The BCS Gap equation within the van Hove scenario of high-Tc superconductivity

We give an analytical approximation for the BCS Gap equation of an extended van Hove singularity. This model explains the high transition temperature T_c and the low isotope exponents for small coupling parametersN ₀V.     

Plasmons and phonons in anisotropic systems and their effect on high-Tc superconductivity

The structure of the plasmon and phonon bands in conducting, highly anisotropic layered materials is studied. The observed high superconducting transition temperatures are caused, in our view, by the coexistence of strong electronphonon coupling and the plasmon mechanism. A generalized Eliashberg equation describing the effects of phonons and plasmons on the pairing is presented. Our approach is based on the method of thermodynamic Green's functions. We point out connections to experiments and briefly comment on other models.     

Stripes, non-fermi-liquid behavior, and high-T c superconductivity

The electronic structure of the high-T_c. cuprates is studied in terms of “large-U” and “small-U” orbitals. A striped structure and three types of quasiparticles are obtained, polaron-like “stripons” carrying charge, “svivons” carrying spin, and “quasielectrons” carrying both. The anomalous properties are explained, and specifically the behavior of the resistivity. Hall constant, and thermoelectric power. High-temperature superconductivity results from transitions between pair states of quasielectrons and stripons.     

Magnetic hysteresis of the zero-resistance critical temperature of high-Tc granular superconductors

We have found a notorious hysteretic behavior in the dependence of the zero-resistance critical temperature obtained through resistivity () versus temperature (T) measurements with applied field (H _e ) in High-T _c granular superconductors. This behavior is explained semi-quantitatively based on the analogy between the present observation and a similar hysteresis found in the field dependence of the transport critical current in these materials.     

Video detection of microwaves using high-Tc Y-Ba-Cu-O thin films

Microwave video detection (demodulation) studies were carried out on high-T _c thin films at 64 K. The amplitudes of the video detection signal varies linearly with incident microwave power. The microwave response shows a peak at an optimum bias current. The shape analysis of the demodulated signal indicates the nonbolometric nature of the detector.     

Theory of superconductivity. 3. 2D conduction bands for high Tc. Bose-Einstein condensation transition of the third order

A general theory of superconductivity is developed, starting with a BCS Hamiltonian in which the interaction strengths (V ₁₁,V ₂₂,V ₁₂) among and between electron (1) and hole (2) Cooper pairs are differentiated, and identifying electrons (holes) with positive (negative) masses as those Bloch electrons moving on the empty (filled) side of the Fermi surface. The supercondensate is shown to be composed of equal numbers of electron and hole ground (zero-momentum) Cooper pairs with charges ±2e and different masses. This picture of a neutral supercondensate naturally explains the London rigidity and the meta-stability of the supercurrent ring. It is proposed that for a compound conductor the supercondensate is formed between electron and hole Fermi energy sheets with the aid of optical phonons having momenta greater than the minimum distance (momentum) between the two sheets. The proposed model can account for the relatively short coherence lengths observed for the compound superconductors including intermetallic compound, organic, and cuprous superconductors. In particular, the model can explain why these compounds are type II superconductors in contrast with type I elemental superconductors whose condensate is mediated by acoustic phonons. A cuprous superconductor has 2D conduction bands due to its layered perovskite lattice structure. Excited (nonzero momentum) Cooper pairs (bound by the exchange of optical phonons) aboveT _c are shown to move like free bosons with the energy-momentum relation=1/2v_Fq. They undergo a Bose-Einstein condensation atT _c = 0.977v _F k _b ^–1 n ^1/2, wheren is the number density of the Cooper pairs. The relatively high value ofT _c (100 K) arises from the fact that the densityn is high:n ^1/2–1 10⁷ cm^–1. The phase transition is of the third order, and the heat capacity has a reversed lambda ()-like peak atT _c .     

Hysteresis in theIc(H) characteristics of high-temperature superconducting ceramics and thin films

The experimental hysteretic behavior of the transport critical current observed in ceramic Y-Ba-Cu-O and (Bi-Pb)-Sr-Ca-Cu-O, as well as thin film Y-Ba-Cu-O, are presented. The data are analyzed semiqualitatively. The results show certain similarities among the ceramic samples and the films.     

