

Superconductivity Induced by High Pressure in Weyl Semimetal TaP

Weyl semimetal defines a material with three dimensional Dirac cones which appear in pair due to the breaking of spatial inversion or time reversal symmetry. Superconductivity is the state of quantum condensation of paired electrons. Turning a Weyl semimetal into superconducting state is very important in having some unprecedented discoveries. In this work, by doing resistive measurements on a recently recognized Weyl semimetal TaP under pressure up to about 100 GPa, we observe superconductivity at about 70 GPa. The superconductivity retains when the pressure is released. The systematic evolutions of resistivity and magnetoresistance with pressure are well interpreted by the relative shift between the chemical potential and paired Weyl points. Calculations based on the density functional theory also illustrate the structure transition at about 70GPa, the phase at higher pressure may host superconductivity. Our discovery of superconductivity in TaP by pressure will stimulate further study on superconductivity in Weyl semimetals.

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arXiv2016

Pressure induced superconductivity in Bi single crystals

Measurements on resistivity and magnetic susceptibility have been carried out for Bi single crystals under pressures up to 10.5GPa. The temperature dependent resistivity shows a semimetallic behavior at ambient and low pressures (below about 1.6GPa). This is followed by an upturn of resistivity in low temperature region when the pressure is increased, which is explained as a semiconductor behavior. This feature gradually gets enhanced up to a pressure of about 2.52GPa. Then a non-monotonic temperature dependent resistivity appears upon further increasing pressure, which is accompanied by a strong suppression to the low temperature resistivity upturn. Simultaneously, a superconducting transition occurs at about 3.92K under a pressure of about 2.63GPa. With further increasing pressure, a second superconducting transition emerges at about 7K under about 2.8GPa. For these two superconducting states, the superconductivity induced magnetic screening volumes are quite large. As the pressure further increased to 8.1GPa, we observe the third superconducting transition at about 8.2K. The resistivity measurements under magnetic field allow us to determine the upper critical fields $μ_0 H_{c2}$ of the superconducting phases. The upper critical field for the phase with $T_c=3.92$K is extremely low. Based on the Werthamer-Helfand-Hohenberg (WHH) theory, the estimated value of $μ_0 H_{c2}$ for this phase is about 0.103T. While the upper critical field for the phase with $T_c$=7K is very high with a value of about 4.56T. Finally, we present a pressure dependent phase diagram of Bi single crystals. Our results reveal the interesting and rich physics in bismuth single crystals under high pressure.

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arXiv2016

Upper critical field and quantum oscillations in tetragonal superconducting FeS

The magnetoresistance and magnetic torque of FeS are measured in magnetic fields $B$ of up to 18 T down to a temperature of 0.03 K. The superconducting transition temperature is found to be $T_c$ = 4.1 K, and the anisotropy ratio of the upper critical field $B_{c2}$ at $T_c$ is estimated from the initial slopes to be $Γ(T_c)$ = 6.9. $B_{c2}(0)$ is estimated to be 2.2 and 0.36 T for $B \parallel ab$ and $c$, respectively. Quantum oscillations are observed in both the resistance and torque. Two frequencies $F$ = 0.15 and 0.20 kT are resolved and assigned to a quasi-two-dimensional Fermi surface cylinder. The carrier density and Sommerfeld coefficient associated with this cylinder are estimated to be 5.8 $\times$ 10$^{-3}$ carriers/Fe and 0.48 mJ/(K$^2$mol), respectively. Other Fermi surface pockets still remain to be found. Band-structure calculations are performed and compared to the experimental results.

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arXiv2016

Strong coupling superconductivity revealed by scanning tunneling microscope in tetragonal FeS

We investigate the electronic properties of the tetragonal FeS superconductor by using scanning tunneling microscope/spectroscopy. It is found that the typical tunneling spectrum on the top layer of sulfur can be nicely fitted with an anisotropic s-wave or a combination of two superconducting components in which one may have a highly anisotropic or nodal like superconducting gap. The fittings lead to the maximum superconducting gap $Δ_{max}\approx$ 0.90$\;$meV, which yields a ratio of 2$Δ_{max}/k_BT_c\approx$ 4.65. This value is larger than that of the predicted value 3.53 by the BCS theory in the weak coupling limit, indicating a strong coupling superconductivity. Two kinds of defects are observed on the surface, which can be assigned to the defects on the S sites (four-fold image) and Fe sites (dumbbell shape). Impurity induced resonance states are found only for the former defects and stay at zero-bias energy.

