Enhancement of the superconducting transition temperature of MgB2 by a strain-induced bond-stretching mode softening

We report a systematic increase of the superconducting transition temperature T(c) with a biaxial tensile strain in MgB2 films to well beyond the bulk value. The tensile strain increases with the MgB2 film thickness, caused primarily by the coalescence of initially nucleated discrete islands (the Volmer-Weber growth mode.) The T(c) increase was observed in epitaxial films on SiC and sapphire substrates, although the T(c) values were different for the two substrates due to different lattice parameters and thermal expansion coefficients. We identified, by first-principles calculations, the underlying mechanism for the T(c) increase to be the softening of the bond-stretching E(2g) phonon mode, and we confirmed this conclusion by Raman scattering measurements. The result suggests that the E(2g) phonon softening is a possible avenue to achieve even higher T(c) in MgB2-related material systems.     

Enhancing the superconducting transition temperature of the heavy fermion compound CeIrIn5 in the absence of spin correlations

We report on a pressure- (P-)induced evolution of superconductivity and spin correlations in CeIrIn(5) via the (115)In nuclear-spin-lattice-relaxation rate measurements. We find that applying pressure suppresses dramatically the antiferromagnetic fluctuations that are strong at ambient pressure. At P = 2.1 GPa, T(c) increases to T(c) = 0.8 K, which is twice T(c) (P = 0 GPa), in the background of Fermi-liquid state. This is in sharp contrast to the previous case in which a negative, chemical pressure (replacing Ir with Rh) enhances magnetic interaction and increases T(c). Our results suggest that multiple mechanisms work to produce superconductivity in the same compound CeIrIn(5).     

Ab initio calculation of the superconducting transition temperature

The superconducting transition temperature is calculated for a series of representative metals from a selfconsistent LMTO-bandstructure calculation. We carefully avoid any uncontrolled approximations apart from the use of a local exchange-correlation potential and the rigid-ion approximation for the electron-phonon interaction, Our results for V, Nb, Ta, Mo, W, Pd, Pt, Pb clearly indicate that these popular approximations are incapable of reproducing the observed transition temperatures.     

On the superconducting transition temperature for metallic nanocrystals

A new approach is proposed for calculating the Debye temperature of a nanocrystal in the form of an n-dimensional rectangular parallelepiped with an arbitrary microstructure and the number of atoms N ranging from 2ⁿ to infinity. The geometric shape of the system is determined by the lateral-to-basal edge ratio of the parallelepiped. The size dependences of the Debye and melting temperatures for a number of materials are calculated using the derived relationship. The theoretical curves thus obtained agree well with the experimental data. The calculated dependences of the superconducting transition temperature T _c on the size d of aluminum, indium, and lead nanocrystals are also in reasonable agreement with the experimental estimates of T _c (d). It is demonstrated that, as the nanocrystal size d decreases, the greater the deviation of the nanocrystal shape from an equilibrium shape (in our case, a cube), the higher the temperature of the superconducting transition T _c (d). The superconducting transition temperature is calculated as a function of the thickness (diameter) of a plate (rod) with an arbitrary length. It is found that a decrease in the thickness (diameter) of the plate (rod) leads to an increase in the temperature T _c (z): the looser the microstructure of the metallic nanocrystal, the higher the temperature T _c (z).     

Oscillations of the superconducting transition temperature in aluminum films

Oscillations of the superconducting transition temperature of thin Al-films have been observed during deposition of siliconmonoxide SiO. Friedel oscillations as well as the quantum size effect may account for the observations.     

Influence of correlated spins on the superconducting transition temperature

Using a variational procedure, the depression of the superconducting transition temperature by a system of correlated moving spins is calculated. In particular, corrections to the Abrikosov-Gorkov theory in the neighbourhood of a magnetic phase transition are examined. Characteristic differences in the concentration dependence of the superconducting transition temperature are found in the cases of ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic spin correlations.     

