arXiv subjects

K. Kihou

Publications and source records attributed to K. Kihou.

52 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2012

Abrupt change in the energy gap of superconducting Ba1-xKxFe2As2 single crystals with hole doping

We performed a Laser angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) study on a wide doping range of Ba1-xKxFe2As2 (BaK) and precisely determined the doping evolution of the superconducting (SC) gaps in this compound. The gap size of the outer hole Fermi surface (FS) sheet around the Brillioun zone (BZ) center shows an abrupt drop with overdoping (for x > 0.6) while the inner and middle FS gaps roughly scale with Tc. This is accompanied by the simultaneous disappearance of the electron FS sheet with similar orbital character at the BZ corner. These results browse the different contributions of X2-Y2 and XZ/YZ orbitals to superconductivity in BaK and can be hardly completely reproduced by the available theories on iron-based superconductors.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Electronic reconstruction through the structural and magnetic transitions in detwinned NaFeAs

We use angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to study twinned and detwinned iron pnictide compound NaFeAs. Distinct signatures of electronic reconstruction are observed to occur at the structural (TS) and magnetic (TSDW) transitions. At TS, C4 rotational symmetry is broken in the form of an anisotropic shift of the orthogonal dxz and dyz bands. The magnitude of this orbital anisotropy rapidly develops to near completion upon approaching TSDW, at which temperature band folding occurs via the antiferromagnetic ordering wave vector. Interestingly, the anisotropic band shift onsetting at TS develops in such a way to enhance the nesting conditions in the C2 symmetric state, hence is intimately correlated with the long range collinear AFM order. Furthermore, the similar behaviors of the electronic reconstruction in NaFeAs and Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2 suggests that this rapid development of large orbital anisotropy between TS and TSDW is likely a general feature of the electronic nematic phase in the iron pnictides, and the associated orbital fluctuations may play an important role in determining the ground state properties.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Manifestations of multiple-carrier charge transport in the magnetostructurally ordered phase of undoped BaFe$_2$As$_2$

We investigated the transport properties of BaFe$_2$As$_2$ single crystals before and after annealing with BaAs powder. The annealing remarkably improves transport properties, in particular the magnitude of residual resistivity which decreases by a factor of more than 10. From the resistivity measurement on detwinned crystals we found that the anisotropy of the in-plane resistivity is remarkably diminished after annealing, indicative of dominant contributions to the charge transport from the carriers with isotropic and high mobility below magnetostructural transition temperature $T_{\rm s}$ and the absence of nematic state above $T_{\rm s}$. We found that the Hall resistivity shows strong non-linearity against magnetic field and the magnetoresistance becomes very large at low temperatures. These results give evidence for the manifestation of multiple carriers with distinct characters in the ordered phase below $T_{\rm s}$. By analyzing the magnetic field dependences, we found that at least three carriers equally contribute to the charge transport in the ordered phase, which is in good agreement with the results of recent quantum oscillation measurements.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Strong electron-lattice coupling and orbital fluctuations in iron pnictide superconductor Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2

This paper has been withdrawn by the author due to some experimental mistakes. In this paper, we reported that C66, C44 and (C11-C12)/2 show remarkable softening toward the structural transition temperature TS. The data reported in this paper were acquired using the ultrasonic frequency lower than 25 MHz. Recently, we performed high-frequency measurements for the same system. We found that the anomaly of C44 and (C11-C12)/2 tend to disappear rapidly with increasing the frequency. On the other hand, C66 anomaly is still there at high frequencies. Therefore, we concluded that the observed anomalies in C44 and (C11-C12)/2 are not true. They would be ascribed to certain influence by the large softening of C66. So, we have checked our data through careful measurements by using ultrasonic frequency higher than 60 MHz, so far. Then, it has been found that C66 shows still nice softening toward TS, but that its temperature dependence is slightly different from the results of this paper. We have accumulated reliable data now. They will be reported in near future.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Unprecedented anisotropic metallic state in BaFe2As2 revealed by optical spectroscopy

An ordered phase showing remarkable electronic anisotropy in proximity to the superconducting phase is now a hot issue in the field of high-transition-temperature superconductivity. As in the case of copper oxides, superconductivity in iron arsenides competes or coexists with such an ordered phase. Undoped and underdoped iron arsenides have a magnetostructural ordered phase exhibiting stripe-like antiferromagnetic spin order accompanied by an orthorhombic lattice distortion; both the spin order and lattice distortion break the tetragonal symmetry of crystals of these compounds. In this ordered state, anisotropy of in-plane electrical resistivity is anomalous and difficult to attribute simply to the spin order and/or the lattice distortion. Here, we present the anisotropic optical spectra measured on detwinned BaFe2As2 crystals with light polarization parallel to the Fe planes. Pronounced anisotropy is observed in the spectra, persisting up to an unexpectedly high photon energy of about 2 eV. Such anisotropy arises from an anisotropic energy gap opening below and slightly above the onset of the order. Detailed analysis of the optical spectra reveals an unprecedented electronic state in the ordered phase.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2011

Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy study of PrFeAsO_{0.7}: Dependence of the electronic structure on the pnictogen height

We have performed an angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) study of the iron-based superconductor PrFeAsO_{0.7} and examined the Fermi surfaces and band dispersions near the Fermi level. Heavily hole-doped electronic states have been observed due to the polar nature of the cleaved surfaces. Nevertheless, we have found that the ARPES spectra basically agree with band dispersions calculated in the local density approximation (LDA) if the bandwidth is reduced by a factor of ~2.5 and then the chemical potential is lowered by ~70 meV. Comparison with previous ARPES results on LaFePO reveals that the energy positions of the d_{3z^2-r^2}- and d_{yz,zx}-derived bands are considerably different between the two materials, which we attribute to the different pnictogen height as predicted by the LDA calculation.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2011

Incommensurate spin fluctuations in hole-overdoped superconductor KFe2As2

A neutron scattering study of heavily hole-overdoped superconducting KFe$_2$As$_2$ revealed a well-defined low-energy incommensurate spin fluctuation at [$π(1\pm2δ$),0] with $δ$ = 0.16. The incommensurate structure differs from the previously observed commensurate peaks in electron-doped $A$Fe$_2$As$_2$ ($A$ = Ba, Ca, or Sr) at low energies. The direction of the peak splitting is perpendicular to that observed in Fe(Te,Se) or in Ba(Fe,Co)$_2$As$_2$ at high energies. A band structure calculation suggests interband scattering between bands around the $Γ$ and X points as an origin of this incommensurate peak. The perpendicular direction of the peak splitting can be understood within the framework of multiorbital band structure. The results suggest that spin fluctuation is more robust in hole-doped than in electron-doped samples, which can be responsible for the appearance of superconductivity in the heavily hole-doped samples.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2010

Quasi-Two-Dimensional Fermi Surfaces and Coherent Interlayer Transport in KFe$_2$As$_2$

We report the results of the angular-dependent magnetoresistance oscillations (AMROs), which can determine the shape of bulk Fermi surfaces in quasi-two-dimensional (Q2D) systems, in a highly hole-doped Fe-based superconductor KFe$_2$As$_2$ with $T_c \approx$ 3.7 K. From the AMROs, we determined the two Q2D FSs with rounded-square cross sections, corresponding to 12% and 17% of the first Brillouin zone. The rounded-squared shape of the FS cross section is also confirmed by the analyses of the interlayer transport under in-plane fields. From the obtained FS shape, we infer the character of the 3d orbitals that contribute to the FSs.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2010

The pairing state in KFe2As2 studied by measurements of the magnetic vortex lattice

Understanding the mechanism and symmetry of electron pairing in iron-based superconductors represents an important challenge in condensed matter physics [1-3]. The observation of magnetic flux lines - "vortices" - in a superconductor can contribute to this issue, because the spatial variation of magnetic field reflects the pairing. Unlike many other iron pnictides, our KFe2As2 crystals have very weak vortex pinning, allowing small-angle-neutron-scattering (SANS) observations of the intrinsic vortex lattice (VL). We observe nearly isotropic hexagonal packing of vortices, without VL-symmetry transitions up to high fields along the fourfold c-axis of the crystals, indicating rather small anisotropy of the superconducting properties around this axis. This rules out gap nodes parallel to the c-axis, and thus d-wave and also anisotropic s-wave pairing [2, 3]. The strong temperature-dependence of the intensity down to T<<Tc indicates either widely different full gaps on different Fermi surface sheets, or nodal lines perpendicular to the axis.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2010

Fermi surfaces and quasi-particle band dispersions of the iron pnictides superconductor KFe2As2 observed by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy

We have performed an angle-resolved photoemission study of the iron pnictide superconductor KFe2As2 with Tc 4 K. Most of the observed Fermi surfaces show almost two-dimensional shapes, while one of the quasi-particle bands near the Fermi level has a strong dispersion along the kz direction, consistent with the result of a band-structure calculation. However, hole Fermi surfaces αand ζare smaller than those predicted by the calculation while other Fermi surfaces are larger. These observations are consistent with the result of a de Haas-van Alphen study and a theoretical prediction on inter-band scattering, possibly indicating many body effects on the electronic structure.

