Tuning of Magnetic Activity in Spin-Filter Josephson Junctions Towards Spin-Triplet Transport

The study of superconductor-ferromagnet interfaces has generated great interest in the last decades, leading to the observation of spin-aligned triplet supercurrents and 0-π transitions in Josephson junctions where two superconductors are separated by an itinerant ferromagnet. Recently, spin-filter Josephson junctions with ferromagnetic barriers have shown unique transport properties, when compared to standard metallic ferromagnetic junctions, due to the intrinsically nondissipative nature of the tunneling process. Here we present the first extensive characterization of spin polarized Josephson junctions down to 0.3 K, and the first evidence of an incomplete 0-π transition in highly spin polarized tunnel ferromagnetic junctions. Experimental data are consistent with a progressive enhancement of the magnetic activity with the increase of the barrier thickness, as neatly captured by the simplest theoretical approach including a nonuniform exchange field. For very long junctions, unconventional magnetic activity of the barrier points to the presence of spin-triplet correlations.

Theory of Andreev bound states in S-F-S junctions and S-F proximity devices

Andreev bound states are an expression of quantum coherence between particles and holes in hybrid structures composed of superconducting and non-superconducting metallic parts. Their spectrum carries important information on the nature of the pairing, and determines the current in Josephson devices. Here, I focus on Andreev bound states in systems involving superconductors and ferromagnets with strong spin-polarization. I provide a general framework for non-local Andreev phenomena in such structures in terms of coherence functions, and show how the latter link wave function and Green-function based theories.This article is part of the theme issue 'Andreev bound states'.

Charge Density Waves in Graphite: Towards the Magnetic Ultraquantum Limit

Graphite is a model system for the study of three-dimensional electrons and holes in the magnetic quantum limit, in which the charges are confined to the lowest Landau levels. We report magneto-transport measurements in pulsed magnetic fields up to 60 T, which resolve the collapse of two charge density wave states in two, electron and hole, Landau levels at 52.3 and 54.2 T, respectively. We report evidence for a commensurate charge density wave at 47.1 T in the electron Landau level, and discuss the likely nature of the density wave instabilities over the full field range. The theoretical modeling of our results predicts that the ultraquantum limit is entered above 73.5 T. This state is an insulator, and we discuss its correspondence to the "metallic" state reported earlier. We propose that this (interaction-induced) insulating phase supports surface states that carry no charge or spin within the planes, but does, however, support charge transport out of plane.

Spectroscopic evidence of odd frequency superconducting order

Spin filter superconducting S/I/N tunnel junctions (NbN/GdN/TiN) show a robust and pronounced Zero Bias Conductance Peak (ZBCP) at low temperatures, the magnitude of which is several times the normal state conductance of the junction. Such a conductance anomaly is representative of unconventional superconductivity and is interpreted as a direct signature of an odd frequency superconducting order.

Nonlocal thermoelectric effects and nonlocal Onsager relations in a three-terminal proximity-coupled superconductor-ferromagnet device

We study thermal and charge transport in a three-terminal setup consisting of one superconducting and two ferromagnetic contacts. We predict that the simultaneous presence of spin filtering and of spin-dependent scattering phase shifts at each of the two interfaces will lead to very large nonlocal thermoelectric effects both in clean and in disordered systems. The symmetries of thermal and electric transport coefficients are related to fundamental thermodynamic principles by the Onsager reciprocity. Our results show that a nonlocal version of the Onsager relations for thermoelectric currents holds in a three-terminal quantum coherent ferromagnet-superconductor heterostructure including a spin-dependent crossed Andreev reflection and coherent electron transfer processes.

Spin-dependent cooper pair phase and pure spin supercurrents in strongly polarized ferromagnets

We study heterostructures of singlet superconductors and strongly spin-polarized ferromagnets and show that a relative phase arises between the superconducting proximity amplitudes in the two ferromagnetic spin bands. We find a tunable pure spin supercurrent in a spin-polarized ferromagnet contacted with only one superconductor electrode. We show that Josephson junctions are most effective for a spin polarization P approximately 0.3, and that critical currents for positive and negative bias differ for a high transmission Josephson junction, due to a relative phase between single and double pair transmission.