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arXiv2016

Superconductivity with two-fold symmetry in topological superconductor SrxBi2Se3

Topological superconductivity is the quantum condensate of paired electrons with an odd parity of the pairing function. One of the candidates is the triplet pairing superconductor derived from topological insulator Bi2Se3 by chemical doping. Theoretically it was predicted that a two-fold superconducting order parameter may exist in this kind of bulk topological superconductor. Earlier experiments by nuclear magnetic resonance and angle-resolved magnetocaloric measurements seem to support this picture. By using a Corbino-shape like electrode configuration, we measure the c-axis resistivity without the influence of the vortex motion and find clear evidence of two-fold superconductivity in the recently discovered topological superconductor SrxBi2Se3. The Laue diffraction measurements on these samples show that the maximum gap direction is either parallel or perpendicular to the main crystallographic axis.

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arXiv2016

Drive the Dirac Electrons into Cooper Pairs in SrxBi2Se3

Topological superconductor is a very interesting and frontier topic in condensed matter physics1. Despite the tremendous efforts in exploring the topological superconductivity, its presence is however still under heavy debates. The Dirac electrons are supposed to exist in a thin layer of the surface of a topological insulator. Due to the finite spin-orbital coupling, these electrons will have a spin-momentum locking effect. In this case, the superfluid with the spin singlet Cooper pairing is not completely comforted by the Dirac electrons. It thus remains unclear whether and how the Dirac electrons fall into Cooper pairing in an intrinsic superconductor with the topological surface states. In this work, we show the systematic study of scanning tunneling microscope/spectroscopy on the possible topological superconductor SrxBi2Se3. We first show that only the intercalated (or inserted), not the substituted Sr atoms can induce superconductivity. Then we show the full superconducting gaps without any abnormal in-gap density of states as expected theoretically for the bulk topological superconductivity. However, we find that the surface Dirac electrons will simultaneously condense into the superconducting state when the energy is smaller than the bulk superconducting gap. This vividly demonstrates how the surface Dirac electrons are driven into Cooper pairs.

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arXiv2016

Possible superconducting fluctuation and pseudogap state above $T_c$ in CsFe$_2$As$_2$

Resistive, magnetization, torque, specific heat and scanning tunneling microscopy measurements are carried out on the hole heavily doped CsFe$_2$As$_2$ single crystals. A characteristic temperature $T^*\sim13$ K, which is several times higher than the superconducting transition temperature $T_c=2.15$ K, is observed and possibly related to the superconducting fluctuation or the pseudogap state. A diamagnetic signal detected by torque measurements starts from the superconducting state, keeps finite and vanishes gradually until a temperature near $T^*$. Temperature dependent resistivity and specific heat also show kinks near $T^*$. An asymmetric gap-like feature with the energy of 8.4 meV and a symmetric superconducting related gap of 2.2 meV on the scanning tunneling spectra are detected, and these pseudogap-related features disappear at temperatures up to at least 9 K. These observations by different experimental tools suggest the possible existence of superconducting fluctuation or pseudogap state in the temperature range up to 4 - 6 times of $T_c$ in CsFe$_2$As$_2$.

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arXiv2016

Multi-band superconductivity and large anisotropy in FeS crystals

By using a hydrothermal method, we have successfully grown crystals of the newly discovered superconductor FeS, which has an isostructure of the iron based superconductor FeSe. The superconductivity appears at about 4.5K, as revealed by both resistive and magnetization measurements. It is found that the upper critical field is relatively low, with however an rather large anisotropy $Γ=[(dH_{c2}^{ab}/dT)/(dH_{c2}^{c}/dT)]_{T_c}\approx5.8$. A huge magnetoresistivity (290$\%$ at 9T and 10K, ${H}$ $\parallel$ c-axis) together with a non-linear behavior of Hall resistivity vs. external field are observed. A two-band model is applied to fit the magnetoresistance and non-linear transverse resistivity, yielding the basic parameters of the electron and hole bands.

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arXiv2016

Robust superconductivity and transport properties in (Li1-xFex)OHFeSe single crystals

The recently discovered (Li${_{1-x}}$Fe${_x}$)OHFeSe superconductor with $T_c$ about 40K provides a good platform for investigating the magnetization and electrical transport properties of FeSe-based superconductors. By using a hydrothermal ion-exchange method, we have successfully grown crystals of (Li${_{1-x}}$Fe${_x}$)OHFeSe. X-ray diffraction on the sample shows the single crystalline PbO-type structure with the c-axis preferential orientation. Magnetic susceptibility and resistive measurements show an onset superconducting transition at around ${T_c}$=38.3K. Using the magnetization hysteresis loops and Bean critical state model, a large critical current ${J_s}$ is observed in low temperature region. The critical current density is suppressed exponentially with increasing magnetic field. Temperature dependencies of resistivity under various currents and fields are measured, revealing a robust superconducting current density and bulk superconductivity.

