Entropy Evolution in the Magnetic Phases of Partially Frustrated CePdAl.

In the heavy-fermion metal CePdAl, long-range antiferromagnetic order coexists with geometric frustration of one-third of the Ce moments. At low temperatures, the Kondo effect tends to screen the frustrated moments. We use magnetic fields B to suppress the Kondo screening and study the magnetic phase diagram and the evolution of the entropy with B employing thermodynamic probes. We estimate the frustration by introducing a definition of the frustration parameter based on the enhanced entropy, a fundamental feature of frustrated systems. In the field range where the Kondo screening is suppressed, the liberated moments tend to maximize the magnetic entropy and strongly enhance the frustration. Based on our experiments, this field range may be a promising candidate to search for a quantum spin liquid.

Long-range spin-polarized quasiparticle transport in mesoscopic Al superconductors with a Zeeman splitting.

We report on nonlocal transport in multiterminal superconductor-ferromagnet structures, which were fabricated by means of e-beam lithography and shadow evaporation techniques. In the presence of a significant Zeeman splitting of the quasiparticle states, we find signatures of spin transport over distances of several µm, exceeding other length scales such as the coherence length, the normal-state spin-diffusion length, and the charge-imbalance length. The relaxation length of the spin signal shows a nearly linear increase with magnetic field, hinting at a freeze-out of relaxation by the Zeeman splitting. We propose that the relaxation length is given by the recombination length of the quasiparticles rather than a renormalized spin-diffusion length.

Observation of Andreev bound states at spin-active interfaces.

We report on high-resolution differential conductance experiments on nanoscale superconductor-ferromagnet tunnel junctions with ultrathin oxide tunnel barriers. We observe subgap conductance features that are symmetric with respect to bias and shift according to the Zeeman energy with an applied magnetic field. These features can be explained by resonant transport via Andreev bound states induced by spin-active scattering at the interface. From the energy and Zeeman shift of the bound states, both the magnitude and sign of the spin-dependent interfacial phase shifts between spin-up and spin-down electrons can be determined. These results contribute to the microscopic insight into the triplet proximity effect at spin-active interfaces.

Superconductor-insulator quantum phase transition in disordered FeSe thin films.

The evolution of two-dimensional electronic transport with increasing disorder in epitaxial FeSe thin films is studied. Disorder is generated by reducing the film thickness. The extreme sensitivity of the films to disorder results in a superconductor-insulator transition. The finite-size scaling analysis in the critical regime based on the Bose-glass model strongly supports the idea of a continuous quantum phase transition. The obtained value for the critical-exponent product of approximately 7/3 suggests that the transition is governed by quantum percolation. Finite-size scaling with the same critical-exponent product is also substantiated when the superconductor-insulator transition is tuned with an applied magnetic field.

Towards the identification of a quantum critical line in the (p, B) phase diagram of CeCoIn5 with thermal-expansion measurements.

The low-temperature thermal expansion of CeCoIn(5) single crystals measured parallel and perpendicular to magnetic fields B oriented along the c axis yields the volume thermal-expansion coefficient ß. Considerable deviations of ß(T) from Fermi-liquid behavior occur already within the superconducting region of the (B, T) phase diagram and become maximal at the upper critical field B(c2)(0). However, ß(T) and the Grüneisen parameter Γ are incompatible with a quantum critical point at B(c2)(0), but allow for a quantum criticality shielded by superconductivity and extending to negative pressures for B

High-temperature signatures of quantum criticality in heavy-fermion systems.

We propose a new criterion for distinguishing the Hertz-Millis (HM) and the local quantum critical (LQC) mechanism in heavy-fermion systems with a magnetic quantum phase transition (QPT). The criterion is based on our finding that the complete spin screening of Kondo ions can be suppressed by the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida (RKKY) coupling to the surrounding magnetic ions even without magnetic ordering and that, consequently, the signature of this suppression can be observed in spectroscopic measurements above the magnetic ordering temperature. We apply the criterion to high-resolution photoemission measurements on CeCu(6 - x)Au(x) and conclude that the QPT in this system is dominated by the LQC scenario.

Importance of in-plane anisotropy in the quasi-two-dimensional antiferromagnet BaNi2V2O8.