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arXiv2010

Evidence for superconducting gap nodes in the zone-centered hole bands of KFe2As2 from magnetic penetration-depth measurements

Among the iron-based pnictide superconductors the material KFe$_2$As$_2$ is unusual in that its Fermi surface does not consist of quasi-nested electron and hole pockets. Here we report measurements of the temperature dependent London penetration depth of very clean crystals of this compound with residual resistivity ratio $>1200$. We show that the superfluid density at low temperatures exhibits a strong linear-in-temperature dependence which implies that there are line nodes in the energy gap on the large zone-centered hole sheets. The results indicate that KFe$_2$As$_2$ is an unconventional superconductor with strong electron correlations.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2010

Evolution of the optical spectrum with doping in iron pnictides Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2

We investigated the optical spectrum of Ba(Fe1-xCox)2As2 single crystals with various doping levels. It is found that the low-energy optical conductivity spectrum of this system can be decomposed into two components: a sharp Drude term and a broad "incoherent" term. For the compounds showing magnetic order, a gap appears predominantly in the "incoherent" component, while an s-wave like superconducting gap opens in both components for highly doped compounds. The Drude weight steadily increases as doping proceeds, consistent with electron doping in this system. On the other hand, the "incoherent" spectral weight is almost doping independent, but its spectral feature is intimately connected with the magnetism. We demonstrate that the presence of two distinct components in the optical spectrum well explains the doping and temperature dependences of the dc resistivity.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2010

Possible hydrogen doping and enhancement of Tc (= 35 K) in a LaFeAsO-based superconductor

We report that the incorporation of hydroxide ions (OH)- significantly enhances the superconducting transition temperature (Tc) in the LnFeAsO-based superconductors (Ln1111: Ln = La, Ce and Pr). For La1111, Tc of the (OH)- incorporated sample synthesized using high-pressure technique becomes 35 K, which is higher by 7 K than the typical optimally-doped La1111 superconductors. Similar enhancement in Tc is also observed for Ce1111 and Pr1111. 1H-NMR measurement have confirmed the existence of hydrogen atoms in the samples. Accompanying the (OH)- incorporation, the lattice parameters are largely contracted, down to the values which have never been attained by any other dopings/substitutions.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2009

Possible Multiple Gap Superconductivity with Line Nodes in Heavily Hole-Doped Superconductor KFe2As2 Studied by 75As-NQR and Specific Heat

We report the 75As nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) and specific heat measurements of the heavily hole-doped superconductor KFe2As2 (Tc = 3.5 K). The spin-lattice relaxation rate 1/T1 in the superconducting state exhibits quite gradual temperature dependence with no coherence peak below Tc. The quasi-particle specific heat C_QP/T shows small specific heat jump which is about 30% of electronic specific heat coefficient just below Tc. In addition, it suggests the existence of low-energy quasi-particle excitation at the lowest measurement temperature T = 0.4 K \simeq Tc/10. These temperature dependence of 1/T1 and C_QP/T can be explained by multiple nodal superconducting gap scenario rather than multiple fully-gapped s_\pm-wave one within simple gap analysis.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2008

Effect of Structural Parameters on Superconductivity in Fluorine-Free LnFeAsO1-y (Ln=La,Nd)

The crystal structure of LnFeAsO$_{1-y}$ (Ln = La, Nd) has been studied by the powder neutron diffraction technique. The superconducting phase diagram of NdFeAsO$_{1-y}$ is established as a function of oxygen content which is determined by Rietveld refinement. The small As-Fe bond length suggests that As and Fe atoms are connected covalently. FeAs$_4$-tetrahedrons transform toward a regular shape with increasing oxygen deficiency. Superconducting transition temperatures seem to attain maximum values for regular FeAs$_4$-tetrahedrons.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2004

Charge-Density-Wave Ordering in the Metal-Insulator Transition Compound PrRu4P12

X-ray and electron diffraction measurements on the metal-insulator (M-I) transition compound PrRu$_4$P$_{12}$ have revealed the emergence of a periodic ordering of charge density around the Pr atoms. It is found that the ordering is associated with the onset of a low temperature insulator phase. These conclusions are supported by the facts that the space group of the crystal structure transforms from Im$\bar{3}$ to Pm$\bar{3}$ below the M-I transition temperature and also that the temperature dependence of the superlattice peaks in the insulator phase follows the squared BCS function. The M-I transition could be originated from the perfect nesting of the Fermi surface and/or the instability of the $f$ electrons.

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