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arXiv2015

Nodal Superconducting Gap in $β$-FeS

Low temperature specific heat has been measured in superconductor $β$-FeS with T$_c$ = 4.55 K. It is found that the low temperature electronic specific heat C$_e$/T can be fitted to a linear relation in the low temperature region, but fails to be described by an exponential relation as expected by an s-wave gap. We try fittings to the data with different gap structures and find that a model with one or two nodal gaps can fit the data. Under a magnetic field, the field induced specific heat $Δγ$=[C$_e$(H)-C$_e$(0)]/T shows the Volovik relation $Δγ_e(H)\propto \sqrt{H}$, suggesting the presence of nodal gap(s) in this material.

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arXiv2015

Observation of a van Hove singularity and implication for strong coupling induced Cooper pairing in KFe2As2

Scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS) and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) have been investigated on single crystal samples of KFe2As2. A van Hove singularity (vHs) has been directly observed just a few meV below the Fermi level E_F of superconducting KFe2As2, which locates in the middle of the principle axes of the first Brillouin zone. The majority of the density-of-states at E_F, mainly contributed by the proximity effect of the saddle point to E_F, is non-gapped in the superconducting state. Our observation of nodal behavior of the momentum area close to the vHs points, while providing consistent explanations to many exotic behaviours previously observed in this material, suggests Cooper pairing induced by a strong coupling mechanism.

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arXiv2015

The Josephson current in Fe-based superconducting junctions: theory and experiment

We present theory of dc Josephson effect in contacts between Fe-based and spin-singlet $s$-wave superconductors. The method is based on the calculation of temperature Green's function in the junction within the tight-binding model. We calculate the phase dependencies of the Josephson current for different orientations of the junction relative to the crystallographic axes of Fe-based superconductor. Further, we consider the dependence of the Josephson current on the thickness of an insulating layer and on temperature. Experimental data for PbIn/Ba$_{1-x}$K$_{x}$(FeAs)$_2$ point-contact Josephson junctions are consistent with theoretical predictions for $s_{\pm}$ symmetry of an order parameter in this material. The proposed method can be further applied to calculations of the dc Josephson current in contacts with other new unconventional multiorbital superconductors, such as $Sr_2RuO_4$ and superconducting topological insulator $Cu_xBi_2Se_3$.

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arXiv2015

Merging Dirac electrons and correlation effect in the heterostructured Bi2Te3/Fe1+dTe

The topological insulator and strong electronic correlation effect are two important subjects in the frontier studies of modern condensed matter physics. A topological insulator exhibits a unique pair of surface conduction bands with the Dirac dispersion albeit the bulk insulating behaviour. These surface states are protected by the topological order, and thus the spin and momentum of these surface electrons are locked together demonstrating the feature of time reversal invariance. On the other hand, the electronic correlation effect becomes the very base of many novel electronic states, such as high temperature superconductivity, giant magnetoresistance etc. Here we report the discovery of merging the two important components: Dirac electrons and the correlation effect in heterostructured Bi2Te3/Fe1+dTe. By measuring the scanning tunneling spectroscopy on Bi2Te3 thin films (a typical topological insulator) thicker than 6 quintuple layers on top of the Fe1+dTe single crystal (a parent phase of the iron based superconductors FeSe1-xTex), we observed the quantum oscillation of Landau levels of the Dirac electrons and the gapped feature at the Fermi energy due to the correlation effect of Fe1+dTe. Our observation challenges the ordinary understandings and must demonstrate some unexplored territory concerning the combination of topological insulator and strong correlation effect.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Scrutinizing the double superconducting gaps and strong coupling pairing in (Li1-xFexOH)FeSe

In the iron based superconductors, one of the on-going frontier studies is about the pairing mechanism. The recent interest concerns the high temperature superconductivity and its intimate reason in the monolayer FeSe thin films. The challenge here is how the double superconducting gaps seen by the scanning tunnelling spectroscopy (STS) associate however to only one set of Fermi pockets seen by the angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). The recently discovered (Li1-xFexOH)FeSe phase with Tc=40 K provides a good platform to check the fundamental problems. Here we report the STS study on the (Li1-xFexOH)FeSe single crystals. The STS spectrum clearly indicates the presence of double anisotropic gaps with maximum magnitudes of Delta_1=14.3 meV and Delta_2=8.6 meV, and mimics that of the monolayer FeSe thin film. Further analysis based on the quasiparticle interference (QPI) allows us to rule out the d-wave gap, and for the first time assign the larger (smaller) gap to the outer (inner) hybridized Fermi pockets associating with the dxy (dxz/dyz) orbitals, respectively. The huge value Delta_1/k_BT_c = 8.7 discovered here undoubtedly proves the strong coupling mechanism in the present superconducting system.