Theory of the superconducting proximity effect below the transition temperature

The form of the low-temperature theory of the superconducting proximity effect depends on whether the non-linear terms are assumed to depend only on the local value of the gap or on its average value over some finite range. The local assumption leads to smaller values of the gap and to unphysical results at low temperatures. The effect of non-locality is significant even in the Ginsburg-Landau regime.     

Enhancements of the superconducting transition temperature within the two-band model

The two-band model as introduced by Suhl, Matthias and Walker [Phys. Rev. Lett. 3, 552 (1959)] accounts for multiple energy bands in the vicinity of the Fermi energy which could contribute to electron pairing in superconducting systems. Here, extensions of this model are investigated wherein the effects of coupled superconducting order parameters with different symmetries and the presence of strong electron-lattice coupling on the superconducting transition temperature T_c are studied . Substantial enhancements of T_c are obtained from both effects.Received: 2 July 2003, Published online: 2 April 2004PACS: 74.20.-z Theories and models of superconducting state     

On some recent results concerning the superconducting transition temperature

The Eliashberg gap equations relate the transition temperature T_c of an isotropic superconductor to its electron-phonon spectral function α²F(ω) and Coulomb pseudopotential parameter $\text{μ}{}^1$. Recently the Eliashberg theory has been used to derive some supposedly rigorous results bearing on the problem of attaining higher superconducting transition temperatures: Bergmann and Rainer derived an expression for the functional derivative $\text{δT}{}_{\mathrm{c}}\text{δα}{}^2\text{F(ω)}$; Allen and Dynes showed that in the asymptotic limit of very large $\text{λ(λ?10)k}{}_{\mathrm{B}}\text{T}{}_{\mathrm{c}}\text{=f(μ}{}^1\text{)(λ〈ω}{}^2\text{〉)}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>1</mtext><mtext>2</mtext>}}$ and Leavens proved that for any isotropic superconductor k_BT_c ?0.2309A, where A is the area under its electron-phonon spectral function. In this letter we show that the result of Allen and Dynes is not compatible with the other results and is, in fact, incorrect.     

A least upper bound on the superconducting transition temperature

It is rigorously shown that the superconducting transition temperature of any material for which the Eliashberg theory is valid must satisfy k_BT_c ? 0.2309 A, where A is the area under its electron-phonon spectral function α²F(ω). This relation is a least upper bound, not just an upper bound, in the sense that there is an optimal situation in which the equality holds. This occurs when the Coulomb pseudopotential parameter $\text{μ}{}^1$ is zero and the spectral function is the Einstein spectrum Aδ(ω ? 1.750 A). These results are generalized in an approximate, but sufficiently accurate, way to the case $\text{μ}{}^1\text{≠ 0}$ to obtain the more useful least upper bound $\text{k}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>B</mtext>}}\text{T}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>c</mtext>}}\text{? c(μ}{}^1\text{) A}$ and the corresponding optimal spectrum $\text{Aδ[ω ? d(μ}{}^1\text{)A]}$. Numerical results for the functions $\text{c(μ}{}^1\text{)}$ and d(μ¹) are presented for $\text{0 ? μ}{}^1\text{? 0.20}$. It is shown that the T_c's of many materials (including Nb₃Sn), for which experimental values of A and $\text{μ}{}^1$ are available, do not lie very far below the upper bound.     

Pressure dependence of the superconducting transition temperature of the stage-2 potassium mercurographitide intercalation compound

Measurements of the pressure (P) dependence of the superconducting transition temperature T_c of stage-two KHgC₈ are reported. T_c is found to decrease with applied pressure from a room pressure value of 1.85K at a rate dT_c/dP=-6.5 × 10^-5K/bar, similar to typical superconducting elements such as Sn. No superconductivity was detected for stage-one KHgC₄ or K_0.5Hg_0.5 amalgam to a limiting temperature T = 1.3K and a limiting pressure P = 22 kbar. These results are discussed in reference to the possible occurence of structural and charge density wave transitions in these materials and recent theoretical models of superconducting graphire intercalation compounds.     

