Fermi Surface Map of the Single-Layer Bi-Cuprate Bi2Sr2 ? xLaxCuO6 + δ at Optimal Doping

A first Fermi surface map of a single-layer high-T _c superconductor is presented. The experiments were carried out on optimally doped Bi₂Sr_{2 – x}La_xCuO_{6 +} (x = 0.40) with synchrotron radiation which allow to discuss in detail the strong polarization dependence of the emissions near the Fermi edge. For the cuprates, only little is known about the impact of the electron–photon matrix element determining the photoelectron intensity. For the example of the model layered superconductor Bi₂Sr_{2 – x}La_xCuO_{6 +} , it will be demonstrated that the polarization geometry has significant influence on the energy distribution curves at E _F, and consequently also for the determination of the topology and character of the Fermi surface (FS) by angle-resolved photoemission. For further clarification also, a FS map of the n = 2 material Bi-2212 has been measured applying a different polarization geometry as previously used by Saini et al. In the context of the current debate on the character of the FS of Bi-cuprates, our results confirm a hole-like FS for n = 1 as well as for n = 2 material, what might be the universal FS for high-T _c superconductors.     

Studies on (Hg0.7Mo0.3)Sr2(Sr1?xLax)Cu2Oz with a Wide Range of Doping State

The single-phased series of Sr-bearing Hg-1212 superconducting cuprate,(Hg_0.7Mo_0.3)Sr₂(Sr_1–x La _x )Cu₂O _z has been prepared. X-ray diffraction showed that, the obtained samples belong to the 1212-structure with tetragonal space group P4/mmm, similar to that of (Hg, Mo)Sr₂(Ca, Y)Cu₂O_z, and stabilized in a wide compositional range of 0.25x0.75. Refinements of the structure are carried out in which the oxygen atoms at the (Hg, Mo) layer is shifted from high-symmetry position (0.5, 0.5, 0) to (x, x, 0). Magnetization and electrical resistivity measurements show that the as-prepared samples exhibit evidence for superconductivity and their superconducting properties were improved after O₂ annealing with T ^onset _c as high as 92 K.     

XRD and PES Studies of the Bi2Sr2Ca1?xPrxCu2O8+δ System

The Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈₊ system samples doped with Pr on Ca sites were synthesized. Resistivity measurements, x-ray powder diffraction, and photoemission experiments were performed. The experiment results show that Pr ions entered the lattice and chemical environment plays a major role in the shift of core-level spectra and valence-band spectra.     

On the nano-size intergrowth of Sr4Fe6O13±δ and (Sr1?xLax)FeO3?δ phases in the mixed conductor Sr3.6La0.4Fe6Oz

The microstructures of mixed-conducting Sr₄Fe₆O_13±, and Sr_3.6La_0.4Fe₆O _z (nominal composition) have been studied by electron microscopy. The lanthanum free material shows a microstructure containing mainly Sr₄Fe₆O_13±, with some 5 vol% Sr_1–y La _y Fe₁₂O₁₉embedded as micron-size inclusions. The lanthanum-containing material revealed a significantly different microstructure consisting of 20 vol% micron-size Sr_1–y La _y Fe₁₂O₁₉embedded in 40 vol% (Sr_0.85La_0.15)FeO_3–tetragonal perovskite, and 40 vol% of plate-shaped nano-scale intergrowths between (Sr_1–x La _x )FeO_3–and Sr₄Fe₆O_13±phases. Domains with dimensions of 20–50 nm are observed in the tetragonal perovskite when viewed along its fourfold axis. From compositional analysis it is concluded that there is little or no solubility of La in the Sr₄Fe₆O_13±phase. The observed microstructure is important input in explaining the significant effect of La addition on the transport properties of Sr₄Fe₆O_13±materials.     

Synthesis of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ Single Crystals by Alumina Crucible

Journal of Superconductivity and Novel Magnetism - The contamination by alumina crucible and the effect of Al impurity on the crystal growth of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ are always a thorny problem. In...     

Substitution Effect of Sn for Cu in the Bi2Sr2CaCu2?xSnxO8+δ System

The Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈₊ system samples doped with Sn on Cu sites were synthesized. Resistivity temperature dependence, X-ray powder diffraction and photoemission experiments have been performed. Suppression of superconductivity in the Sn-doped Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈₊ system has been observed. X-ray photoemission measurements show that Sn ion enters the lattice. Our results reveal that Sn ions are mostly in bivalent states.     

