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Nernst effect as a probe of

superconducting fluctuations

Kamran Behnia

Ecole Supérieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles

Paris

• Luis Balicas, NHFML (Tallahassee, US)

• Ilya Sheikin & Arlei Antunes, GHMFL (Grenoble, FR)

• Baptiste Vignolle & Cyril Proust, LNCMP (Toulouse,FR)

• Yakov Kopelevich (Campinas, BR)

Samples

Claire Kikuchi, Laurent Bergé, Louis Demoulin (Orsay)

Jean-Paul Issi (Louvain-la-neuve)

Collaborators

ESPCI researchers:

Alexandre Pourret, Benoît Fauqué, Aritra Banerjee,

Zengwei Zhu, Huan Yang, Hervé Aubin

OUTLINE

• Introduction

• Superconducting fluctuations• Nernst signal of short-lived Cooper pairs

• Quantum ocillations across the

quantum limit• Nernst profiles in graphite and graphene

• Fractional states in bulk bismuth?

Thermoelectric coefficients

• In presence of a thermal gradient, electrons produce an electric field.

• Seebeck and Nernst effect refer to the longitudinal and the transverse components of this field.

JQ

T

xE

yE

B

TESx

x

T

ESeN

x

y

xyy

][

TB

E

xz

y

hotcold

Set-up for monitoring thermal(kxx, kxy), thermo-electric (S, N) and electric (sxx, sxy) conductivity tensors

20 mm

Thermometers

Heater SC wires

9000 9060 9120 9180 9240 9300 9360 9420 9480 9540 9600 9660 9720

-52

-50

-48

-46

-44

-42

-40

-38

-36

dV

(n

V)

T(s)

DC voltages of the order of 1 nV resolved!

Nernt response of normal electrons can be very large!

0.2 1 10 50

0.1

10

1000

NbSe2

CeRu2Si

2

CeCoIn5

URu2Si

2

PrFe4P

12

absolu

te v

alu

e)

(V

K-1T

-1)

T(K)

Bi

KB, M.A-Méasson & Y. Kopelevitch, PRL 2007

Semi-classical picture

F

HBxy

e

TkS

22

3

TETJ

TEJ

Q

e

k

s

22

xyxx

xyxxxxxy

xySss

ss

If shifting the Fermi level does not change the Hall angle,then there is no Nernst signal!

xy

xxH

s

s

ss 10 STEJe

Roughly, the Nernst coefficient tracks /EF

Bismuth URu2Si2 PrFe4P12

n (per f.u.) 10-5 3 10-2 2 10-3… and becomes large in

clean semi-metals!

~ 2/3 kB/e / EF

F

HBxy

e

TkS

22

3

KB, J. Phys.: Condens. Matter

21, 113101 (2009)

Nernst effect and

superconcucting fluctuations

Nernst effect in the vortex state

• Thermal force on the vortex :

F=-Sf T (Sf : vortex entropy)

• The vortex moves

• The movement leads to a transverse voltage: Ey=vx Bz

A superconducting vortex is:

• A quantum of magnetic flux

• An entropy reservoir

• A topological defect

B

Ey

T

Vortex-like excitaions in the normal state of the underdoped cuprates?

A finite Nernst signal in a wide temperature range above Tc

Wang, Li & Ong, ‘06

Nernst effect due to Gaussian fluctuations of the amplitude of the superconducting order parameter

(Usshishkin, Sondhi & Huse, 2002)

Quantum of thermo-electric conductance (21 nA/K)

In 2D:

In two dimensions, the coherence length is the unique parameter!Both the amplitude and the T-dependence of xy is determined by x(T).

Magnetic length

Our main result!

1. This theory is experimentally verified!

2. In a conventional dirty 2D superconductor, a signal due to fluctuating superconductivity can be resolved by Nernst measurements at T>>Tc.

A. Pourret et al. Nature Phys. 2, 683 (2006); Phys. Rev. B. 76, 214504 (2007)

For a review see New J. Phys. , 11, 055071 (2009)

Superconductivity in Nb0.15Si 0.85 thin films

0.0 0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.00

300

600

900

1200

1500

d=1000 A

d=500 A

d=250 A

d=125 A

T(K)

Rsquare(

)

The normal state is a simple dirty metal: le~a~ 1/kF !

A Nernst signal persists deep into the normal state!

A signal distinct from the vortex signal

The link between and xy

In our case:

sxx > 103 sxy

sSC < 10-1 sxx when T > 1.1 Tc

Therefore: xy/ B = sxx= / Rsquare

Link to the superconducting coherence length

yields

cB

Fd

Tk

v

2

336.0

1

x

This should be compared to the expression for a 2D dirty superconductor:

T-dependence= (T-Tc/Tc)

Amplitude

The shortest link between data and vFle

1251035.4 smvF

e

B

e

Fe

k

Tv

s

k2

3

Using specific heat and resistivity data, this yields:

Coherence length above Tc

0.1 1 102

10

60

x=

(5

.9 1

0-7

x

y/B

)1/2

(nm

)

= (T-Tc)/T

c

sample 2

sample 1

Satisfactory agreement for small !

