We present uSR investigations on SmFeAsO_1-xF_x showing coexistence of magnetic order and superconductivity only in a very narrow F-doping range. The sharp crossover between the two types of order is similar to that observed in LaFeAsO_1-xF_x, suggesting a common behavior for the 1111 pnictides. The analysis of the muon asymmetry demonstrates that the coexistence must be nanoscopic, i.e. the two phases must be finely interspersed over a typical length-scale of few nm. In this regime both the magnetic and the superconducting transition temperatures collapse to very low values. Our data suggest a competition between the two order parameters
We probe the local quasiparticles density-of-states in micron-sized SmFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$ single-crystals by means of Scanning Tunnelling Spectroscopy. Spectral features resemble those of cuprates, particularly a dip-hump-like structure developed at energies larger than the gap that can be ascribed to the coupling of quasiparticles to a collective mode, quite likely a resonant spin mode. The energy of the collective mode revealed in our study decreases when the pairing strength increases. Our findings support spin-fluctuation-mediated pairing in pnictides.
We study the electronic structure of the SmFeAsO(1-x)F(x) alloy by means of first-principle calculations. We find that, contrary to common believe, F-doping does not change the charge balance between electrons and holes free-carriers in SmFeAsO(1-x)F(x). For energies within a narrow energy range across E_F, the effect of F-doping on the band structure dispersion is tiny in both the paramagnetic and stripe antiferromagnetic phase. The charge balance between the conducting FeAs-layer and the SmO(1-x)F(x) charge reservoir layer is not influenced by the compositional change. The additional charge carried by fluorine, with respect to the oxygen, is compensated by a change in the oxidation state of the Sm ion from 3+ to 2+. A comparison with the SmFe(1-x)Co(x)AsO system shows that such charge compensation by the Sm ion is not shared by donors substituting at the Fe site.
We report the Hall resistivity, $rho_{xy}$ of polycrystalline SmFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$ for four different fluorine concentrations from the onset of superconductivity through the collapse of the structural phase transition. For the two more highly-doped samples, $rho_{xy}$ is linear in magnetic field up to 50 T with only weak temperature dependence, reminiscent of a simple Fermi liquid. For the lightly-doped samples with $x<0.15$, we find a low temperature regime characterized $rho_{xy}(H)$ being both non-linear in magnetic field and strongly temperature dependent even though the Hall angle is small. The onset temperature for this non-linear regime is in the vicinity of the structural phase (SPT)/spin density wave (SDW) transitions. The temperature dependence of the Hall resistivity is consistent with a thermal activation of carriers across an energy gap. The evolution of the energy gap with doping is reported.
The electrical resistivity, crystalline structure and electronic properties calculated from the experimentally measured atomic positions of the compound SmFeAsO$_{0.81}$F$_{0.19}$ have been studied up to pressures ~20GPa. The correlation between the pressure dependence of the superconducting transition temperature (Tc) and crystallographic parameters on the same sample shows clearly that a regular FeAs$_{4}$ tetrahedron maximizes Tc, through optimization of carrier transfer to the FeAs planes as indicated by the evolution of the electronic band structures.
We report $^{75}$As nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) / nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies on LaFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$. There are two superconducting domes in this material. The first one appears at 0.03 $leq$ $x$ $leq$ 0.2 with $T_{rm c}$$^{max}$ = 27 K, and the second one at 0.25 $leq$ $x$ $leq$ 0.75 with $T_{rm c}$$^{max}$ = 30 K. By NMR and TEM, we demonstrate that a $C4$-to-$C2$ structural phase transition (SPT) takes place above both domes, with the transition temperature $T_{rm s}$ varying strongly with $x$. In the first dome, the SPT is followed by an antiferromagnetic (AF) transition, but neither AF order nor low-energy spin fluctuations are found in the second dome. In LaFeAsO$_{0.97}$F$_{0.03}$, we find that AF order and superconductivity coexist microscopically via $^{75}$As nuclear spin-lattice relaxation rate (1/$T_1$) measurements. In the coexisting region, 1/$T_1$ decreases at $T_{rm c}$ but becomes to be proportional to $T$ below 0.6$T_{rm c}$, indicating gapless excitations. Therefore, in contrast to the early reports, the obtained phase diagram for $x leq$ 0.2 is quite similar to the doped BaFe$_{2}$As$_{2}$ system. The electrical resistivity in the second dome can be fitted by $rho = {{rho }_{0}}+A{{T}^{n}}$ with $n$ = 1 and a maximal coefficient $A$ at around $x_{opt}$ = 0.5$sim$0.55 where $T_{rm s}$ extrapolates to zero and $T_{rm c}$ is the maximal, which suggest the importance of quantum critical fluctuations associated with the SPT. We have constructed a complete phase diagram of LaFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$, which provides insight into the relationship between SPT, antiferromagnetism and superconductivity.
S. Sanna
,R. De Renzi
,G. Lamura
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(2009)
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"Magnetic-superconducting phase boundary of SmFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_{x}$ studied via muon spin rotation: Unified behavior in a pnictide family"
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Roberto De Renzi
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