Out-of-Plane Negative Magnetoresistance of Bi2Sr1.6La0.4CuO6+δ Single Crystals in the Underdoped Region

In order to investigate a relationship between the carrier concentration and negative magnetoresistance in the underdoped region, we have performed out-of-plane electrical resistivity measurements for underdoped Bi ₂ Sr _1.6 La _0.4 CuO ₆₊ single crystals. Giant negative magnetoresistance has been observed in the most abundant carrier sample with = 0.12 in our experiment. The negative magnetoresistance reduces with decreasing carrier concentration.     

The Transport Properties of Bi-Riched Bi2Sr2CuO6+δ Single Crystal

As-grown superconducting Bi-riched Bi₂Sr₂CuO₆₊ single crystals have been grown by the traveling solvent floating zone technique. The superconducting transition temperature T _c was about 6 K and the room temperature resistivity was about 2×10^–3 Ohm-cm. Transport properties, such as resistivity, magnetoresistance and Hall effect were measured from overdoped to underdoped samples annealed in inert atmosphere at 650°C. The transition temperature can be raised to 12 K after post annealing. The Hall measurement shows that the hole carrier density decrease after annealing. The temperature dependence of Hall angle is T ^1.5, not quadratic as observed for most high-T _c superconducting oxides such as YBa₂Cu₃O₇. The variation of onset T _c with different external magnetic field is very different from high-T _c superconductors. The in-plane conductivity shows the dependence of ln T and can be explained by weak localization theory.     

Anisotropic Properties of Bi2Sr2?xLaxCu1O6+δ Thin-Films Grown on Vicinal SrTiO3 Substrates

Epitaxial Bi₂Sr_2–xLa _x Cu₁O₆₊ thin films were grown on vicinal substrates by magnetron sputtering. The growth mode and the superconductivity of the thin films were studied. The films were deposited on 5–7° misoriented (100) SrTiO₃ (STO). The surface of misoriented substrate is tilted to the 111 azimuth. The topographies of the Bi-2201 films show strip-like shapes. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) study revealed that the films grew with very good in-plane alignments which were comparable to those of single crystals. Both of the temperature dependence of the a- and c-axis resistivities were studied under magnetic fields. The corresponding anisotropic activation energies and upper critical magnetic fields were investigated.     

Study of Current-Voltage Characteristics of the Mesa-Structured Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ Single Crystals under Magnetic Fields

To study on the interlayer coupling between Cu-O superconducting layers in Bi ₂ Sr ₂ CaCu ₂ O ₈₊ single crystals, we have performed the current-voltage measurements along the c-axis in the magnetic fields perpendicular and parallel to the axis at 4.2K. A pronounced effect of magnetic fields to the current-voltage characteristics appears in the multiple-branch behaviors, when the magnitude of the parallel field exceeds the 2D-3D dimensional-crossover field B _2D . This is considered as a consequence of missing a long-range order of the correlation of the vortex lines along the c-axis.     

Phonon Vibration and Conduction of La2 ? xSrxCuO4 ? δ and La1.85 ? xSr0.15 + xCu1 ? xCoxO4 ? δ

Polycrystalline samples La_{2 – x} Sr _x CuO_{4 –} (0.06 x 0.5) and La_{1.85 – x} Sr_{0.15 + x} Cu_{1 – x} Co _x O_{4 –} (0 x 1) were synthesized by a conventional solid state reaction method. The structure, phonon vibration, and conduction were investigated by means of XRD, infrared (IR) spectra, and resistance. It is found that the increase of itinerant hole carriers could mask the in-plane stretching vibration mode (689 cm^–1). The softening of the phonon vibration mode gives an index of the weakening of hybridization. The distortion of CuO₆ octahedron and the microstructural inhomogeneity induced by Co doping lead to the widening of the IR absorption peaks.     

Studies Of Dynamic Critical Behavior in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ Single Crystals

Up to now, the value of the dynamic critical exponent z is still an open question. We have studied this exponent in the intermediate (XY) critical regime in zero field for a set of high quality Bi ₂ Sr ₂ CaCu ₂ O ₈₊ single crystals both by previously obtained critical exponents of the dc critical conductivity fluctuations [1] and in terms of Fisher-Fisher-Huse (FFH) dynamic scaling [2]. In this regime (i.e. the absence of Coulomb interactions), one would expect model-E dynamics (z = 1.5) to apply with the conserved charge-density conjugate to the phase fluctuations. However, we find the dynamic critical exponent to be z = 2, which is in agreement with the suggestion of FFH that due to the plasma fluctuation, fully relaxational dynamics, model A (z=2), should be appropriate.     