Surface bound states and spin currents in noncentrosymmetric superconductors

We investigate the ground state properties of a noncentrosymmetric superconductor near a surface. We determine the spectrum of Andreev bound states due to surface-induced mixing of bands with opposite spin helicities for a Rashba-type spin-orbit coupling. We find that the order parameter suppression qualitatively changes the bound state spectrum. The spin structure of Andreev states leads to a spin supercurrent along the interface, which is strongly enhanced compared to the normal state spin current. Particle and hole coherence amplitudes show Faraday-like rotations of the spin along quasiparticle trajectories.

Anomalous enhancement of the coupling to the magnetic resonance mode in underdoped Pb-Bi2212

High-resolution angle-resolved photoemission with variable excitation energies is used to disentangle bilayer splitting effects and intrinsic (self-energy) effects in the electronic spectral function near the (pi,0) point of differently doped (Pb,Bi)(2)Sr(2)CaCu(2)O(8+delta). In contrast to overdoped samples, where intrinsic effects at the (pi,0) point are virtually absent, we find in underdoped samples intrinsic effects in the superconducting-state (pi,0) spectra of the antibonding band. This intrinsic effect is present only below the critical temperature and weakens considerably with doping. Our results give strong support for models which involve a strong coupling of electronic excitations with the resonance mode seen in inelastic neutron scattering experiments.

Theory of half-metal/superconductor heterostructures

We investigate the Josephson coupling between two singlet superconductors separated by a half-metallic magnet. The mechanism behind the coupling is provided by the rotation of the quasiparticle spin in the superconductor during reflection events at the interface with the half metal. Spin rotation induces triplet correlations in the superconductor which, in the presence of surface spin-flip scattering, results in an indirect Josephson effect between the superconductors. We present a theory appropriate for studying this phenomenon and calculate physical properties for a superconductor/half-metal/superconductor heterostructure.

Dispersion anomalies in bilayer cuprates and the odd symmetry of the magnetic resonance

We demonstrate that recent angle resolved photoemission data in bilayer cuprate superconductors imply that scattering of electrons between bonding and antibonding bands is strong compared to scattering within these bands. As a consequence, the resulting data can be reproduced only by a model which assumes that the electrons are interacting with a bosonic mode that is odd with respect to the layer indices. This odd symmetry is a unique property of the magnetic resonance observed by inelastic neutron scattering.

Neutron resonance in the cuprates and its effect on fermionic excitations

We argue that the exciton scenario for the magnetic resonance in the cuprate superconductors yields a small spectral weight of the resonance, in agreement with experiment. We show that the small weight is related to its concentration in a small region of momentum and energy. Despite this, we find that a large fermionic self-energy can indeed be generated by a resonance with such properties, i.e., the scattering from the resonance substantially affects the electronic properties of the cuprates below T(c).

Spatially resolved electronic structure inside and outside the vortex cores of a high-temperature superconductor

Puzzling aspects of high-transition-temperature (high-Tc) superconductors include the prevalence of magnetism in the normal state and the persistence of superconductivity in high magnetic fields. Superconductivity and magnetism generally are thought to be incompatible, based on what is known about conventional superconductors. Recent results, however, indicate that antiferromagnetism can appear in the superconducting state of a high-Tc superconductor in the presence of an applied magnetic field. Magnetic fields penetrate a superconductor in the form of quantized flux lines, each of which represents a vortex of supercurrents. Superconductivity is suppressed in the core of the vortex and it has been suggested that antiferromagnetism might develop there. Here we report the results of a high-field nuclear-magnetic-resonance (NMR) imaging experiment in which we spatially resolve the electronic structure of near-optimally doped YBa2Cu3O7-delta inside and outside vortex cores. Outside the cores, we find strong antiferromagnetic fluctuations, whereas inside we detect electronic states that are rather different from those found in conventional superconductors.

Neutron resonance: modeling photoemission and tunneling data in the superconducting state of Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+delta

Motivated by neutron scattering data, we develop a model of electrons interacting with a magnetic resonance and use it to analyze angle resolved photoemission and tunneling data in the superconducting state of Bi(2)Sr(2)CaCu(2)O(8+delta). We not only can explain the peak-dip-hump structure observed near the (pi,0) point, and its particle-hole asymmetry as seen in superconductor-insulator-normal tunneling spectra, but also its evolution throughout the Brillouin zone, including a velocity "kink" near the d-wave node.