No Arabic abstract
The temperature dependence of the in-plane magnetic penetration depth ($lambda_{ab}$) in an extensively characterized sample of superconducting CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ ($T_{rm c}simeq35$ K) was investigated using muon-spin rotation ($mu$SR). A comparison of $lambda_{ab}^{-2}(T)$ measured by $mu$SR with the one inferred from ARPES data confirms the presence of multiple gaps at the Fermi level. An agreement between $mu$SR and ARPES requires the presence of additional bands, which are not resolved by ARPES experiments. These bands are characterized by small supercondcting gaps with an average zero-temperature value of $Delta_{0} =$ 2.4(2) meV. Our data suggest that in CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ the $s^pm$ order parameter symmetry acquires a more sophisticated form by allowing a sign change not only between electron and hole pockets, but also within pockets of similar type.
We analyze the electronic properties of the recently discovered stoichiometric superconductor CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ by combining an ab initio approach and a projection of the band structure to a lowenergy tight-binding Hamiltonian, based on the maximally localized Wannier orbitals of the 3d Fe states. We identify the key symmetries as well as differences and similarities in the electronic structure between CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ and the parent systems CaFe$_2$As$_2$ and KFe$_2$As$_2$. In particular, we find CaKFe4As4 to have a significantly more quasi-two-dimensional electronic structure than the latter systems. Finally, we study the superconducting instabilities in CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ by employing the leading angular harmonics approximation (LAHA) and find two potential A$_{1g}$-symmetry representation of the superconducting gap to be the dominant instabilities in this system.
The magnetic penetration depth anisotropy $gamma_lambda=lambda_{c}/lambda_{ab}$ ($lambda_{ab}$ and $lambda_{c}$ are the in-plane and the out-of-plane components of the magnetic penetration depth) in a CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ single crystal sample (the critical temperature $T_{rm c}simeq 35$ K) was studied by means of muon-spin rotation ($mu$SR). $gamma_lambda$ is almost temperature independent for $Tlesssim 20$ K ($gamma_lambdasimeq 1.9$) and it reaches $simeq 3.0$ by approaching $T_{rm c}$. The change of $gamma_lambda$ induces the corresponding rearrangement of the flux line lattice (FLL), which is clearly detected via enhanced distortions of the FLL $mu$SR response. Comparison of $gamma_lambda$ with the anisotropy of the upper critical field ($gamma_{H_{rm c2}}$) studied in Phys. Rev B {bf 94}, 064501 (2016), reveals that $gamma_lambda$ is systematically higher than $gamma_{H_{rm c2}}$ at low-temperatures and approaches $gamma_{H_{rm c2}}$ for $T rightarrow T_{rm c}$. The anisotropic properties of $lambda$ are explained by the multi-gap nature of superconductivity in CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ and are caused by anisotropic contributions of various bands to the in-plane and the out-of-plane components of the superfluid density.
Measurements of the London penetration depth and tunneling conductance in single crystals of the recently discovered stoicheometric, iron - based superconductor, CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ (CaK1144) show nodeless, two effective gap superconductivity with a larger gap of about 6-9 meV and a smaller gap of about 1-4 meV. Having a critical temperature, $T_{c,onset}approx$35.8 K, this material behaves similar to slightly overdoped Ba$_{1-x}$K$_x$)Fe$_2$As$_2$ (e.g. $x=$0.54, $T_c approx$ 34 K)---a known multigap $s_{pm}$ superconductor. We conclude that the superconducting behavior of stoichiometric CaK1144 demonstrates that two-gap $s_{pm}$ superconductivity is an essential property of high temperature superconductivity in iron - based superconductors, independent of the degree of substitutional disorder.
We report the temperature-pressure phase diagram of CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ established using high pressure electrical resistivity, magnetization and high energy x-ray diffraction measurements up to 6 GPa. With increasing pressure, both resistivity and magnetization data show that the bulk superconducting transition of CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ is suppressed and then disappears at $p$ $gtrsim$ 4 GPa. High pressure x-ray data clearly indicate a phase transition to a collapsed tetragonal phase in CaKFe$_4$As$_4$ under pressure that coincides with the abrupt loss of bulk superconductivity near 4 GPa. The x-ray data, combined with resistivity data, indicate that the collapsed tetragonal transition line is essentially vertical, occuring at 4.0(5) GPa for temperatures below 150 K. Band structure calculations also find a sudden transition to a collapsed tetragonal state near 4 GPa, as As-As bonding takes place across the Ca-layer. Bonding across the K-layer only occurs for $p$ $geq$ 12 GPa. These findings demonstrate a new type of collapsed tetragonal phase in CaKFe$_4$As$_4$: a half-collapsed-tetragonal phase.
We employ polarization-resolved Raman spectroscopy to study multi-band stoichiometric superconductor CaKFe$_4$As$_4$. The B$_{2g}$ symmetry Raman response shows no signatures of Pomeranchuk-like electronic nematic fluctuations which is observed for many other Fe-based superconductors. In the superconducting state, we identify three pair-breaking peaks at 13.8, 16.9 and 21 meV and full spectral weight suppression at low energies. The pair-breaking peak energies in Raman response are about 20% lower than twice the gap energies as measured by single-particle spectroscopy, implying a sub-dominant $d$-wave symmetry interaction. We analyze the superconductivity induced phonon self-energy effects and give an estimation of weak electron-phonon coupling constant $lambda^Gamma$=0.0015.