STM imaging of flux line arrangements in the peak effect regime.
PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 2002;
89:147006. [PMID:
12366071 DOI:
10.1103/physrevlett.89.147006]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2002] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
We present the results of a study of vortex arrangements in the peak-effect regime of 2H-NbSe2 by scanning tunneling microscopy. By slowly increasing the temperature in a constant magnetic field, we observed a sharp transition from collective vortex motion to positional fluctuations of individual vortices at the temperature which coincides with the onset of the peak effect in ac susceptibility. We conclude that the peak effect is a disorder driven transition, with the pinning energy winning against the elastic energy.
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