arXiv subjects

Shinya Uji

Publications and source records attributed to Shinya Uji.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

High-resolution magnetostriction measurements of the Pauli-limited superconductor Sr2RuO4

We performed high-resolution magnetostriction measurements on the Pauli-limited superconductor Sr$_2$RuO$_4$ using high-quality single crystals. A first-order superconducting transition, accompanied by pronounced hysteresis, was observed under in-plane magnetic fields, where the relative length change of the sample, $\Delta L/L$, was on the order of $10^{-8}$. To ensure the reliability of the measurements, particular attention was paid to minimizing the influence of magnetic torque, which can significantly affect data under in-plane field configurations, via field-angle-resolved magnetostriction. Within the hysteresis regime, slightly below the Pauli-limited upper critical field, a hump-like anomaly in the magnetostriction coefficient was identified. Furthermore, a characteristic double-peak structure in the field-angle derivative of the magnetostriction provides additional support for this anomaly. Although these findings may reflect a lattice response associated with the emergence of the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) phase in Sr$_2$RuO$_4$, the possibility of a broadened first-order transition cannot be excluded. Notably, this magnetostriction anomaly qualitatively deviates from the FFLO phase boundary suggested by previous NMR measurements, highlighting the necessity for further experimental and theoretical investigations to elucidate the nature of the FFLO state in this material.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

Nonlinear planar Hall effect from superconducting vortex motion

We report the nonreciprocal charge transport along the longitudinal and transverse directions in the vortex flow regime of FeSe superconducting films. Clear nonreciprocal signals under an inplane magnetic field reveals symmetry breaking at the film surfaces since the crystal structure of FeSe is centrosymmetric. Although the symmetry in such polar superconductors allows the nonreciprocal transverse response under a magnetic field parallel to the electric current, its observation is physically counterintuitive because vortex motion is not expected in this configuration. We propose that thermally excited (anti)vortices due to the two-dimensional nature of FeSe give rise to the nonreciprocal transverse signals when the mirror symmetry is broken by the inplane magnetic field.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

In-plane and interlayer magnetoresistance in FeSe

We report measurements of the in-plane and interlayer magnetoresistances of FeSe. The in-plane magnetoresistance $\Delta \rho_{ab}/\rho_{ab}(0)$ for $B \parallel c$ is positive below $T_s$ and increases with decreasing temperature, exceeding 2.5 at $T$ = 10 K and $B$ = 14 T. The field-direction dependence indicates that the in-plane magnetoresistance is basically determined by the $c$-axis component of the magnetic field. The interlayer magnetoresistance $\Delta \rho_{c}/\rho_{c}(0)$ is negative below $T_s$ but turns positive below $\sim$18 K, which is probably due to the contamination by the large in-plane magnetoresistance. The field-direction dependence of the interlayer magnetoresistance can approximately be described by a standard formula for quasi-two-dimensional electron systems except near $B \parallel ab$. The experimental magnetoresistance near $B \parallel ab$ is larger than the formula, which can be attributed to the so-called interlayer coherence peak. The large width of the peak indicates the correspondingly large interlayer transfer energy.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2025

Topological delocalization against Anderson localization observed in Bi-doped PbSb2Te4 disordered topological insulator

We experimentally investigate the tendency of localization in the bulk and the topological surface states in topological insulators Pb(Bi1-xSbx)2Te4 (x=0.793-0.818) through detailed transport measurements. The bulk electronic states in the range 0.793<=x<0.818 are situated on the insulator side of the Anderson transition, as indicated by k_Fl values (where k_F is the Fermi wavenumber and l is the mean free path) falling below the Ioffe-Regel criterion (i.e., k_F l<1). In contrast, the topological surface states retain high mobility and even exhibit quantum oscillations, demonstrating their resilient nature against strong disorder. These findings highlight the delocalized nature of the topological surface states despite Anderson localization of the bulk electronic states.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2025

