Iron-Based Superconductors as Odd-Parity Superconductors
Parity is a fundamental quantum number used to classify a state of matter. Materials rarely possess ground states with odd parity. We show that the superconducting state in iron-based superconductors is classified as an odd-parity s-wave spin-singlet pairing state in a single trilayer FeAs/Se, the b...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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American Physical Society
2013-07-01
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| Series: | Physical Review X |
| Online Access: | http://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevX.3.031004 |
| Summary: | Parity is a fundamental quantum number used to classify a state of matter. Materials rarely possess ground states with odd parity. We show that the superconducting state in iron-based superconductors is classified as an odd-parity s-wave spin-singlet pairing state in a single trilayer FeAs/Se, the building block of the materials. In a low-energy effective model constructed on the Fe square bipartite lattice, the superconducting order parameter in this state is a combination of an s-wave normal pairing between two sublattices and an s-wave η pairing within the sublattices. The state has a fingerprint with a real-space sign inversion between the top and bottom As/Se layers. The results suggest that iron-based superconductors are a new quantum state of matter, and the measurement of the odd parity can help to establish high-temperature superconducting mechanisms. |
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| ISSN: | 2160-3308 |