arXiv subjects

I. R. Fisher

Publications and source records attributed to I. R. Fisher.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2012

Unconventional Josephson Effect in Hybrid Superconductor-Topological Insulator Devices

We report on transport properties of Josephson junctions in hybrid superconducting-topological insulator devices, which show two striking departures from the common Josephson junction behavior: a characteristic energy that scales inversely with the width of the junction, and a low characteristic magnetic field for suppressing supercurrent. To explain these effects, we propose a phenomenological model which expands on the existing theory for topological insulator Josephson junctions.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2012

Magneto-elastically coupled structural, magnetic and superconducting order parameters in BaFe$_{2}$(As$_{1-x}$P$_{x}$)$_{2}$

We measure the transport properties of mechanically strained single crystals of BaFe$_{2}$(As$_{1-x}$P$_{x}$)$_{2}$ over a wide range of $x$. The Néel transition is extremely sensitive to stress and this sensitivity increases as optimal doping is approached, even though the transition itself is strongly suppressed. Furthermore, we observe significant changes in the superconducting transition temperature with applied strain, which mirror changes as a function of the composition $x$. These experiments are a direct illustration of the intimate coupling between different degrees of freedom in iron-based superconductors, revealing the importance of magneto-elastic coupling to the magnetic and superconducting transition temperatures.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2012

Principles of crystal growth of intermetallic and oxide compounds from molten solutions

We present a tutorial on the principles of crystal growth of intermetallic and oxide compounds from molten solutions, with an emphasis on the fundamental principles governing the underlying phase equilibria and phase diagrams of multicomponent systems.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2012

Field-Tuned Superconductor-Insulator Transition in BaPb1-xBixO3

BaPb$_{1-x}$Bi$_x$O$_3$ is found to exhibit a field-tuned superconductor to insulator transition for Bi compositions 0.24 $\leq x \leq$ 0.29. The magnetoresistance of optimally doped samples manifests a temperature-independent crossing point and scaling of the form $ρ(T,H)=ρ_c F(|H-H_{c}|T^{-1/zν})$, where $H_c$ is the field determined by the temperature-independent crossing point, and $zν$ = 0.69 $\pm$ 0.03. High resolution transmission electron microscopy measurements reveal a complex intergrown nanostructure comprising tetragonal and orthorhombic polymorphs. Data are analyzed in terms of both a classical effective medium theory and a field-tuned quantum phase transition, neither of which provides a completely satisfactory explanation for this remarkable phenomenology.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2012

Resonant Enhancement of Charge Density Wave Diffraction in the Rare-Earth Tritellurides

We performed resonant soft X-ray diffraction on known charge density wave (CDW) compounds, rare earth tri-tellurides. Near the $M_5$ (3d - 4f) absorption edge of rare earth ions, an intense diffraction peak is detected at a wavevector identical to that of CDW state hosted on Te$_2$ planes, indicating a CDW-induced modulation on the rare earth ions. Surprisingly, the temperature dependence of the diffraction peak intensity demonstrates an exponential increase at low temperatures, vastly different than that of the CDW order parameter. Assuming 4f multiplet splitting due to the CDW states,we present a model to calculate X-ray absorption spectrum and resonant profile of the diffraction peak, agreeing well with experimental observations. Our results demonstrate a situation where the temperature dependence of resonant X-ray diffraction peak intensity is not directly related to the intrinsic behavior of the order parameter associated with the electronic order, but is dominated by the thermal occupancy of the valence states.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2012

Susceptibility anisotropy in an iron arsenide superconductor revealed by x-ray diffraction in pulsed magnetic fields

In addition to unconventional high-Tc superconductivity, the iron arsenides exhibit strong magnetoelastic coupling and a notable electronic anisotropy within the a-b plane. We relate these properties by studying underdoped Ba(Fe{1-x}Co{x})2As2 by x-ray diffraction in pulsed magnetic fields up to 27.5 Tesla. We exploit magnetic detwinning effects to demonstrate anisotropy in the in-plane susceptibility, which develops at the structural phase transition despite the absence of magnetic order. The degree of detwinning increases smoothly with decreasing temperature, and a single- domain condition is realized over a range of field and temperature. At low temperatures we observe an activated behavior, with a large hysteretic remnant effect. Detwinning was not observed within the superconducting phase for accessible magnetic fields.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2012

Structure and Magnetic Properties of the Pyrochlore Iridate Y2Ir2O7

Neutron powder diffraction and inelastic measurements were performed examining the 5d pyrochlore Y$_2$Ir$_2$O$_7$. Temperature dependent measurements were performed between 3.4 K and 290 K, spanning the magnetic transition at 155 K. No sign of any structural or disorder induced phase transition was observed over the entire temperature range. In addition, no sign of magnetic long-range order was observed to within the sensitivity of the instrumentation. These measurements do not rule out long range magnetic order, but the neutron powder diffraction structural refinements do put an upper bound for the ordered iridium moment of $\sim$ 0.2 $μ_B /$Ir (for a magnetic structure with wave vector $Q \neq 0$) or $\sim$ 0.5 $μ_B /$Ir (for Q = 0).