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arXiv2015

Raman-Scattering Detection of Nearly Degenerate $s$-Wave and $d$-Wave Pairing Channels in Iron-Based Ba$_{0.6}$K$_{0.4}$Fe$_2$As$_2$ and Rb$_{0.8}$Fe$_{1.6}$Se$_2$ Superconductors

We show that electronic Raman scattering affords a window into the essential properties of the pairing potential $V_{\mathbf{k},\mathbf{k^{\prime}}}$ of iron-based superconductors. In Ba$_{0.6}$K$_{0.4}$Fe$_2$As$_2$ we observe band dependent energy gaps along with excitonic Bardasis-Schrieffer modes characterizing, respectively, the dominant and subdominant pairing channel. The $d_{x^2-y^2}$ symmetry of all excitons allows us to identify the subdominant channel to originate from the interaction between the electron bands. Consequently, the dominant channel driving superconductivity results from the interaction between the electron and hole bands and has the full lattice symmetry. The results in Rb$_{0.8}$Fe$_{1.6}$Se$_2$ along with earlier ones in Ba(Fe$_{0.939}$Co$_{0.061}$)$_2$As$_2$ highlight the influence of the Fermi surface topology on the pairing interactions.

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arXiv2015

Magnetization relaxation, critical current density and vortex dynamics in a Ba$_{0.66}$K$_{0.32}$BiO$_{3+δ}$ single crystal

We have conducted extensive investigations on the magnetization and its dynamical relaxation on a Ba$_{0.66}$K$_{0.32}$BiO$_{3+δ}$ single crystal. It is found that the magnetization relaxation rate is rather weak compared with that in the cuprate superconductors, indicating a higher collective vortex pinning potential (or activation energy), although the intrinsic pinning potential $U_\mathrm{c}$ is weaker. Detailed analysis leads to the following discoveries: (1) A second-peak effect on the magnetization-hysteresis-loop was observed in a very wide temperature region, ranging from 2K to 24K. Its general behavior looks like that in YBa$_2$Cu$_3$O$_7$; (2) Associated with the second peak effect, the magnetization relaxation rate is inversely related to the transient superconducting current density $J_\mathrm{s}$ revealing a quite general and similar mechanism for the second peak effect in many high temperature superconductors; (3) A detailed analysis based on the collective creep model reveals a large glassy exponent $μ$ and a small intrinsic pinning potential $U_\mathrm{c}$; (4) Investigation on the volume pinning force density shows that the data can be scaled to the formula $F_{p}\propto b^p(1-b)^q$ with $p=2.79$ and $q=3.14$, here $b$ is the reduced magnetic field to the irreversible magnetic field. The maximum normalized pinning force density appears near $b\approx0.47$. Finally, a vortex phase diagram is drawn for showing the phase transitions or crossovers between different vortex phases.

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arXiv2015

Fully gapped superconductivity in In-doped topological crystalline insulator Pb$_{0.5}$Sn$_{0.5}$Te

Superconductors derived from topological insulators and topological crystalline insulators by doping have long been considered to be candidates as topological superconductors. Pb$_{0.5}$Sn$_{0.5}$Te is a topological crystalline insulator with mirror symmetry protected surface states on (001), (011) and (111) oriented surfaces. The superconductor (Pb$_{0.5}$Sn$_{0.5}$)$_{0.7}$In$_{0.3}$Te is induced by In doping in Pb$_{0.5}$Sn$_{0.5}$Te, and is thought to be a topological superconductor. Here we report the first scanning tunneling spectroscopy measurement of the superconducting state as well as the superconducting energy gap in (Pb$_{0.5}$Sn$_{0.5}$)$_{0.7}$In$_{0.3}$Te on a (001)-oriented surface. The spectrum can be well fitted by an anisotropic $s$-wave gap function of $Δ=0.72+0.18\cos4θ$ meV using Dynes model. The results show that the quasi-particle density of states seem to be fully gapped without any in-gap states, in contradiction with the expectation of a topological superconductor.

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arXiv2015

Pressure Induced Enhancement of Superconductivity in LaRu2P2

To explore new superconductors beyond the copper-based and iron-based systems is very important. The Ru element locates just below the Fe in the periodic table and behaves like the Fe in many ways. One of the common thread to induce high temperature superconductivity is to introduce moderate correlation into the system. In this paper, we report the significant enhancement of superconducting transition temperature from 3.84K to 5.77K by using a pressure only of 1.74 GPa in LaRu2P2 which has an iso-structure of the iron-based 122 superconductors. The ab-initio calculation shows that the superconductivity in LaRu2P2 at ambient pressure can be explained by the McMillan's theory with strong electron-phonon coupling. However, it is difficult to interpret the significant enhancement of Tc versus pressure within this picture. Detailed analysis of the pressure induced evolution of resistivity and upper critical field Hc2(T) reveals that the increases of Tc with pressure may be accompanied by the involvement of extra electronic correlation effect. This suggests that the Ru-based system has some commonality as the Fe-based superconductors.

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