arXiv subjects

Xiaojun Yang

Publications and source records attributed to Xiaojun Yang.

34 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2016

Enhanced superconductivity in hole-doped Nb$_{2}$PdS$_{5}$

We synthesized a series of Nb$_{2}$Pd$_{1-x}$Ru$_{x}$S$_{5}$ polycrystalline samples by a solid-state reaction method and systematically investigated the Ru-doping effect on superconductivity by transport and magnetic measurements. It is found that superconductivity is enhanced with Ru doping and is quite robust upon disorder. Hall coefficient measurements indicate that the charge transport is dominated by hole-type charge carriers similar to the case of Ir doping, suggesting multi-band superconductivity. Upon Ru or Ir doping, \emph H$_{c2}$/$\emph T_c$ exhibits a significant enhancement, exceeding the Pauli paramagnetic limit value by a factor of approximately 4. A comparison of $T_c$ and the upper critical field ($H_{c2}$) amongst the different doping elements on Pd site, reveals a significant role of spin--orbit coupling.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2016

Non-monotonic anisotropy in charge conduction induced by antiferrodistortive transition in metallic SrTiO$_{3}$

Cubic SrTiO$_{3}$ becomes tetragonal below 105 K. The antiferrodistortive (AFD) distortion leads to clockwise and counter-clockwise rotation of adjacent TiO$_{6}$ octahedra. This insulator becomes a metal upon the introduction of extremely low concentration of n-type dopants. However, signatures of the structural phase transition in charge conduction have remained elusive. Employing the Montgomery technique, we succeed in resolving the anisotropy of charge conductivity induced by the AFD transition, in the presence of different types of dopants. We find that the slight lattice distortion ($<6 \times 10^{-4}$) gives rise to a twenty percent anisotropy in charge conductivity, in agreement with the expectations of band calculations. Application of uniaxial strain amplifies the detectable anisotropy by disfavoring one of the three possible tetragonal domains. In contrast with all other known anisotropic Fermi liquids, the anisotropy has opposite signs for elastic and inelastic scattering. Increasing the concentration of dopants leads to a drastic shift in the temperature of the AFD transition either upward or downward. The latter result puts strong constraints on any hypothetical role played by the AFD soft mode in the formation of Cooper pairs and the emergence of superconductivity in SrTiO$_3$.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2016

Giant Linear Magneto-resistance in Nonmagnetic PtBi2

We synthesized nonmagnetic PtBi$_2$ single crystals and observed a giant linear magneto-resistance (MR) up to 684\% under a magnetic field $μ_0H$ = 15 T at $T$ = 2 K. The linear MR decreases with increasing temperature, but it is still as large as 61\% under $μ_0H$ of 15 T at room temperature. Such a giant linear MR is unlikely to be described by the quantum model as the quantum condition is not satisfied. Instead, we found that the slope of MR scales with the Hall mobility, and it can be well explained by a classical disorder model.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2016

Negative Magnetoresistance in Topological Semimetals of Transition-Metal Dipnictides with Nontrivial Z2 Indices

Negative magnetoresistance (NMR) induced by the Adler-Bell-Jackiw anomaly is regarded as the most prominent quantum signature of Weyl semimetals when electrical field $E$ is collinear with the external magnetic field $B$. In this article, we report universal NMR in nonmagnetic, centrosymmetric transition metal dipnictides MPn$_{2}$ (M=Nb and Ta; Pn=As and Sb), in which the existence of Weyl fermions can be explicitly excluded. Using temperature-dependent magnetoresistance, Hall and thermoelectric coefficients of Nernst and Seebeck effects, we determine that the emergence of the NMR phenomena in MPn$_{2}$ is coincident with a Lifshitz transition, corresponding to the formation of unique electron-hole-electron ($e$-$h$-$e$) pockets along the $I-L-I'$ direction. First-principles calculations reveal that, along the $I-L-I'$ line, the $d_{xy}$ and $d_{x^{2}-y^{2}}$ orbitals of the transition metal form tilted nodal rings of band crossing well below the Fermi level. Strong spin-orbital coupling gaps all the crossing points and creates the characteristic $e$-$h$-$e$ structure, making MPn$_{2}$ a topological semimetal with $\mathbb{Z}_2$ indices of [0;(111)]. By excluding the weak localization contribution of the bulk states, we conclude that the universal NMR in MPn$_{2}$ may have an exotic origin in topological surface states, which appears in pairs with opposite spin-momentum locking on nontrivial surfaces.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2016