Theab-plane optical conductivity of high-Tc superconductors

There is anisotropy in theab-plane optical properties of the high-temperature superconductors, both in the normal state and in the superconducting state. In both states, two components appear in the optical conductivity: a free carrier part and a midinfrared component. BelowT _c , the free carriers form the superconducting condensate. In YBa₂Cu₃O_7–, the anisotropy of the penetration depth shows that the chains contribute strongly to this superfluid. In Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈, where chains are absent, there is stillab plane anisotropy. BelowT _c a finite absorption parallelb remains at frequencies as small as 20 meV. This anisotropy could be due to anisotropy either of the superconducting gap or the midinfrared component.     

Effect of Photodoping on the Fiske Resonances of YBa2Cu3Ox Grain Boundary Josephson Junctions

We have expanded our studies on illuminated YBa₂Cu₃O _x grain boundary Josephson junctions (GBJJ) which show both dc Josephson properties (Fraunhofer pattern) and ac Josephson properties (Fiske resonance). Illuminating GBJJs with visible light changes the Josephson coupling. This change is characterized by an increase of the critical current and a large shift in the voltage position of the Fiske resonances. This effect is due to persistent photoinduced superconductivity (PPS) of the oxygen-depleted YBa₂Cu₃O _x barrier, similar to the PPS found in illuminated oxygen-deficient YBa₂Cu₃O _x thin films. From Fiske resonance experiments in GBJJs of different lengths, it is possible to study the velocity of the electromagnetic wave in the barrier and its change after illumination. Information on the parameters of the barrier, before and after illumination, is obtained from this study.     

Ruthenate and Cuprate High-Tc Superconductivity

The onset of superconductivity is 49 K in Cu-doped (but cuprate-plane-free) Sr₂YRuO₆, almost the same as the 45 K onsets in GdSr₂Cu₂RuO₈ and in R_{2 – z} Ce _z Sr₂Cu₂RuO₁₀ (for R = Gd or Eu), implying that the superconductivity in all four compounds originates in the SrO layers, not in the cuprate-planes. Muon studies show that the superconducting condensate in YBa₂Cu₃O₇ is either s-wave or extended s-wave, not d-wave, confirming earlier work.     

Is Tl2Ba2CuO6 a superconductor-metal array?

From structural analysis we have shown in a previous investigation that the series TlBa₂Ca _n Cu _n+1O_2n+5 and Tl₂Ba₂Ca _n Cu _n+1O_2n+6 are composed of superconductor-semiconductor arrays. In this paper, we demonstrate that the unit cell of the Tl₂Ba₂Ca _n Cu _n+1O_2n+6 series can further be viewed as composed of a composite block of superconductor-metal-semiconductor, where TlBa₂CuO₅ is the fundamental superconductor, TlO the metallic unit, and CaCuO₂ the semiconductor block. It is indicated that theT _c of Tl(2201) can be deduced from that of Tl(1201) based on Kresin's model of composite systems.     

Exchange-correlation effects on the superconductivity of a layered two-dimensional system

The effects of the Hubbard exchange-correlation term G(k) on the normal and superconducting state properties of a layered 2D system has been investigated. It is shown that it can induce a metal-insulator phase transition when the condition PF1/c, where c is the interlayer separation, is satisfied. For lower carrier densities, the plasmon-mediated superconductivity is suppressed, whereas at higher densities superconductivity can exist with T_c having a bell-shape dependence on the carrier density.     

Superconductivity in epitaxial Bi2Sr2CuO6/Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8 superlattices: The superconducting behavior of ultrathin cuprate slabs

Utilizing atomic layer-by-layer molecular beam epitaxy (ALL-MBE), we have synthesized a series of high-quality superlattices in which ultrathin slabs (one-half unit cell thick) of the high-T _c superconductor Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈ alternate with up to five such layers of the low-T _c Bi₂Sr₂Cu₁O₆ phase. In all these superlattices we foundT _c to be essentially equal to that of the high-T _c Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈ phase itself, which indicates that this cuprate is a 2D superconductor insofar as the interslab coupling plays at best a secondary role. Furthermore, it is demonstrated thatT _c need not be reduced at heterostructure interfaces.     