Apparent nonreciprocal transport in FeSe bulk crystals

We performed low-frequency ac first- and second-harmonic resistance measurements and dc $I-V$ measurements on bulk FeSe crystals in a temperature range between 1.8 and 150 K and in magnetic field up to 14 T. We observed considerable second-harmonic resistance, indicative of nonreciprocal charge transport, in some samples. By examining correlation between contact resistances and second-harmonic signals, we concluded that the second-harmonic resistance was not due to the genuine nonreciprocal transport effect but was caused by joule heating at a current contact through the thermoelectric effect. Our conclusion is consistent with a recent preprint (Nagata \textit{et al.}, arXiv:2409.01715), in which the authors reported a zero-field superconducting diode effect in devices fabricated with FeSe flakes and attributed it to the thermoelectric effect.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2024

Transport evidence for twin-boundary pinning of superconducting vortices in FeSe

We provide bulk transport evidence for twin-boundary pinning of vortices in FeSe. We measure interlayer resistance in FeSe in magnetic fields and find that, as the field is rotated in the $ab$ plane, the flux-flow resistivity is suppressed when the field direction is parallel to twinning planes. The width of the associated dip in the resistance vs in-plane field direction curve varies as $T^{1/2}B^{-3/4}$, consistent with the creation of kinked vortices near the parallel field geometry.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2024

Anomalous Hall effect with plateaus observed in a magnetic Weyl semimetal NdAlGe at low temperatures

In the $R$Al(Si,Ge) ($R$: lanthanides) family, both spatial inversion and time-reversal symmetries are broken. This may offer opportunities to study Weyl-fermion physics in nontrivial spin structures emerging from a noncentrosymmetric crystal structure. In this study, we investigated the anomalous Hall effect (AHE) in NdAlGe via magnetotransport, magnetization, and magnetic torque measurements down to 40 mK (0.4 K for magnetization). The single crystals grown by a laser-heated floating-zone method exhibit a single magnetic phase transition at $T_{\rm M}$ = 13.5 K, where the $T_{\rm M}$ is the transition temperature. With the magnetic field parallel to the easy $\lbrack$001$\rbrack$ axis, the AHE gradually evolves as the temperature decreases below $T_{\rm M}$. The anomalous Hall conductivity (AHC) reaches $\sim$320 $Ω^{-1}$cm$^{-1}$ at 40 mK in the magnetically saturated state. Except in low-temperature low-field plateau phases, the AHC and magnetization are proportional, and their ratio agrees with the ratios for conventional ferromagnets, suggesting that the intrinsic AHE occurs by the Karplus-Luttinger mechanism. Below $\sim$0.6 K, the curves of Hall resistivity against the field exhibit plateaus at low fields below $\sim$0.5 T, correlating with the plateaus in the magnetization curve. For the first plateau, the magnetization is one order of magnitude smaller than the magnetically saturated state, whereas the AHE is more than half that in the saturated state. This finding under well below $T_{\rm M}$ suggests that the AHE at the first plateau is not governed by the magnetization and may be interpreted based on a multipole or spin chirality.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2023

Experimental verification of band convergence in Sr and Na codoped PbTe

Scanning tunneling microscopy and transport measurements have been performed to investigate the electronic structure and its temperature dependence in heavily Sr and Na codoped PbTe, which is recognized as one of the most promising thermoelectric materials. Our main findings are as follows: (i) Below T=4.5 K, all carriers are distributed in the first valence band at the L point (L band), which forms tube-shaped Fermi surfaces with concave curvature. With Sr and Na doping, the dispersion of the L band changes, and the band gap increases from 200 meV to 300 meV. (ii) At T=4.5 K, the Fermi energy is located ~100 meV below the edge of the L band for the Sr/Na codoped PbTe. The second valence band at the Sigma point (Sigma band) is lower than the L band by 150 meV, which is significantly smaller than that of pristine PbTe (200 meV). The decrease in the band offset, leading to band convergence, provides a desirable condition for thermoelectric materials.(iii) With increasing temperature, the carrier distribution to the Sigma band starts at T=100 K and we estimate that about 50 percent of the total carriers are redistributed in the Sigma band at T=300 K.Our work demonstrates that scanning tunneling microscopy and angular dependent magnetoresistance measurements are particularly powerful tools to determine the electronic structure and carrier distribution. We believe that they will provide a bird's eye view of the doping strategy towards realizing high-efficiency thermoelectric materials.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2023

