arXiv subjects

Ying-Jer Kao

Publications and source records attributed to Ying-Jer Kao.

82 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

arXiv2002

The Pseudogap Challenge: Understanding the ab-Plane AC Conductivity below Tc

We establish that the cuprate pseudogap plays a crucial role in the $ab$-plane optical conductivity $σ(ω,T)$ for temperatures $T \le T_c$. The pseudogap signatures in $σ(ω,T)$ associated with competing proposals of a ``hidden order'' and ``superconducting'' origin for the $d_{x^2 - y^2}$ pseudogap are found to differ in their qualitative $ω,T$ dependences. For the latter case, as $T$ increases from 0, excess low $ω$ weight appears; moreover, a much wider range of $ω$ contributes to form the condensate. We discuss these theories in light of current experiments.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2002

Pair-breaking effects in the Pseudogap Regime: Application to High Temperature Superconductors

Abrikosov-Gor'kov (AG) theory, the foundation for understanding pair-breaking effects in conventional superconductors, is inadequate when there is an excitation gap (pseudogap) present at the onset of superconductivity. In this paper we present an extension of AG theory within two important, and diametrically opposite approaches to the cuprate pseudogap. The effects of impurities on the pseudogap onset temperature T* and on Tc, along with comparisons to experiment are addressed.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2002

Magnetic field effects on $T_c$ and the pseudogap onset temperature in cuprate superconductors

We study the sensitivity of $T_c$ and the pseudogap onset temperature, $T^*$, to low fields, $H$, for cuprate superconductors, using a BCS-based approach extended to arbitrary coupling. We find that $T^*$ and $T_c$, which are of the same superconducting origin, have very different $H$ dependences. The small coherence length makes $T^*$ rather insensitive to the field. However, the presence of the pseudogap at $T_c$ makes $T_c$ more sensitive to $H$. Our results for the coherence length $ξ$ fit well with existing experiments. We predict that very near the insulator $ξ$ will rapidly increase.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2001

Magnetic Field Effects in the Pseudogap Phase: A Competing Energy Gap Scenario for Precursor Superconductivity

We study the sensitivity of T_c and T^* to low fields, H, within the pseudogap state using a BCS-based approach extended to arbitrary coupling. We find that T^* and T_c, which are of the same superconducting origin, have very different H dependences. This is due to the pseudogap, Δ_{pg}, which is present at the latter, but not former temperature. Our results for the coherence length ξfit well with existing experiments.We predict that very near the insulator ξwill rapidly increase.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2001

Magnetic Field Effects in the Pseudogap Phase: A Precursor Superconductivity Scenario

We demonstrate that the observed dependences of $T_c$ and $T^*$ on small magnetic fields can be readily understood in a precursor superconductivity approach to the pseudogap phase. In this approach, the presence of a pseudogap at $T_c$ (but not at $T^*$) and the associated suppression of the density of states lead to very different sensitivities to pair-breaking perturbations for the two temperatures. Our semi-quantitative results address the puzzling experimental observation that the coherence length $ξ$ is weakly dependent on hole concentration $x$ throughout most of the phase diagram. We present our results in a form which can be compared with the recent experiments of Shibauchi et al, and argue that orbital effects contribute in an important way to the $H$ dependence of $T^*$.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2001

History Dependent Phenomena in the Transverse Ising Ferroglass: the Free Energy Landscape

In this paper we investigate the relationship between glassy and ferromagnetic phases in disordered Ising ferromagnets in the presence of transverse magnetic fields, $Γ$. Iterative mean field simulations probe the free energy landscape and suggest the existence of a glass transition as a function of $Γ$ which is distinct from the Curie temperature. New experimental field-cooled and zero-field-cooled data on LiHo$_x$Y$_{1-x}$F$_4$ provide support for our theoretical picture.

cond-mat.dis-nn↗

arXiv2001

Origin of the pseudogap phase: Precursor superconductivity versus a competing energy gap scenario