Single Crystals of HgBa2Can?1CunO2n+2+δ (n=1?5) and Layers of HgBa2CuO4+δ Grown at Gas Pressure 10 kbar

Single crystals of Hg-12(n–l) have been grown using high-pressure gas-technique. Due to the high density of Ar gas at 10 kbar the evaporation of Hg is strongly suppresed. An influence of structure defects on magnetic properties will be discussed. Superconducting parameters _ab , _ab and have been studied using torque magnetometry. Layers of Hg-1201 compound have been grown from flux.     

c-axis Superfluid Response and Quasiparticle Conductivity in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ and Bi2Sr2CuO6+δ

Josephson plasma resonance for underdoped Bi ₂ Sr ₂ CaCu ₂ O ₈₊ and Bi ₂ Sr ₂ CuO ₆₊ have been measured by sweeping the microwave, frequency continuously. The resonance enables us to determine the superfluid density and quasiparticle conductivity in the c-axis accurately. We show that the. superfluid response and the low energy excitations out of the condensate in the c-axis of these materials are very different from those in the ordinary Josephson multilayer tunnel junctions. The Josephson coupling energy in single layer Bi ₂ Sr ₂ CuO ₆₊ is more than 5000 times smaller than is predicted in interlayer tunneling model.     

Degradation of Superconductivity in Annealed Irradiated Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ Single Crystals During Exposure to Air

As for irradiated Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O₈₊ single crystals annealed in flowing N₂ atmosphere, flowing O₂ atmosphere, and air, their superconductivity was degraded during exposure to air. The degradation of superconducting transition temperature T _c is attributed to the doping of oxygen. The small recovery of T _c may be related to the redistribution of oxygen. The superconductivity of samples annealed in N₂ atmosphere and air is more stable than that of the sample annealed in O₂ atmosphere during exposure to air.     

Studies of the residual absorption of a Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ single crystal at THz frequencies

We measured the residual absorption of a Bi₂Sr₂ CaCu₂ O₈₊ single crystal at low temperature in the frequency range between 0.6 THz and 4.2 THz using a new method, photothermal interference spectroscopy. By combining with reflectivity data obtained with a Fourier-transform IR spectrometer (frequency range: 3 THz to 100 THz) we have calculated the dynamical conductivity using a Kramers-Kronig-transformation. The results are compared with calculations of the far infrared conductivity and show qualitative features expected for a superconductor with nodes in the gap.     

Microstructure and Physical Properties of Bi1.9+xSr1.7?xLa0.4CuO6 System

The crystal microstructure, superconductivity, and normal state transport properties of Bi_1.9+x Sr_1.7–x La_0.4CuO₆₊(0 x 0.4) system were investigated by means of electron diffraction (ED), resistivity, and TEP. Analyses of the experimental results indicate that with the increase of Bi content, the incommensurate modulation wavelength decreases and the distortion of CuO₆ octahedron enhances. Increasing Bi content decreases the carrier concentration rapidly, and induces an MI transition. The destruction of superconductivity mainly derives from two aspects: the enhancement of structural distortion due to the introduction of more Bi and the variation of the carrier concentration of the system.     

Infrared spectra of bismuth family of superconductors Bi2Sr2Can−1CunO4+2n+y

FTIR spectra of bismuth family of superconductors are studied. Polycrystalline samples of bismuth superconductors are prepared choosing an off-stoichiometric composition for phase stabilisation and reproducibility. Vibrational modes are strongly affected by the holes introduced into the CuO planes. Mid IR spectra of the Bismuth system was recorded using Bruker IFS 66v and the high frequency oxygen vibrations of the system is discussed based on the factor group analysis for both symmorphic and non-symmorphic space groups I4/mmm, F_mmm and A_maa of different structures based on the modulated superstructure.     

Study of Pinning Effects for Vortices in Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ Single Crystals Using a Bitter Decoration Technique

Distribution of vortices has been analyzed to study on the pinning effects of the vortices in Bi ₂ Sr ₂ CaCu ₂ O ₈₊ single crystals, observed with a Bitter decoration technique. On the cleaved surfaces of the samples, vortices are pinned in the disordered configurations at lower magnetic fields, which change to a hexagonal lattice structure with increasing a magnetic field. Furthermore, a dense concentration of vortices has been observed in the voids and on the lower terrace of the steps. These distributions of the vortices are found to be very stable from the estimation of the pinning energy.     

XRD and PES Studies of the Bi2Sr2Ca1−xPrxCu2O8+δ System

The Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O_8+δ system samples doped with Pr on Ca sites were synthesized. Resistivity measurements, x-ray powder diffraction, and photoemission experiments were performed. The experiment results show that Pr ions entered the lattice and chemical environment plays a major role in the shift of core-level spectra and valence-band spectra.