The phase diagram of the quasi-two-dimensional antiferromagnet BaNi(2)V(2)O(8) is studied by specific heat, thermal expansion, magnetostriction, and magnetization for magnetic fields applied perpendicular to c. At micro(o)H* approximately 1.5 T, a crossover to a high-field state, where T(N)(H) increases linearly, arises from a competition of intrinsic and field-induced in-plane anisotropies. The pressure dependences of T(N) and H* are interpreted using the picture of a pressure-induced in-plane anisotropy. Even at zero field and ambient pressure, in-plane anisotropy cannot be neglected, which implies deviations from pure Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless behavior.

Convolution effects in superconductive tunneling.

The quasiparticle density of states (DOS) of superconductors can be obtained from tunneling spectroscopy. When the normal-state differential conductance varies on the voltage scale comparable to that of strong-coupling effects, the standard normalization rule to extract the DOS is invalid, and the DOS is related to the measured data via an integral equation. These effects are exemplified by studying the geometry effect on the DOS for simple BCS superconductors. We apply these considerations to UPd2Al3 tunnel data where the apparent strong-coupling effects, previously deduced by use of the normalization rule, can be quantitatively attributed to convolution effects.

Observation of interband pairing interaction in a two-band superconductor: MgB2.

The recently discovered anisotropic superconductor MgB2 is the first of its kind showing the intriguing properties of two-band superconductivity. By tunneling experiments using thin film tunnel junctions, electron-coupled phonon spectra were determined showing that superconductivity in MgB2 is phonon mediated. In a further analysis, which involves first principles calculations, the strongest feature in these spectra could be traced back to the key quantity of two-band superconductivity, the interband pairing interaction. For the phonons, this interaction turns out quite selective. It involves mainly low-energy optical phonon modes, where the boron atoms move perpendicular to the boron planes.

Low-temperature specific heat of the heavy-fermion superconductor PrOs4Sb12.

We report the magnetic field dependence of the specific-heat C of single crystals of the first Pr-based heavy-fermion superconductor Pr(Os4Sb12. The variation of C at low temperature and the magnetic phase diagram inferred from C, the resistivity and magnetization provide compelling evidence of a doublet ground state. Two distinct superconducting anomalies in C indicate an unconventional superconducting state, where the splitting may arise from a weak lifting of the ground state degeneracy. In combination this identifies Pr(Os4Sb12 as a strong contender for quadrupolar pairing, i.e., superconductivity that is neither electron-phonon nor magnetically mediated.

Pronounced in-plane anisotropy of phonon anomalies in YBa(2)Cu(3)O(6.6).

The dispersion of the Cu-O bond-stretching and bond-bending vibrations in YBa(2)Cu(3)O(6.6) has been studied by high resolution inelastic neutron scattering. While the behavior of the bond-bending vibrations can be well accounted for by a simple potential model, the bond-stretching vibrations show a highly anomalous behavior. The displacement pattern of the most anomalous phonons is in principle consistent with dynamic charge stripe formation. However, charge stripes would have to extend along the a axis and not the b axis as inferred from the magnetic fluctuations by Mook et al. [Nature (London) 404, 729 (2000)].

Onset of antiferromagnetism in heavy-fermion metals

There are two main theoretical descriptions of antiferromagnets. The first arises from atomic physics, which predicts that atoms with unpaired electrons develop magnetic moments. In a solid, the coupling between moments on nearby ions then yields antiferromagnetic order at low temperatures. The second description, based on the physics of electron fluids or 'Fermi liquids' states that Coulomb interactions can drive the fluid to adopt a more stable configuration by developing a spin density wave. It is at present unknown which view is appropriate at a 'quantum critical point' where the antiferromagnetic transition temperature vanishes. Here we report neutron scattering and bulk magnetometry measurements of the metal CeCu(6-x)Au(x), which allow us to discriminate between the two models. We find evidence for an atomically local contribution to the magnetic correlations which develops at the critical gold concentration (x(c) = 0.1), corresponding to a magnetic ordering temperature of zero. This contribution implies that a Fermi-liquid-destroying spin-localizing transition, unanticipated from the spin density wave description, coincides with the antiferromagnetic quantum critical point.