In the last few years evidence has been accumulating that there are a multiplicity of energy scales which characterize superconductivity in the underdoped cuprates. In contrast to the situation in BCS superconductors, the phase coherence temperature Tc is different from the energy gap onset temperature T*. In addition, thermodynamic and tunneling spectroscopies have led to the inference that the order parameter $Δ_{sc}$ is to be distinguished from the excitation gap $Δ$; in this way, pseudogap effects persist below Tc. It has been argued by many in the community that the presence of these distinct energy scales demonstrates that the pseudogap is unrelated to superconductivity. In this paper we show that this inference is incorrect. We demonstrate that the difference between the order parameter and excitation gap and the contrasting dependences of T* and Tc on hole concentration $x$ and magnetic field $H$ follow from a natural generalization of BCS theory. This simple generalized form is based on a BCS-like ground state, but with self consistently determined chemical potential in the presence of arbitrary attractive coupling $g$. We have applied this mean field theory with some success to tunneling, transport, thermodynamics and magnetic field effects. We contrast the present approach with the phase fluctuation scenario and discuss key features which might distinguish our precursor superconductivity picture from that involving a competing order parameter.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2000

Commensurate and Incommensurate Structure of the Neutron Cross Section in LaSrCuO and YBaCuO

We study the evolution of the d-wave neutron cross-section with variable frequency ωand fixed T (below and above Tc) in two different cuprate families. The evolution from incommensurate to commensurate to incommensurate peaks is rather generic within an RPA-like scheme. This behavior seems to be in reasonable accord with experiments, and may help distinguish between this and the "stripe" scenario.

cond-mat.str-el↗

arXiv2000

Frequency Evolution of Neutron Peaks Below Tc: Commensurate and Incommensurate Structure in LaSrCuO and YBaCuO

We study the evolution of the neutron cross-section with variable frequency $ω$ and fixed $T$ below $T_c$ in two different cuprate families. Our calculations, which predominantly probe the role of d-wave pairing, lead to generic features, independent of Fermi surface shapes. Among our findings, reasonably consistent with experiment, are (i) for $ω$ near the gap energy $Δ$, both optimal {LaSrCuO} and slightly underdoped YBCO exhibit (comparably) incommensurate peaks (ii) peak sharpening below $T_c$ is seen in {LaSrCuO}, (iii) quite generically, a frequency evolution from incommensurate to commensurate and then back to incommensurate structure is found with increasing $ω$. Due to their narrow $ω$ regime of stability, commensurate peaks in {LaSrCuO} should be extremely difficult to observe.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv1999

Pair Excitations, Collective Modes and Gauge Invariance in the BCS -- Bose-Einstein Crossover Scenario

In this paper we study the BCS Bose Einstein condensation (BEC) crossover scenario within the superconducting state, using a T-matrix approach which yields the ground state proposed by Leggett. Here we extend this ground state analysis to finite temperatures T and interpret the resulting physics. We find two types of bosonic-like excitations of the system: long lived, incoherent pair excitations and collective modes of the superconducting order parameter, which have different dynamics. Using a gauge invariant formalism, this paper addresses their contrasting behavior as a function of T and superconducting coupling constant g. At a more physical level, our paper emphasizes how, at finite T, BCS-BEC approaches introduce an important parameter Δ^2_{pg} = Δ^2 - Δ_{sc}^2 into the description of superconductivity. This parameter is governed by the pair excitations and is associated with particle-hole asymmetry effects which are important for sufficiently large g. In the fermionic regime, Δ_{pg}^2 represents the difference between the square of the excitation gap Δ^2 and that of the superconducting order parameter Δ_{sc}^2. The parameter Δ_{pg}^2, which is necessarily zero in the BCS (mean field) limit increases monotonically with the strength of the attractive interaction g. It follows that there is a significant physical distinction between this BCS-BEC crossover approach (in which g is the essential variable which determines Δ_{pg}) and the widely discussed (Coulomb-modulated) phase fluctuation scenario in which the plasma frequency is the tuning parameter.

cond-mat.supr-con↗