Imaging nanoscale Fermi-surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor
Particle–wave duality suggests we think of electrons as waves stretched across a sample, with wavevector k proportional to their momentum. Their arrangement in 'k-space', and in particular the shape of the Fermi surface, where the highest-energy electrons of the system reside, determine ma...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en_US |
| Published: |
Nature Publishing Group
2010
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/51707 |
| _version_ | 1826192125868376064 |
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| author | Wise, W. D. Chatterjee, Kamalesh Boyer, Michael C. Kondo, Takeshi Takeuchi, T. Ikuta, H. Xu, Zhijun Wen, Jinsheng Gu, G. D. Hudson, Eric |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics Wise, W. D. Chatterjee, Kamalesh Boyer, Michael C. Kondo, Takeshi Takeuchi, T. Ikuta, H. Xu, Zhijun Wen, Jinsheng Gu, G. D. Hudson, Eric |
| author_sort | Wise, W. D. |
| collection | MIT |
| description | Particle–wave duality suggests we think of electrons as waves stretched across a sample, with wavevector k proportional to their momentum. Their arrangement in 'k-space', and in particular the shape of the Fermi surface, where the highest-energy electrons of the system reside, determine many material properties. Here we use a novel extension of Fourier-transform scanning tunnelling microscopy to probe the Fermi surface of the strongly inhomogeneous Bi-based cuprate superconductors. Surprisingly, we find that, rather than being globally defined, the Fermi surface changes on nanometre length scales. Just as shifting tide lines expose variations of water height, changing Fermi surfaces indicate strong local doping variations. This discovery, unprecedented in any material, paves the way for an understanding of other inhomogeneous characteristics of the cuprates, such as the pseudogap magnitude, and highlights a new approach to the study of nanoscale inhomogeneity in general. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T09:06:19Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/51707 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T09:06:19Z |
| publishDate | 2010 |
| publisher | Nature Publishing Group |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/517072022-09-30T13:28:27Z Imaging nanoscale Fermi-surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor Wise, W. D. Chatterjee, Kamalesh Boyer, Michael C. Kondo, Takeshi Takeuchi, T. Ikuta, H. Xu, Zhijun Wen, Jinsheng Gu, G. D. Hudson, Eric Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Physics Hudson, Eric Wise, W. D. Chatterjee, Kamalesh Boyer, Michael C. Kondo, Takeshi Hudson, Eric Particle–wave duality suggests we think of electrons as waves stretched across a sample, with wavevector k proportional to their momentum. Their arrangement in 'k-space', and in particular the shape of the Fermi surface, where the highest-energy electrons of the system reside, determine many material properties. Here we use a novel extension of Fourier-transform scanning tunnelling microscopy to probe the Fermi surface of the strongly inhomogeneous Bi-based cuprate superconductors. Surprisingly, we find that, rather than being globally defined, the Fermi surface changes on nanometre length scales. Just as shifting tide lines expose variations of water height, changing Fermi surfaces indicate strong local doping variations. This discovery, unprecedented in any material, paves the way for an understanding of other inhomogeneous characteristics of the cuprates, such as the pseudogap magnitude, and highlights a new approach to the study of nanoscale inhomogeneity in general. Department of Energy National Science Foundation CAREER program National Science Foundation MRSEC Program Research Corporation Cottrell Scholarship 2010-02-11T16:51:38Z 2010-02-11T16:51:38Z 2009-01 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/SubmittedJournalArticle 1745-2473 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/51707 Wise, W. D. et al. “Imaging nanoscale Fermi-surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor.” Nat Phys 5.3 (2009): 213-216. (C)2009 Nature Publishing Group. en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nphys1197 Nature Physics Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use. application/pdf Nature Publishing Group Mat Willmott |
| spellingShingle | Wise, W. D. Chatterjee, Kamalesh Boyer, Michael C. Kondo, Takeshi Takeuchi, T. Ikuta, H. Xu, Zhijun Wen, Jinsheng Gu, G. D. Hudson, Eric Imaging nanoscale Fermi-surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor |
| title | Imaging nanoscale Fermi-surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor |
| title_full | Imaging nanoscale Fermi-surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor |
| title_fullStr | Imaging nanoscale Fermi-surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor |
| title_full_unstemmed | Imaging nanoscale Fermi-surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor |
| title_short | Imaging nanoscale Fermi-surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor |
| title_sort | imaging nanoscale fermi surface variations in an inhomogeneous superconductor |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/51707 |
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