Specific heat of the high-Tc oxide superconductors

We review the specific heat measurements on La₂CuO₄, La_2–xM_xCuO₄ (M = Ca, Sr, and Ba), YBa₂Cu₃O₇, and the Bi-Ca-Sr-Cu-O and Tl-Ca-Ba-Cu-O systems. Tables of properties derived from the data are presented. Results on RBa₂Cu₃O₇ (R=rare earth elements other than Y) are summarized, as are results on YBa₂(Cu_3–xM_x)O₇ (M=Zn, Cr, Fe, or Ni). The difficulties of analyzing the specific heat data, and specifically the separation of the contributions associated with magnetic impurities, are discussed. It is tentatively concluded that the data nearT _c are consistent with BCS theory, although they show evidence of fluctuation effects. It is also concluded that the low-temperature zero-field data on a majority of the high-T _c oxide superconductors provide evidence of anintrinsic term that is proportional toT, a result that is inconsistent with a gap in the electronic density of states.     

On the characteristic voltage of high-Tc superconductors

The critical currents and normal resistances of the small bridges from yttrium-based high-T _c superconducting ceramics have been measured. The characteristic voltage of these bridges was found to be approximately 20 V. This effect can be explained if, between the ceramic grains, there are contacts of an order of one crystalline cell in size.The authors are grateful to V. N. Polushkin for his help in this investigation.     

Measurements of the surface resistance of high-Tc superconductors at high RF fields

We report measurements of the r.f. surface resistance of a wide variety of high-T _c superconductors in bulk form and as films on silver substrates. Several apparatuses have been constructed and used for measurements at frequencies from 0.15 to 40 GHz and r.f. surface magnetic fields as high as 640 G. In every case in which the field dependence of the surface resistance was measured, the surface resistance increased monotonically with field amplitude through a transition region characterized by a strong field dependence. It then saturated at high field at a value of a few percent of the normal-state surface resistance just aboveT _c . In the presence of this field dependence, the frequency dependence of the surface resistance changed from quadratic to less than linear.     

Influence of long-range and strong correlation effects on the electron-phonon coupling in high-Tc oxides

Calculations of the Eliashberg function ²F and the corresponding transport function _tr ² F for high-T _c oxides are presented using a screened ionic model (rigidly shifted ionic potentials screened by charge carriers in the CuO₂ planes within the RPA) for the electron-phonon coupling. It is shown that this model yields a large difference between the transport and the superconducting electron-phonon interaction due to imperfect screening and contributions beyond nearest-neighbor interactions. Using these results, the electron and the lattice heat conductivities are calculated both in the normal and the superconducting state and compared with experiment. Finally, effects due to a strong on-site electron-electron repulsion are included in leading order in an 1/N expansion, whereN is the number of spin degrees of freedom. In particular, it is shown for the infiniteU, one-band Hubbard model that correlations tend to suppress _tr ² F strongly and ² F somewhat.The author thanks M. Kulic for discussions and cooperation on the topic discussed in Section 4.     

Quantitative analysis of lattice disorder and superconducting transition in epitaxial YBa2Cu3O6.9 films

We show that the average lattice disorder in YBa₂Cu₃O_6.9 films grown by ion-beam sputtering is homogeneous and can be quantified by introducing the lattice coherence lengthr _c that is extracted from the width of X-ray diffraction rocking curves. The superconducting properties of the films are correlated withr _c T _c decreases with increasing disorder forT _c 10 nm, while the width of the resistive transition and the normal-state resistivity increase.     

Magnetic correlations and disorder in a two-dimensional fermi liquid: Possible important effects for high-Tc superconductors

The influence of magnetic correlations and disorder in a two-dimensional Fermi liquid is considered in connection with the occurrence of the superconducting state. The disorder effect and magnetic correlations work against the superconducting state but at the same time are competitive phenomena. We show that the critical temperature can decrease due to the magnetic correlations and disorder, but the effect of correlations is reduced by the disorder. The electronic mass enhancement has been calculated taking into consideration the magnetic correlation effects and disorder. Its dependence on the concentration impurities, in agreement with the experimental data, shows the importance of the localization effects due to disorder. These results are in agreement with the experimental data obtained for the high critical temperature superconductors.