Disorder-robust phase crystal in high-temperature superconductors stabilized by strong correlations
Abstract The simultaneous interplay of strong electron–electron correlations, topological zero-energy states, and disorder is yet an unexplored territory but of immense interest due to their inevitable presence in many materials. Copper oxide high-temperature superconductors (cuprates) with pair bre...
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Format: | Article |
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Nature Portfolio
2022-04-01
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Series: | npj Quantum Materials |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41535-022-00450-w |
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author | Debmalya Chakraborty Tomas Löfwander Mikael Fogelström Annica M. Black-Schaffer |
author_facet | Debmalya Chakraborty Tomas Löfwander Mikael Fogelström Annica M. Black-Schaffer |
author_sort | Debmalya Chakraborty |
collection | DOAJ |
description | Abstract The simultaneous interplay of strong electron–electron correlations, topological zero-energy states, and disorder is yet an unexplored territory but of immense interest due to their inevitable presence in many materials. Copper oxide high-temperature superconductors (cuprates) with pair breaking edges host a flat band of topological zero-energy states, making them an ideal playground where strong correlations, topology, and disorder are strongly intertwined. Here we show that this interplay in cuprates generates a fully gapped ‘phase crystal’ state that breaks both translational and time-reversal invariance, characterized by a modulation of the d-wave superconducting phase co-existing with a modulating extended s-wave superconducting order. In contrast to conventional wisdom, we find that this phase crystal state is remarkably robust to omnipresent disorder, but only in the presence of strong correlations, thus giving a clear route to its experimental realization. |
first_indexed | 2024-04-14T00:42:58Z |
format | Article |
id | doaj.art-ff7b16a80a2444608675dbff8db601cc |
institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
issn | 2397-4648 |
language | English |
last_indexed | 2024-04-14T00:42:58Z |
publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
publisher | Nature Portfolio |
record_format | Article |
series | npj Quantum Materials |
spelling | doaj.art-ff7b16a80a2444608675dbff8db601cc2022-12-22T02:22:08ZengNature Portfolionpj Quantum Materials2397-46482022-04-017111010.1038/s41535-022-00450-wDisorder-robust phase crystal in high-temperature superconductors stabilized by strong correlationsDebmalya Chakraborty0Tomas Löfwander1Mikael Fogelström2Annica M. Black-Schaffer3Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala UniversityDepartment of Microtechnology and Nanoscience - MC2, Chalmers University of TechnologyDepartment of Microtechnology and Nanoscience - MC2, Chalmers University of TechnologyDepartment of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala UniversityAbstract The simultaneous interplay of strong electron–electron correlations, topological zero-energy states, and disorder is yet an unexplored territory but of immense interest due to their inevitable presence in many materials. Copper oxide high-temperature superconductors (cuprates) with pair breaking edges host a flat band of topological zero-energy states, making them an ideal playground where strong correlations, topology, and disorder are strongly intertwined. Here we show that this interplay in cuprates generates a fully gapped ‘phase crystal’ state that breaks both translational and time-reversal invariance, characterized by a modulation of the d-wave superconducting phase co-existing with a modulating extended s-wave superconducting order. In contrast to conventional wisdom, we find that this phase crystal state is remarkably robust to omnipresent disorder, but only in the presence of strong correlations, thus giving a clear route to its experimental realization.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41535-022-00450-w |
spellingShingle | Debmalya Chakraborty Tomas Löfwander Mikael Fogelström Annica M. Black-Schaffer Disorder-robust phase crystal in high-temperature superconductors stabilized by strong correlations npj Quantum Materials |
title | Disorder-robust phase crystal in high-temperature superconductors stabilized by strong correlations |
title_full | Disorder-robust phase crystal in high-temperature superconductors stabilized by strong correlations |
title_fullStr | Disorder-robust phase crystal in high-temperature superconductors stabilized by strong correlations |
title_full_unstemmed | Disorder-robust phase crystal in high-temperature superconductors stabilized by strong correlations |
title_short | Disorder-robust phase crystal in high-temperature superconductors stabilized by strong correlations |
title_sort | disorder robust phase crystal in high temperature superconductors stabilized by strong correlations |
url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41535-022-00450-w |
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