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2011

Single crystal growth by self-flux method of the mixed valence gold halides Cs$_2$[Au$^{I}$X$_2$][Au$^{III}$X$_4$] (X=Br,I)

High quality single crystals of Cs$_2$Au$_2$X$_6$ (X=Br,I) were grown using a ternary self-flux method. Structural refinements based on single crystal X-ray diffraction measurements show that both materials have a distorted perovskite structure belonging to the I4/mmm space group with full site occupancy. Transport measurements reveal a large bandgap of 550 $\pm$ 100 meV for Cs$_2$Au$_2$I$_6$ and 520 $\pm$ 80 meV for Cs$_2$Au$_2$Br$_6$. Initial attempts at chemical substitution are described.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2011

Short small-polaron lifetime in the mixed-valence perovskite Cs$_2$Au$_2$I$_6$ from high-pressure pump-probe experiments

We study the ultrafast phonon response of mixed-valence perovskite Cs$_2$Au$_2$I$_6$ using pump-probe spectroscopy under high-pressure in a diamond anvil cell. We observed a remarkable softening and broadening of the Au - I stretching phonon mode with both applied pressure and photoexcitation. Using a double-pump scheme we measured a lifetime of the charge transfer excitation into single valence Au$^{2+}$ of less than 4 ps, which is an indication of the local character of the Au$^{2+}$ excitation. Furthermore, the strong similarity between the pressure and fluence dependence of the phonon softening shows that the inter-valence charge transfer plays an important role in the structural transition.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2011

Incommensurate Magnetic Order in TbTe$_3$

We report a neutron diffraction study of the magnetic phase transitions in the charge-density-wave (CDW) TbTe$_3$ compound. We discover that in the paramagnetic phase there are strong 2D-like magnetic correlations, consistent with the pronounced anisotropy of the chemical structure. A long-range incommensurate magnetic order emerges in TbTe$_3$ at $T_{mag1}$ = 5.78 K as a result of continuous phase transitions. We observe that near the temperature $T_{mag1}$ the magnetic Bragg peaks appear around the position (0,0,0.24) (or its rational multiples), that is fairly close to the propagation vector $(0,0,0.29)$ associated with the CDW phase transition in TbTe$_3$. This suggests that correlations leading to the long-range magnetic order in TbTe$_3$ are linked to the modulations that occur in the CDW state.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2011

Heat capacity of the site-diluted spin dimer system Ba3(Mn1-xVx)2O8

Heat capacity and susceptibility measurements have been performed on the diluted spin dimer compound Ba3(Mn1-xVx)2O8. The parent compound Ba3Mn2O8 is a spin dimer system based on pairs of antiferromagnetically coupled S = 1, 3d2 Mn5+ ions such that the zero field groundstate is a product of singlets. Substitution of non-magnetic S = 0, 3d0 V5+ ions leads to an interacting network of unpaired Mn moments, the low temperature properties of which are explored in the limit of small concentrations, 0<x<0.05. The zero-field heat capacity of this diluted system reveals a progressive removal of magnetic entropy over an extended range of temperatures, with no evidence for a phase transition. The concentration dependence does not conform to expectations for a spin glass state. Rather, the data suggest a low temperature random singlet phase, reflecting the hierarchy of exchange energies found in this system.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2011

STM imaging of a bound state along a step on the surface of the topological insulator Bi$_2$Te$_3$

Detailed study of the LDOS associated with the surface-state-band near a step-edge of the strong topological-insulator Bi2Te3, reveal a one-dimensional bound state that runs parallel to the stepedge and is bound to it at some characteristic distance. This bound state is clearly observed in the bulk gap region, while it becomes entangled with the oscillations of the warped surface band at high energy, and with the valence band states near the Dirac point. Using the full effective Hamiltonian proposed by Zhang et al., we obtain a closed formula for this bound state that fits the data and provide further insight into the general topological properties of the electronic structure of the surface band near strong structural defects.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2011

Revealing the dual nature of magnetism in iron pnictides and iron chalcogenides using x-ray emission spectroscopy

We report Fe K beta x-ray emission spectroscopy study of local magnetic moments in various iron based superconductors in their paramagnetic phases. Local magnetic moments are found in all samples studied: PrFeAsO, Ba(Fe,Co)2As2, LiFeAs, Fe1+x(Te,Se), and A2Fe4Se5 (A=K, Rb, and Cs). The moment size varies significantly across different families. Specifically, all iron pnictides samples have local moments of about 1 $μ_B$/Fe, while FeTe and K2Fe4Se5 families have much larger local moments of ~2$μ_B$/Fe, ~3.3$μ_B$/Fe, respectively. In addition, we find that neither carrier doping nor temperature change affects the local moment size.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Anisotropic in-plane optical conductivity in detwinned Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2

