No Arabic abstract
The Raman response in a superconductor is a powerful probe to investigate the symmetry of the superconducting gap. Here we show that in a multiband superconductor it also offers the unique opportunity to establish if the driving pairing interaction has an intraband or interband character. In the model with one hole and one electron band the full gauge-invariant Raman response, obtained by accounting for the fluctuations of both the density and superconducting phase degrees of freedom, is always dominated by the Leggett mode, regardless its nature. However, while in the case of intra-band dominated pairing the Josephson-like phase fluctuations of the two condensates identify a well-defined peak, as observed in MgB$_2$, for dominant interband pairing the Leggett resonance is pushed at twice the largest gap, resembling apparently a pair-breaking peak. The latter case is in very good agreement with experimental data in iron-based superconductors, suggesting that an interband pairing mechanism should be at play in these systems. These results have also interesting implications for the non-linear optical response probed by means of intense THz fields.
In superconductors the Anderson-Higgs mechanism allows for the existence of a collective amplitude (Higgs) mode which can couple to light only in a non-linear Raman-like process. While the observed properties of the Higgs mode in conventional, isotropic superconductors can be explained in a mean-field picture, strong interaction effects with other modes in anisotropic d-wave superconductors are likely. Here we calculate the Raman contribution of the Higgs mode from a new perspective, including many-body Higgs oscillations effects and their consequences in steady-state Raman spectroscopy. This solves the long-standing problem of the A1g symmetry Raman spectrum in d-wave superconductors. In order to test our theory, we predict the presence of measurable characteristic oscillations in THz quench-optical probe time-dependent reflectivity experiments.
Iron-based superconducting layered compounds have the second highest transition temperature after cuprate superconductors. Their discovery is a milestone in the history of high-temperature superconductivity and will have profound implications for high-temperature superconducting mechanism as well as industrial applications. Raman scattering has been extensively applied to correlated electron systems including the new superconductors due to its unique ability to probe multiple primary excitations and their coupling. In this review, we will give a brief summary of the existing Raman experiments in the iron-based materials and their implication for pairing mechanism in particular. And we will also address some open issues from the experiments.
The vortex of iron-based superconductors is emerging as a promising platform for Majorana zero mode, owing to a magic integration among intrinsic vortex winding, non-trivial band topology, strong electron-electron correlations, high-Tc superconductivity and the simplification of single material. It overcomes many difficulties suffered in heterostructure-based Majorana platforms, including small topological gap, interfacial contamination, lattice imperfections, and etc. Isolated zero-bias peaks have been found in vortex of several iron-based superconductors. So far, studies from both experimental and theoretical aspects strongly indicate the realization of vortex Majorana zero mode, with a potential to be applied to topological quantum computation. By taking Fe(Te,Se) superconductor as an example, here we review original idea and research progress of Majorana zero modes in this new platform. After introducing the identifications of topological band structure and real zero modes in vortex, we summarize the physics behaviors of vortex Majorana zero modes systematically. Firstly, relying on the behavior of the zero mode wave function and evidence of quasiparticle poisoning, we analyze the mechanism of emergence of vortex Majorana zero modes. Secondly, assisted with some well-established theories, we elaborate the measurements on Majorana symmetry and topological nature of vortex Majorana zero modes. After that, we switch from quantum physics to quantum engineering, and analyze the performance of vortex Majorana zero mode under real circumstances, which may potentially benefit the exploration of practical applications in the future. This review follows the physics properties of vortex Majorana zero modes, especially emphasizes the link between phenomena and mechanisms. It provides a chance to bridge the gap between the well-established theories and the newly discovered iron home of Majoranas.
We report Raman scattering measurement of charge nematic fluctuations in the tetragonal phase of BaFe$_2$As$_2$ and Sr(Fe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$)$_2$As$_2$ (x=0.04) single crystals. In both systems, the observed nematic fluctuations are found to exhibit divergent Curie-Weiss like behavior with very similar characteristic temperature scales, indicating a universal tendency towards charge nematic order in 122 iron-based superconductors.
Electron-phonon coupling (EPC) is one of the most common and fundamental interactions in solids. It not only dominates many basic dynamic processes like resistivity, thermal conductivity etc, but also provides the pairing glue in conventional superconductors. But in high-temperature superconductors (HTSC), it is still controversial whether or not EPC is in favor of paring. Despite the controversies, many experiments have provided clear evidence for EPC in HTSC. In this paper, we briefly review EPC in cuprate and iron-based superconducting systems revealed by Raman scattering. We introduce how to extract the coupling information through phonon lineshape. Then we discuss the strength of EPC in different HTSC systems and possible factors affecting the strength. The comparative study between Raman phonon theories and experiments allows us to gain insight into some crucial electronic properties, especially superconductivity. Finally we summarize and compare EPC in the two existing HTSC systems, and discuss what role it may play in HTSC.