Helicity protected ultrahigh mobility Weyl fermions in NbP

Non-centrosymmetric transition metal monopnictides, including TaAs, TaP, NbAs, and NbP, are emergent topological Weyl semimetals (WSMs) hosting exotic relativistic Weyl fermions. In this letter, we elucidate the physical origin of the unprecedented charge carrier mobility of NbP, which can reach $1\times10^{7}$ cm $^{2}$V$^{-1}$s$^{-1}$ at 1.5 K. Angle- and temperature-dependent quantum oscillations, supported by density function theory calculations, reveal that NbP has the coexistence of p- and n-type WSM pockets in the $k_{z}$=1.16$π$/c plane (W1-WSM) and in the $k_{z}$=0 plane near the high symmetry points $Σ$ (W2-WSM), respectively. Uniquely, each W2-WSM pocket forms a large dumbbell-shaped Fermi surface (FS) enclosing two neighboring Weyl nodes with the opposite chirality. The magneto-transport in NbP is dominated by these highly anisotropic W2-WSM pockets, in which Weyl fermions are well protected from defect backscattering by real spin conservation associated to the chiral nodes. However, with a minimal doping of $\sim$1\% Cr, the mobility of NbP is degraded by more than two order of magnitude, due to the invalid of helicity protection to magnetic impurities. Helicity protected Weyl fermion transport is also manifested in chiral anomaly induced negative magnetoresistance, controlled by the W1-WSM states. In the quantum regime below 10 K, the intervalley scattering time by impurities becomes a large constant, producing the sharp and nearly identical conductivity enhancement at low magnetic field.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2015

Chiral anomaly induced negative magnetoresistance in topological Weyl semimetal NbAs

In this paper, we report the intercone transport of Weyl fermions in NbAs with external magnetic field in parallel to electric field, a quantum phenomenon known as the Adler-Bell-Jackiw anomaly. Surprisingly, the resulting negative magnetoresistance (MR) in NbAs shows significant difference from NbP. The observed low-field positive MR dip, which is missing in NbP at low temperatures, indicates that the spin-orbital coupling (SOC) is significantly stronger in NbAs than in the former. The results imply that the contribution of arsenic to SOC in TaAs and NbAs is not negligible.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2015

Observation of Negative Magnetoresistance and nontrivial $π$ Berrys phase in 3D Weyl semi-metal NbAs

We report the electric transport properties of NbAs, which is a Weyl semimetal candidate proposed by recent theoretical calculations and confirmed by recent angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) data. We detected the long-anticipated negative magneto-resistance generated by the chiral anomaly in NbAs. Clear Shubnikov de Haas (SdH) oscillations have been detected starting from very weak magnetic field. Analysis of the SdH peaks gives the Berry phase accumulated along the cyclotron orbits to be $π$, indicating the existence of Weyl points.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2015

Coexistence of superconductivity and ferromagnetism in Sr0.5Ce0.5FBiS2

Through the combination of X-ray diffraction, electrical transport, magnetic susceptibility, and the heat capacity measurements, we studied the effect of Ce doping in the newly discovered SrFBiS${2}$ system. It is found that Sr${0.5}$Ce${0.5}$FBiS${2}$ undergoes a second-order transition below $7.5 K, followed by a superconducting transition with the critical temperature Tc=2.8 K. Our transport, specific heat and DC-magnetization results suggest the presence of bulk ferromagneticcorrelation of Ce ion below 7.5 K that coexist with superconductivity when the temperature is further lowered below 2.8 K.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2014

