We realize superconductor-insulator transitions (SIT) in mechanically exfoliated Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+delta}$ (BSCCO) flakes and address simultaneously their transport properties as well as the evolution of density of states. Back-gating via the solid ion conductor engenders a reversible SIT in BSCCO, as lithium ions from the substrate are electrically driven into and out of BSCCO. Scaling analysis indicates that the SIT follows the theoretical description of a two-dimensional quantum phase transition (2D-QPT). We further carry out tunneling spectroscopy in graphite(G)/BSCCO heterojunctions. We observe V-shaped gaps in the critical regime of the SIT. The density of states in BSCCO gets symmetrically suppressed by further going into the insulating regime. Our technique of combining solid state gating with tunneling spectroscopy can be easily applied to the study of other two-dimensional materials.
Establishing the presence and the nature of a quantum critical point in their phase diagram is a central enigma of the high-temperature superconducting cuprates. It could explain their pseudogap and strange metal phases, and ultimately their high superconducting temperatures. Yet, while solid evidences exist in several unconventional superconductors of ubiquitous critical fluctuations associated to a quantum critical point, in the cuprates they remain undetected until now. Here using symmetry-resolved electronic Raman scattering in the cuprate Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+delta}$, we report the observation of enhanced electronic nematic fluctuations near the endpoint of the pseudogap phase. While our data hint at the possible presence of an incipient nematic quantum critical point, the doping dependence of the nematic fluctuations deviates significantly from a canonical quantum critical scenario. The observed nematic instability rather appears to be tied to the presence of a van Hove singularity in the band structure.
Fluctuating superconductivity - vestigial Cooper pairing in the resistive state of a material - is usually associated with low dimensionality, strong disorder or low carrier density. Here, we report single particle spectroscopic, thermodynamic and magnetic evidence for persistent superconducting fluctuations in heavily hole-doped cuprate superconductor Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+delta}$ ($T_c$ = 66~K) despite the high carrier density. With a sign-problem free quantum Monte Carlo calculation, we show how a partially flat band at ($pi$,0) can help enhance superconducting phase fluctuations. Finally, we discuss the implications of an anisotropic band structure on the phase-coherence-limited superconductivity in overdoped cuprates and other superconductors.
In cuprate superconductors, the doping of carriers into the parent Mott insulator induces superconductivity and various other phases whose characteristic temperatures are typically plotted versus the doping level $p$. In most materials, $p$ cannot be determined from the chemical composition, but it is derived from the superconducting transition temperature, $T_mathrm{c}$, using the assumption that $T_mathrm{c}$ dependence on doping is universal. Here, we present angle-resolved photoemission studies of Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+delta}$, cleaved and annealed in vacuum or in ozone to reduce or increase the doping from the initial value corresponding to $T_mathrm{c}=91$ K. We show that $p$ can be determined from the underlying Fermi surfaces and that $in-situ$ annealing allows mapping of a wide doping regime, covering the superconducting dome and the non-superconducting phase on the overdoped side. Our results show a surprisingly smooth dependence of the inferred Fermi surface with doping. In the highly overdoped regime, the superconducting gap approaches the value of $2Delta_0=(4pm1)k_mathrm{B}T_mathrm{c}$
The effects of structural supermodulation with the period $lambda approx26$ AA along the $b$-axis of Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+delta}$ have been observed in photoemission studies from the early days as the presence of diffraction replicas of the intrinsic electronic structure. Although predicted to affect the electronic structure of the Cu-O plane, the influence of supermodulation potential on Cu-O electrons has never been observed in photoemission. In the present study, we clearly see, for the first time, the effects on the Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+delta}$ electronic structure - we observe a hybridization of the intrinsic bands with the supermodulation replica bands in the form of avoided crossings and a corresponding reconstruction of the Fermi surface. We estimate the hybridization gap, $2Delta_hsim25$ meV in the slightly underdoped samples. The hybridization weakens with doping and the anti-crossing can no longer be resolved in strongly overdoped samples. In contrast, the shadow replica, shifted by $(pi, pi)$, is found not to hybridize with the original bands within our detection limits.
Mixing of topological states with superconductivity could result in topological superconductivity with the elusive Majorana fermions potentially applicable in fault-tolerant quantum computing. One possible candidate considered for realization of topological superconductivity is thin bismuth films on Bi$_2$Sr$_2$CaCu$_2$O$_{8+delta}$ (Bi2212). Here, we present angle-resolved and core-level photoemission spectroscopy studies of thin Bi films grown {it in-situ} on as-grown Bi2212 that show the absence of proximity effect. We find that the electron transfer from the film to the substrate and the resulting severe underdoping of Bi2212 at the interface is a likely origin for the absence of proximity effect. We also propose a possible way of preventing a total loss of proximity effect in this system. Our results offer a better and more universal understanding of the film/cuprate interface and resolve many issues related to the proximity effect.