No Arabic abstract
We use polarization-resolved Raman spectroscopy to study the anisotropy of the electronic characteristics of the iron-pnictide parent compounds $A$Fe$_{2}$As$_{2}$ ($A$~=~Eu, Sr). We demonstrate that above the structural phase transition at Ts the dynamical anisotropic properties of the 122 compounds are governed by the emergence of $xy$-symmetry critical collective mode foretelling a condensation into a state with spontaneously broken four-fold symmetry at a temperature $T^{*}$. However, the modes critical slowing down is intervened by a structural transition at Ts, about 80~K above $T^{*}$, resulting in an anisotropic density wave state.
We present the first comprehensive derivation of the intrinsic electronic phase diagram of the iron-oxypnictide superconductors in the normal state based on the analysis of the electrical resistivity $rho$ of both LaFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_x$ and SmFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_x$ for a wide range of doping. Our data give clear-cut evidence for unusual normal state properties in these new materials. In particular, the emergence of superconductivity at low doping levels is accompanied by distinct anomalous transport behavior in $rho$ of the normal state which is reminiscent of the spin density wave (SDW) signature in the parent material. At higher doping levels $rho$ of LaFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_x$ shows a clear transition from this pseudogap-like behavior to Fermi liquid-like behavior, mimicking the phase diagram of the cuprates. Moreover, our data reveal a correlation between the strength of the anomalous features and the stability of the superconducting phase. The pseudogap-like features become stronger in SmFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_x$ where superconductivity is enhanced and vanish when superconductivity is reduced in the doping region with Fermi liquid-like behavior.
The distribution of valence electrons in metals usually follows the symmetry of an ionic lattice. Modulations of this distribution often occur when those electrons are not stable with respect to a new electronic order, such as spin or charge density waves. Electron density waves have been observed in many families of superconductors[1-3], and are often considered to be essential for superconductivity to exist[4]. Recent measurements[5-9] seem to show that the properties of the iron pnictides[10, 11] are in good agreement with band structure calculations that do not include additional ordering, implying no relation between density waves and superconductivity in those materials[12-15]. Here we report that the electronic structure of Ba1-xKxFe2As2 is in sharp disagreement with those band structure calculations[12-15], instead revealing a reconstruction characterized by a (pi,pi) wave vector. This electronic order coexists with superconductivity and persists up to room temperature.
We use magnetic long range order as a tool to probe the Cooper pair wave function in the iron arsenide superconductors. We show theoretically that antiferromagnetism and superconductivity can coexist in these materials only if Cooper pairs form an unconventional, sign-changing state. The observation of coexistence in Ba(Fe$_{1-x}$Co$_{x}$)$_{2}$As$_{2}$ then demonstrates unconventional pairing in this material. The detailed agreement between theory and neutron diffraction experiments, in particular for the unusual behavior of the magnetic order below $T_{c}$, demonstrates the robustness of our conclusions. Our findings strongly suggest that superconductivity is unconventional in all members of the iron arsenide family.
Upper critical field, H_c2, in quasi-1D superconductors is investigated by the weak coupling renormalization group technique. It is shown that H_c2 greatly exceeds not only the Pauli limit, but also the conventional paramagnetic limit of the Flude-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) state. This increase is mainly due to quasi-1D fluctuations effect as triggered by interference between unconventional superconductivity and density-wave instabilities. Our results give a novel viewpoint on the large H_c2 observed in TMTSF-salts in terms of a d-wave FFLO state that is predicted to be verified by the H_c2 measurements under pressure.
In the superconducting regime of FeTe$_{(1-x)}$Se$_x$, there exist two types of vortices which are distinct by the presence or absence of zero energy states in their core. To understand their origin, we examine the interplay of Zeeman coupling and superconducting pairings in three-dimensional metals with band inversion. Weak Zeeman fields are found to suppress the intra-orbital spin-singlet pairing, known to localize the states at the ends of the vortices on the surface. On the other hand, an orbital-triplet pairing is shown to be stable against Zeeman interactions, but leads to delocalized zero-energy Majorana modes which extend through the vortex. In contrast, the finite-energy vortex modes remain localized at the vortex ends even when the pairing is of orbital-triplet form. Phenomenologically, this manifests as an observed disappearance of zero-bias peaks within the cores of topological vortices upon increase of the applied magnetic field. The presence of magnetic impurities in FeTe$_{(1-x)}$Se$_x$, which are attracted to the vortices, would lead to such Zeeman-induced delocalization of Majorana modes in a fraction of vortices that capture a large enough number of magnetic impurities. Our results provide an explanation to the dichotomy between topological and non-topological vortices recently observed in FeTe$_{(1-x)}$Se$_x$.