We study the anisotropic in-plane optical conductivity of detwinned Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2 single crystals for x=0, 2.5% and 4.5% in a broad energy range (3 meV-5 eV) across their structural and magnetic transitions. For temperatures below the Neel transition, the topology of the reconstructed Fermi surface, combined with the distinct behavior of the scattering rates, determines the anisotropy of the low frequency optical response. For the itinerant charge carriers, we are able to disentangle the evolution of the Drude weights and scattering rates and to observe their enhancement along the orthorhombic antiferromagnetic a-axis with respect to the ferromagnetic b-axis. For temperatures above Ts, uniaxial stress leads to a finite in-plane anisotropy. The anisotropy of the optical conductivity, leading to a significant dichroism, extends to high frequencies in the mid- and near-infrared regions. The temperature dependence of the dichroism at all dopings scales with the anisotropy ratio of the dc conductivity, suggesting the electronic nature of the structural transition. Our findings bear testimony to a large nematic susceptibility that couples very effectively to the uniaxial lattice strain. In order to clarify the subtle interplay of magnetism and Fermi surface topology we compare our results with theoretical calculations obtained from density functional theory within the full-potential linear augmented plane-wave method.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2011

A polarized neutron diffraction study of the field-induced magnetization in the normal and superconducting states of Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2 (x=0.65)

We use polarised neutron diffraction to study the induced magnetization density of near optimally doped Ba(Fe0.935Co0.065)2As2 (T_C=24 K) as a function of magnetic field (1 0,T=>0)/H ~ 2/3 χ_{normal} which does not scale with the field or number of vortices and is most likely due to the van Vleck susceptibility. Magnetic structure factors derived from the polarization dependence of 15 Bragg reflections were used to make a maximum entropy reconstruction of the induced magnetization distribution in real space. The magnetization is confined to the Fe atoms and the measured density distribution is in good agreement with LAPW band structure calculations which suggest that the relevant bands near the Fermi energy are of the d_{xz/yz} and d_{xy} type.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

In-plane electronic anisotropy of underdoped "122" Fe-arsenide superconductors revealed by measurements of detwinned single crystals

The parent phases of the Fe-arsenide superconductors harbor an antiferromagnetic ground state. Significantly, the Néel transition is either preceded or accompanied by a structural transition that breaks the four fold symmetry of the high-temperature lattice. Borrowing language from the field of soft condensed matter physics, this broken discrete rotational symmetry is widely referred to as an Ising nematic phase transition. Understanding the origin of this effect is a key component of a complete theoretical description of the occurrence of superconductivity in this family of compounds, motivating both theoretical and experimental investigation of the nematic transition and the associated in-plane anisotropy. Here we review recent experimental progress in determining the intrinsic in-plane electronic anisotropy as revealed by resistivity, reflectivity and ARPES measurements of detwinned single crystals of underdoped Fe arsenide superconductors in the "122" family of compounds.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Symmetry breaking orbital anisotropy on detwinned Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2 above the spin density wave transition

Nematicity, defined as broken rotational symmetry, has recently been observed in competing phases proximate to the superconducting phase in the cuprate high temperature superconductors. Similarly, the new iron-based high temperature superconductors exhibit a tetragonal to orthorhombic structural transition (i.e. a broken C4 symmetry) that either precedes or is coincident with a collinear spin density wave (SDW) transition in undoped parent compounds, and superconductivity arises when both transitions are suppressed via doping. Evidence for strong in-plane anisotropy in the SDW state in this family of compounds has been reported by neutron scattering, scanning tunneling microscopy, and transport measurements. Here we present an angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy study of detwinned single crystals of a representative family of electron-doped iron-arsenide superconductors, Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2 in the underdoped region. The crystals were detwinned via application of in-plane uniaxial stress, enabling measurements of single domain electronic structure in the orthorhombic state. At low temperatures, our results clearly demonstrate an in-plane electronic anisotropy characterized by a large energy splitting of two orthogonal bands with dominant dxz and dyz character, which is consistent with anisotropy observed by other probes. For compositions x>0, for which the structural transition (TS) precedes the magnetic transition (TSDW), an anisotropic splitting is observed to develop above TSDW, indicating that it is specifically associated with TS. For unstressed crystals, the band splitting is observed close to TS, whereas for stressed crystals the splitting is observed to considerably higher temperatures, revealing the presence of a surprisingly large in-plane nematic susceptibility in the electronic structure.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2010

Behavior of vortices near twin boundaries in underdoped $Ba(Fe_{1-x}Co_{x})_{2}As_{2}$

We use scanning SQUID microscopy to investigate the behavior of vortices in the presence of twin boundaries in the pnictide superconductor Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2. We show that the vortices avoid pinning on twin boundaries. Individual vortices move in a preferential way when manipulated with the SQUID: they tend to not cross a twin boundary, but rather to move parallel to it. This behavior can be explained by the observation of enhanced superfluid density on twin boundaries in Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2. The observed repulsion from twin boundaries may be a mechanism for enhanced critical currents observed in twinned samples in pnictides and other superconductors.

cond-mat.supr-con↗