Sr$_{0.9}$K$_{0.1}$Zn$_{1.8}$Mn$_{0.2}$As$_{2}$: a ferromagnetic semiconductor with colossal magnetoresistance

A bulk diluted magnetic semiconductor (Sr,K)(Zn,Mn)$_{2}$As$_{2}$ was synthesized with decoupled charge and spin doping. It has a hexagonal CaAl$_{2}$Si$_{2}$-type structure with the (Zn,Mn)$_{2}$As$_{2}$ layer forming a honeycomb-like network. Magnetization measurements show that the sample undergoes a ferromagnetic transition with a Curie temperature of 12 K and \revision{magnetic moment reaches about 1.5 $μ_{B}$/Mn under $μ_0H$ = 5 T and $T$ = 2 K}. Surprisingly, a colossal negative magnetoresistance, defined as $[ρ(H)-ρ(0)]/ρ(0)$, up to $-$38\% under a low field of $μ_0H$ = 0.1 T and to $-$99.8\% under $μ_0H$ = 5 T, was observed at $T$ = 2 K. The colossal magnetoresistance can be explained based on the Anderson localization theory.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2013

Majorana mode in vortex core of Bi2Te3/NbSe2 topological insulator-superconductor heterostructure

Majorana fermions have been intensively studied in recent years for their importance to both fundamental science and potential applications in topological quantum computing1,2. Majorana fermions are predicted to exist in a vortex core of superconducting topological insulators3. However, they are extremely difficult to be distinguished experimentally from other quasiparticle states for the tiny energy difference between Majorana fermions and these states, which is beyond the energy resolution of most available techniques. Here, we overcome the problem by systematically investigating the spatial profile of the Majorana mode and the bound quasiparticle states within a vortex in Bi2Te3/NbSe2. While the zero bias peak in local conductance splits right off the vortex center in conventional superconductors, it splits off at a finite distance ~20nm away from the vortex center in Bi2Te3/NbSe2, primarily due to the Majorana fermion zero mode. While the Majorana mode is destroyed by reducing the distance between vortices, the zero bias peak splits as a conventional superconductor again. This work provides strong evidences of Majorana fermions and also suggests a possible route to manipulating them.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2013

Topological Superconductor Bi2Te3/NbSe2 heterostructures

Topological superconductors (TSCs) have a full gap in the bulk and gapless surface states consisting of Majorana fermions, which have potential applications in fault-tolerant topological quantum computation. Because TSCs are very rare in nature, an alternative way to study the TSC is to artificially introduce superconductivity into the surface states of a topological insulator (TI) through proximity effect (PE)1-4. Here we report the first experimental realization of the PE induced TSC in Bi2Te3/NbSe2 thin films as demonstrated by the density of states probed using scanning tunneling microscope. We observe Abrikosov vortices and lower energy bound states on the surface of topological insulator and the dependence of superconducting coherence length on the film thickness and magnetic field, which are attributed to the superconductivity in the topological surface states. This work demonstrates the practical feasibility of fabricating a TSC with individual Majorana fermions inside superconducting vortex as predicted in theory and accomplishes the pre-requisite step towards searching for Majorana fermions in the PE induced TSCs.

cond-mat.mes-hall↗

arXiv2013

K and Mn co-doped BaCd2As2: a hexagonal structured bulk diluted magnetic semiconductor with large magnetoresistance

A bulk diluted magnetic semiconductor was found in the K and Mn co-doped BaCd2As2 system. Different from recently reported tetragonal ThCr2Si2-structured II-II-V based(Ba,K)(Zn,Mn)2As2, the Ba1-yKyCd2-xMnxAs2 system has a hexagonal CaAl2Si2-type structure with the Cd2As2 layer forming a honeycomb-like network. The Mn concentration reaches up to its x ? 0.4. Magnetization measurements show that the samples undergo ferromagnetic transitions with Curie temperature up to 16 K. With low coercive field less than 10 Oe and large magnetoresistence of about -70%, the hexagonal structured Ba1-yKyCd2-xMnxAs2 can be served as a promising candidate for spin manipulations.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2013