Fermi surface and light quasi particles in hourglass nodal chain metal \b{eta}-ReO2

Quantum oscillations in magnetic torque and electrical resistivity were measured to investigate the electronic structure of \b{eta}-ReO2, a candidate hourglass nodal chain metal (Dirac loop chain metal). All the de Haas-van Alphen oscillation branches measured at 30 mK in magnetic fields of up to 17.5 T were consistent with first-principles calculations predicting four Fermi surfaces (FSs). The small-electron FS of the four FSs exhibited a very small cyclotron mass, 0.059 times that of the free electrons, which is likely to be related to the linear dispersion of the energy band. The consistency between the quantum oscillation results and band calculations indicates the presence of the hourglass nodal chain predicted for \b{eta}-ReO2 in the vicinity of the Fermi energy.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2023

CeFe$_2$Al$_{10}$: a Correlated Metal with a Fermi Surface Exhibiting Nonmetallic Conduction

Metals can be defined as materials with a Fermi surface or as materials exhibiting metallic conduction (i.e., $\mathrm{d} ρ/ \mathrm{d}T > 0$). Usually, these definitions both hold at low temperatures, such as liquid-helium temperatures, as the Fermi energy is sufficiently larger than the thermal energy. However, they may not both hold in correlated electron systems where the Fermi energy is reduced by renormalization. In this paper, we demonstrate that although the resistivity of CeFe$_2$Al$_{10}$ increases with decreasing temperature below $\sim20$ K, CeFe$_2$Al$_{10}$ is a metal with a Fermi surface. This assertion is based on the observation of Shubnikov--de Haas oscillations and a Hall resistivity that changes sign with the magnetic field, which requires the coexistence of electron and hole carriers. Our analysis of Shubnikov--de Haas and magnetotransport data indicates that the Fermi energies are as small as $\sim$30 K and that, despite the increasing carrier mobility with decreasing temperature as in conventional metals, the loss of thermally excited carriers leads to nonmetallic conduction ($\mathrm{d} ρ/ \mathrm{d}T < 0$) below $\sim20$ K. Furthermore, we investigate how this anomalous metal transforms to a more conventional metal with metallic conduction by the application of high pressure and a high magnetic field. This study illustrates the subtle distinction between semimetals and semiconductors in correlated electron systems. This distinction is relevant to investigations of correlated topological insulators and semimetals.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2022

In-plane electronic anisotropy revealed by interlayer resistivity measurements on the iron-based superconductor parent compound CaFeAsF

Both cuprates and iron-based superconductors demonstrate nematicity, defined as the spontaneous breaking of rotational symmetry in electron systems. The nematic state can play a role in the high-transition-temperature superconductivity of these compounds. However, the microscopic mechanism responsible for the transport anisotropy in iron-based compounds remains debatable. Here, we investigate the electronic anisotropy of CaFeAsF by measuring its interlayer resistivity under magnetic fields with varying field directions. Counterintuitively, the interlayer resistivity was larger in the longitudinal configuration ($B \parallel I \parallel c$) than in the transverse one ($B \perp I \parallel c$). The interlayer resistivity exhibited a so-called coherence peak under in-plane fields and was highly anisotropic with respect to the in-plane field direction. At $T$ = 4 K and $B$ = 14 T, the magnetoresistance $Δρ/ρ_0$ was seven times larger in the $B \parallel b_o$ than in the $B \parallel a_o$ configuration. Our theoretical calculations of the conductivity based on the first-principles electronic band structure qualitatively reproduced the above observations but underestimated the magnitudes of the observed features. The proposed methodology can be a powerful tool for probing the nematic electronic state in various materials.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2022

