The dispersion of the high-energy phonon modes in the electron doped high-temperature superconductor Nd$_{1.85}$Ce$_{0.15}$CuO$_4$ has been studied by inelastic neutron scattering. The frequencies of phonon modes with Cu-O bond-stretching character drop abruptly when going from the Brillouin zone center along the [100]-direction; this dispersion is qualitatively similar to observations in the hole-doped cuprates. We also find a softening of the bond-stretching modes along the [110]-direction but which is weaker and exhibits a sinusoidal dispersion. The phonon anomalies are discussed in comparison to hole-doped cuprate superconductors and other metallic perovskites.
We use inelastic neutron scattering to probe magnetic excitations of an optimally electron-doped superconductor Nd$_{1.85}$Ce$_{0.15}$CuO$_{4-delta}$ above and below its superconducting transition temperature $T_c=25$ K. In addition to gradually opening a spin pseudo gap at the antiferromagnetic ordering wavevector ${bf Q}=(1/2,1/2,0)$, the effect of superconductivity is to form a resonance centered also at ${bf Q}=(1/2,1/2,0)$ but at energies above the spin pseudo gap. The intensity of the resonance develops like a superconducting order parameter, similar to those for hole-doped superconductors and electron-doped Pr$_{0.88}$LaCe$_{0.12}$CuO$_4$. The resonance is therefore a general phenomenon of cuprate superconductors, and must be fundamental to the mechanism of high-$T_c$ superconductivity.
High-resolution laser-based angle-resolved photoemission measurements have been carried out on the electron-doped (Nd$_{1.85}$Ce$_{0.15}$)CuO$_4$ high temperature superconductor. We have revealed a clear kink at $sim$60 meV in the dispersion along the (0,0)-($pi$,$pi$) nodal direction, accompanied by a peak-dip-hump feature in the photoemission spectra. This indicates that the nodal electrons are coupled to collective excitations (bosons) in electron-doped superconductors, with the phonons as the most likely candidate of the boson. This finding has established a universality of nodal electron coupling in both hole- and electron-doped high temperature cuprate superconductors.
Scanning nano-focused X-ray diffraction (nXRD) and high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM) are used to investigate the crystal structure of ramp-edge junctions between superconducting electron-doped Nd$_text{1.85}$Ce$_text{0.15}$CuO$_text{4}$ and superconducting hole-doped La$_text{1.85}$Sr$_text{0.15}$CuO$_text{4}$ thin films, the latter being the top layer. On the ramp, a new growth mode of La$_text{1.85}$Sr$_text{0.15}$CuO$_text{4}$ with a 3.3 degree tilt of the c-axis is found. We explain the tilt by developing a strain accommodation model that relies on facet matching, dictated by the ramp angle, indicating that a coherent domain boundary is formed at the interface. The possible implications of this growth mode for the creation of artificial domains in morphotropic materials are discussed.
Inelastic neutron scattering measurements on the archetypical electron-doped material Nd{1.85}Ce{0.15}CuO4 up to high relative magnetic field strength, H/Hc2 ~ 50%, reveal a simple linear magnetic-field effect on the superconducting magnetic gap and the absence of field-induced in-gap states. The extrapolated gap-closing field value is consistent with the upper critical field Hc2, and the high-field response resembles that of the paramagnetic normal state.
We study superconducting properties in multilayer thin films consisting of superconducting La$_{1.85}$Sr$_{0.15}$CuO$_4$ (LSCO) and Mott insulator Sr$_2$IrO$_4$ (SIO) and report enhanced superconductivity in optimized sample. These multilayer heterostructures show an increase in superconducting transition temperature ($T_C$) as compared to the single layer LSCO films. The temperature dependence of SIO single layer is also investigated under thermal activation, Arrhenius-type behaviour, and variable-range hopping mechanisms for different temperature regimes. The decrease in $T_C$ beyond an optimum thickness of LSCO in these multilayers is analyzed in the framework of a model based on the assumption of induced superconductivity in SIO-LSCO interface due to the doping of La and/or oxygen deficiencies into SIO layers