Numerical test of approximate theories of the superconducting transition temperature

Various equations for t_c obtained from approximations to the Eliashberg theory are numerically solved and T_cvs λ curves are drawn. Specifically, the weak coupling Kirzhnits, Maksimov and Khomskii (KMK) equation, Eliashberg equation and BCS equation with Bardeen Pines interaction are considered with the α²F function of Nb. The KMK equation gives quite a high value or T_c and the BCS equation overestimates T_c by an even larger factor when compared with the results of the Eliashberg equation.     

Effect of interlayer single-particle hoppings on the superconducting transition temperature

It is well known that the superconducting transition temperature of high-T _c cuprates depends on the number of CuO₂ planes in the unit cell. The multilayer structure implies the possibility of interlayer hopping. Under the assumption that the interlayer hopping can be specified by the parameter t _⊥(k) = t _⊥(cos(k _x ) − cos(k _y ))², the quasiparticle excitation spectrum for the bilayer cuprate in the superconducting state has been determined in the framework of the t − t′ − t″ − t _⊥ − J* model using the generalized mean-field approximation. It turns out that the interlayer hoppings does not create any additional mechanism of the Cooper paring and does not lead to an increase in T _c . The splitting of the upper Hubbard quasiparticle band attributed to the interlayer hoppings is manifested as two peaks in the doping dependence of the superconducting transition temperature at temperatures below the maximum T _c value for a single-layer cuprate. It has been found that antiferromagnetic interlayer correlations suppress the interlayer splitting. This probably leads to the common doping dependence of T _c for both single-layer and bilayer cuprates.     

Doping dependence of the superconducting transition temperature in high-Tc systems

Using a self consistent diagrammatic theory of the one band Hubbard model, a suppression of the superfluid density due to spin fluctuation induced scattering rates is found. This is most pronounced for underdoped systems and enforces fluctuations of the superconducting order parameter and a suppression of the superconducting mean field transition temperature for low doping. Consequently, an optimal doping concentration around χ_opt: = 0:14 occurs within the spin fluctuation mechanism.     

Angular dependence of the superconducting transition temperature in ferromagnet-superconductor-ferromagnet trilayers

The superconducting transition temperature T(c) of a ferromagnet (F)-superconductor (S)-ferromagnet trilayer depends on the mutual orientation of the magnetic moments of the F layers. This effect has been previously observed in F/S/F systems as a T(c) difference between parallel and antiparallel configurations of the F layers. Here we report measurements of T(c) in CuNi/Nb/CuNi trilayers as a function of the angle between the magnetic moments of the CuNi ferromagnets. The observed angular dependence of T(c) is in qualitative agreement with a F/S proximity theory that accounts for the odd triplet component of the condensate predicted to arise for noncollinear orientation of the magnetic moments of the F layers.     

Synthesis of high transition temperature superconducting Y-Ba-Cu-Ofilms by radio-frequency plasma flash evaporation

The authors have successfully developed a novel process for the deposition of multicomponent systems, namely radio-frequency (RF) plasma flash evaporation, in which powder mixtures of constituents are continuously injected into a RF plasma and are coevaporated and codeposited onto a substrate. The Y-Ba-Cu-O films prepared by this method showed excellent superconducting properties without postannealing; a deposition rate above several hundred nm/min was achieved. The film deposited on a MgO (100) substrate at 700°C reveals c-axis-oriented, polycrystalline orthorhombic oxygen-deficient perovskite showing a superconducting transition temperature of 87 K and a critical current density on the order of 1×10⁶ A/cm² at 77 K estimated from the magnetization. The conditions of plasmas during the deposition were measured by optical emission spectroscopy     

Calculated Nb superconducting transition temperature under hydrostatic pressure

Abstract

A full-potential linear muffin-tin orbital method (FP-LMTO) based linear-response approach is used to calculate the electron-phonon coupling in Nb under hydrostatic pressure. The superconducting transition temperature T_c is calculated using the Eliashberg equation. The calculated T_c agrees nicely with the experimental result at ambient pressure, but the agreement is only fair at high pressures. The T_c measured anomaly at 60–70GPa is understood in terms of the 2.5 order Lifshitz transition and its origin is traced back to the qualitative changes in the Fermi surface topology.