Anomalous High-Field Magnetotransport in CaFeAsF due to the Quantum Hall Effect

CaFeAsF is an iron-based superconductor parent compound whose Fermi surface is quasi-two dimensional, composed of Dirac-electron and Schrödinger-hole cylinders elongated along the $c$ axis. We measured the longitudinal and Hall resistivities in CaFeAsF with the electrical current in the $ab$ plane in magnetic fields up to 45 T applied along the $c$ axis and obtained the corresponding conductivities via tensor inversion. We found that both the longitudinal and Hall conductivities approached zero above $\sim$40 T as the temperature was lowered to 0.4 K. Our analysis indicates that the Landau-level filling factor is $ν$ = 2 for both electrons and holes at these high field strengths, resulting in a total filling factor $ν$ = $ν_{hole} - ν_{electron}$ = 0. We therefore argue that the $ν$ = 0 quantum Hall state emerges under these conditions.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2022

Charge and spin interplay in a molecular-dimer-based organic Mott insulator

Triangular lattice quasi-two-dimensional Mott insulators based on BEDT-TTF molecule and its analogies present a possibility to produce exotic phases by coupling charge and spin degrees of freedom. In this work we discuss magnetic properties of one of such materials, $κ$-(BEDT-TTF)$_2$Hg(SCN)$_2$Cl, which is found at the border of the phase transition between a Mott insulator into a charge ordered state. Our magnetic susceptibility and cantilever magnetisation measurements demonstrate how the charge degree of freedom defines magnetic properties for few different charge phases observed in this material as a function of temperature. Between $T_{CO}=30~K$ and $T_S=24~K$ we observe charge and spin separation due to one-dimensional charge stripes formed in this material below $T_{CO}=30~K$. Below $T_S=24~K$ charge and spin degrees of freedom demonstrate coupling. Spin singlet correlations develop below 24~K, however melting of charge order below 15~K prevents the spin singlet state formation, leaving the system in the inhomogeneous state with charge ordered spin singlet domains and charge and spin fluctuating ones.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2022

Topological frequency shift of quantum oscillation in CaFeAsF

Guo, Alexandradinata, \textit{et al.} have recently proposed that quantum-oscillation frequencies from Dirac/Weyl fermions exhibit a negative shift proportional to $T^2$ because of the energy dependence of the effective mass peculiar to a linear band-dispersion. We have measured Shubnikov--de Haas oscillation in CaFeAsF up to $T$ = 9 K. The frequency of the $α$ Dirac electron exhibits a negative shift with increasing $T$, while that of the $β$ Schrödinger hole does not. For $T \geqslant 5$ K where $β$ is negligible, the $α$-frequency shift is proportional to $T^2$ and its rate agrees with the theoretical prediction within experimental accuracy. At lower temperatures, the shifts of $α$ and $β$ deviate from theoretical expectations, which we ascribe to the inaccuracy in the frequency determination due to unfavorable interference between frequencies. Our results confirm that the topological frequency shift can be utilized to identify Dirac/Weyl fermions when quantum-oscillation frequencies can be determined accurately.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2021

Ferromagnetism out of charge fluctuation of strongly correlated electrons in $κ$-(BEDT-TTF)$_2$Hg(SCN)$_2$Br

We perform magnetic susceptibility and magnetic torque measurements on the organic $κ$-(BEDT-TTF)$_2$Hg(SCN)$_2$Br, which is recently suggested to host an exotic quantum dipole-liquid in its low-temperature insulating phase. Below the metal-insulator transition temperature, the magnetic susceptibility follows a Curie-Weiss law with a positive Curie-Weiss temperature, and a particular $M\propto \sqrt{H}$ curve is observed. The emergent ferromagnetically interacting spins amount to about 1/6 of the full spin moment of localized charges. Taking account of the possible inhomogeneous quasi-charge-order that forms a dipole-liquid, we construct a model of antiferromagnetically interacting spin chains in two adjacent charge-ordered domains, which are coupled via fluctuating charges on a Mott-dimer at the boundary. We find that the charge fluctuations can draw a weak ferromagnetic moment out of the spin singlet domains.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2021