The ghost critical field

Contour plot of N= -Ey /(dT/dx)

Sample 2

A unique correlation length

cB

Fd

Tk

v

2

336.0

1

x

Contour plot of N/B

Why does it work so well here?The Nernst signal of the normal electrons is negligible in this dirty superconductor!

In Nb0.15 Si0.85 mobility is small and Fermi energy is large!

Qunatum oscillations in

Nernst response

Quantum oscillations of thermoelelctric coefficients in Bi

KB, M.A-Méasson & Y. Kopelevitch, PRL 2007

Giant quantum oscillations

0.0 0.3 0.6 0.9

0.1

1

10

31

02

1

2

1

0

3 1.20 K

0.46 K

0.28 K

B-1 (T

-1)

Sxy(m

V/K

)1-

2-

3-

0+

1+

unidentified

Quantum oscillations in graphiteZhu et al., Nature Physics, Nov. 8 2009

1 105

10

80HOPG sample 2

Sxy (V

K-1)

B(T)

1.65 K

0.98K

0.77 K

0.55 K

0.34 K

0.29 K

40

100

1000

40001 10

4.2 K

HOPG sample 1

1.6 K

2.7 K

8 K

16 K

Quantum oscillations in Graphene

See also:

Wei et al., PRL’09

Checkelsky and Ong, arXiv: 0812.2866

When a Landau level meets the

Fermi level, Sxy vanishes!

Zuev, Chang & Kim, PRL’09

Theory for 2DEG

Oji, J. Phys. C ‘84

Jonson & Girvin, PRB ‘84

Empirical correlation between the Nernst profile and dimensionality!

3D

0.00 0.15 0.30 0.45 0.60 0.75 0.90 1.05

100

1000

Ne

rnst S

ign

al V

y (

nV

)

B-1 (T

-1)

nV, 312mK

nV, 475mk

nV, 760mK

nV, 910mK

0.00 0.15 0.30 0.45 0.60 0.75 0.90

10

100

0.343K

0.549K

0.678K

0.771K

0.805K

0.853K

0.976K

1.651K

Sxy (V

/K)

B-1(T

-1)

2D

bismuth

graphite

GaAs

graphene

A topological phase transition in 3D

For a review paper on topological

phase transitions, see:Blanter, Kaganov, Pantsulaya and

Varlamov

Phys. Rep. 245, 159 (1994).

Zhu et al., Nature Physics 09

What happens beyond the quantum limit?

The quantum limit (9T)

Peaks beyond the quantum limit

KB, L. Balicas & Y. Kopelevich, Science 2007

•Do not correspond to any obvious integer Landau

level

•Are not periodic in 1/B

•Are concomittant with Hall anomalies

Length scales and Nernst coefficient in Bi

Bismuth

T=1.5 K

A surprise at still higher fields!No more Landau level

crossing is expected!Fauqué et al. New J. Phys. 11 113012 (2009)

All these states are expected to deteriorate metallicity!

The hig-field anomaly looks like a LL crossing!

The T-dependence confirms a hole-ellipsoid origin!

No critical temperature!

Topological and symmetry-breaking phase transitions (Xiao-Gang Wen, Adv. Phys. 1995)

symmetry - breaking topological

•The ground state is a quantum crystal

•An order parameter

•A critical temperature

•The ground state is a quantum liquid

•No order parameter

•No critical temperature

Examples: SC, DW,… Examples: QHE (Integer and fractional)

Summary

Nernst effect is a sensitve probe of :

• superconducting fluctuations

• quantum oscillations

• 3D metal beyond the quantum limit

Electron spectrum in bismuth at high field

When the field is along trigonal and exceeding 11 T

Holes at their lowest LL; electrons at their lowest Zeeman-splitted LL!

But, is this true?

Electron spectrum in bismuth at high field

Sharlai

&

Mikitik

PRB

2009

The magnetic field displaces the Fermi Energy, in

order to preserve charge neutrality: nh=ne1+ne2+ne3

A very anisotropic field scale associated with electron pockets

Lu Li et al., Science 08

Alicea & Balents PRB 09

ExperimentSharalai &

Mikitik, PRB 09

Are the high-field Nernst peaks a result of small

misalignment?

• In case of perfect alignment, no anomaly beyond 10T is expected!

Sharalai & Mikitik, PRB 09

Are the high-field Nernst peaks a result of small

misalignment?

• But there is an arbitrary angle for which three high-field e- anomalies are expected!

Sharalai & Mikitik, PRB 09

Angular dependent Nernst effectH. Yang et al., unpublished

Angular dependent Nernst effect

ANGLE (DEGREES)

Fie

ld (

Tesla

s)

B. Fauqué, LNCMI-Grenoble

3 AM 10 /09/09

Angular dependent Nernst effect

Quasi- horizontal lines and quasi-vertical lines

0+e

1-e

?

?

When the field is aligned along trigonal

The temperature dependence confirms an e- ellipsoid origin!

HOPG and natural graphite

Thermopower and Nernst effect in graphite

Non-trivial Berry phase in graphite

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