Sr and Mn co-doped LaCuSO: A wide band gap oxide diluted magnetic semiconductor with TC around 200K

Here we report the synthesis of a bulk oxide diluted magnetic semiconductor (DMS) system La1-xSrxCu0.925Mn0.075SO (x=0, 0.025, 0.05, 0.075, and 0.1). As a wide band gap p-type oxide semiconductor, LaCuSO satisfies all the conditions forecasted theoretically to be a room temperature DMS. The Curie temperature (TC) is around 200K as x>0.05, which is among the highest TC record of known bulk DMS materials up to now. The system provides a rare example of oxide DMS system with p-type conduction, which is important for formation of high temperature spintronic devices.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗

arXiv2013

Li$_2$RhO$_3$: A spin-glassy relativistic Mott insulator

Motivated by the rich interplay among electronic correlation, spin-orbit coupling (SOC), crystal-field splitting, and geometric frustrations in the honeycomb-like lattice, we systematically investigated the electronic and magnetic properties of Li$_2$RhO$_3$. The material is semiconducting with a narrow band gap of $Δ\sim$78 meV, and its temperature dependence of resistivity conforms to 3D variable range hopping mechanism. No long-range magnetic ordering was found down to 0.5 K, due to the geometric frustrations. Instead, single atomic spin-glass behavior below the spin-freezing temperature ($\sim$6 K) was observed and its spin dynamics obeys the universal critical slowing down scaling law. First principle calculations suggested it to be a relativistic Mott insulator mediated by both electronic correlation and SOC. With moderate strength of electronic correlation and SOC, our results shed new light to the research of Heisenberg-Kitaev model in realistic materials.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2013

Superconductivity induced by La doping in Sr1-xLaxFBiS2 system

Through a combination of X-ray diffraction, electrical transport, magnetic susceptibility, and heat capacity measurements, we report the effect of La doping on Sr in the newly discovered SrFBiS2 system. Superconducting transition with critical temperature Tc of 2.8 K, developed from a semiconducting-like normal state, was found in Sr0.5La0.5FBiS2. A strong diamagnetic signal and a clear specific heat anomaly associated with this transition were observed, confirming bulk superconductivity. The upper critical field Hc2(0) was estimated to be 1 Tesla by using the Ginzburg-Landau approach. Our experiments therefore demonstrate that bulk superconductivity can be achieved by electron doping in the SrFBiS2 system.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2012

Magnetic property and crystalline electric field effect in ThCr$_2$Si$_2$-type CeNi$_2$As$_2$

Millimeter sized ThCr$_2$Si$_2$-type CeNi$_2$As$_2$ single crystal was synthesized by NaAs flux method and its physical properties were investigated by magnetization, transport and specific heat measurements. In contrast to the previously reported CaBe$_2$Ge$_2$-type CeNi$_2$As$_2$, the ThCr$_2$Si$_2$-type CeNi$_2$As$_2$ is a highly anisotropic uniaxial antiferromagnet with the transition temperature $T_N$=4.8 K. A field induced spin flop transition was seen below $T_N$ when the applied $\textbf{B}$ is parallel to the $\textbf{c}$-axis, the magnetic easy axis, together with a huge frustration parameter $f=θ_W/T_N$. A pronounced Schottky-like anomaly in specific heat was also found around 160 K, which could be attributed to the crystalline electric field effect with the excitation energies being fitted to $Δ_1=$325 K and $Δ_2=$520 K, respectively. Moreover, the in-plane resistivity anisotropy and low temperature X-ray diffractions suggest that this compound is a rare example exhibiting a possible structure distortion induced by the $4f$-electron magnetic frustration.

cond-mat.str-el↗