Extraordinary $π$-Electron Superconductivity Emerging from a Quantum Spin Liquid

Quantum spin liquids (QSLs), in which spins are highly entangled, have been considered a groundwork for generating exotic superconductivity.Despite numerous efforts, superconductivity emerging from QSLs has been unrealized in actual materials due to the difficulties in stabilizing QSL states with metallic conductivity.Recently, an organic compound, $κ$-(BEDT-TTF)$_4$Hg$_{2.89}$Br$_8$, with a nearly regular triangular lattice of molecular dimers was recognized as a candidate for doped QSLs. In this study, we report an unusual superconducting phase of $κ$-(BEDT-TTF)$_4$Hg$_{2.89}$Br$_8$: unexpectedly large ratios of the upper critical field to the critical temperature $H_{\rm c2}$/$T_{\rm c}$ in fields not only parallel but also perpendicular to the two-dimensional conducting layers and a very wide region of fluctuating superconductivity above $T_{\rm c}$.Our results reveal that these peculiarities arise from strong electron correlations and possible quantum criticality unique to the doped QSL state, leading to a heavy mass of itinerant carriers and a large superconducting energy gap.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2021

Extremely large magnetoresistance in the hourglass Dirac loop chain metal β-ReO$_{2}$

The transport and thermodynamic properties of $β$-ReO$_{2}$ crystallizing in a nonsymmorphic structure were studied using high-quality single crystals. An extremely large magnetoresistance (XMR) reaching 22,000 $\%$ in a transverse magnetic field of 10 T at 2 K was observed. However, distinguished from other topological semimetals with low carrier densities that show XMR, $β$-ReO$_{2}$ has a high electron carrier density of 1 $\times$ $10^{22}$ cm$^{-3}$ as determined by Hall measurements and large Fermi surfaces in the electronic structure. In addition, a small Fermi surface with a small effective mass was evidenced by de Haas-van Alphen oscillation measurements. The previous band structure calculations [S. S. Wang, et al., Nat. Commun. 8, 1844 (2017)] showed that two kinds of loops made of Dirac points of hourglass-shaped dispersions exist and are connected to each other by a point to form a string of alternating loops, called the Dirac loop chain (DLC), which are protected by the multiple glide symmetries. Our first-principles calculations revealed the complex Fermi surfaces with the smallest one corresponding to the observed small Fermi surface, which is just located near the DLC. The XMR of $β$-ReO$_{2}$ is attributed to the small Fermi surface and thus is likely caused by the DLC.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2020

Elastoresistance measurements on CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ and KCa$_2$Fe$_4$As$_4$F$_2$ with the Fe site of $C_{2v}$ symmetry

We report resistance and elastoresistance measurements on (Ba$_{0.5}$K$_{0.5}$)Fe$_2$As$_2$, CaKFe$_4$As$_4$, and KCa$_2$Fe$_4$As$_4$F$_2$. The Fe-site symmetry is $D_{2d}$ in the first compound but $C_{2v}$ in the latter two, which lifts the degeneracy of the Fe $d_{xz}$ and $d_{yz}$ orbitals. The temperature dependence of the resistance and elastoresistance is similar between the three compounds. Especially, the [110] elastoresistance is enhanced with decreasing temperature irrespective of the Fe-site symmetry. This appears to be in conflict with recent Raman scattering studies on CaKFe$_4$As$_4$, which suggest the absence of nematic fluctuations. We consider possible ways of reconciliation and suggest that the present result is important in elucidating the origin of in-plane resistivity anisotropy in iron-based superconductors.

cond-mat.supr-con↗