Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 22, 2026
06:24
High-Contrast and Fast Photorheological Switching of a Twist-Bend Nematic Liquid Crystal
Published on: October 31, 2019
6.9K
Helical vortex phase in the noncentrosymmetric CePt3Si.
R P Kaur1, D F Agterberg, M Sigrist
1Department of Physics, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53211, USA.
Physical Review Letters
|May 21, 2005
Summary
Magnetic fields reveal a helical order in the superconductor CePt3Si. This helical structure is crucial for explaining experimental data and can be detected via Josephson junction experiments.
Area of Science:
- Condensed matter physics
- Superconductivity
- Quantum magnetism
Background:
- CePt3Si is a unique superconductor lacking inversion symmetry.
- Understanding the influence of magnetic fields is key to characterizing its exotic superconducting states.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of magnetic fields in the broken inversion superconductor CePt3Si.
- To determine the necessity of helical order in the superconducting order parameter for explaining experimental observations.
- To propose a method for detecting this helical order.
Main Methods:
- Theoretical analysis of magnetic field effects on CePt3Si.
- Comparison of theoretical predictions with experimental measurements of the upper critical field (H(c2)).
- Proposal of a Josephson junction experiment.
Main Results:
- The upper critical field along the c-axis shows a weaker paramagnetic effect compared to in-plane fields.
- An in-plane paramagnetic effect is significantly reduced by a helical structure in the order parameter.
- This helical structure is essential for theoretical models to match experimental H(c2) data.
- A Josephson junction experiment is proposed to detect helical order.
Conclusions:
- Helical order in the superconducting order parameter of CePt3Si is experimentally supported.
- This helical state leads to distinct magnetic responses and can be probed using Josephson junctions.
- The findings offer new insights into unconventional superconductivity in non-centrosymmetric materials.
Related Concept Videos
01:18Aromatic Hydrocarbon Cations: Structural Overview
4.0K
Cycloheptatriene is a neutral monocyclic unsaturated hydrocarbon that consists of an odd number of carbon atoms and an intervening sp3 carbon in the ring. The three double bonds in the ring correspond to 6 π electrons, which is a Huckel number, and therefore satisfies the criteria of 4n + 2 π electrons. However, the intervening sp3 carbon disrupts the continuous overlap of p orbitals. As a result, cycloheptatriene is not aromatic.
Removing one hydrogen from the intervening CH2 group...
Removing one hydrogen from the intervening CH2 group...
4.0K
02:52VSEPR Theory and the Basic Shapes
85.8K
Overview of VSEPR Theory
85.8K
02:30Chirality at Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Sulfur
7.1K
Chirality is most prevalent in carbon-based tetrahedral compounds, but this important facet of molecular symmetry extends to sp3-hybridized nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur centers, including trivalent molecules with lone pairs. Here, the lone pair behaves as a functional group in addition to the other three substituents to form an analogous tetrahedral center that can be chiral.
A consequence of chirality is the need for enantiomeric resolution. While this is theoretically possible for all...
A consequence of chirality is the need for enantiomeric resolution. While this is theoretically possible for all...
7.1K
02:11Conformations of Cyclohexane
16.3K
Cyclohexane does not exist in a planar form due to the high angle and torsional strain it would experience in the planar structure. Instead, it adopts non-planar chair and boat conformations.
The chair form is the most stable and derives its name from its resemblance to the “easy chair.” In the chair conformation, two carbon atoms are arranged out-of-plane — one above and one below, minimizing the torsional strain. In the chair form, the bond angle is very close to the ideal...
The chair form is the most stable and derives its name from its resemblance to the “easy chair.” In the chair conformation, two carbon atoms are arranged out-of-plane — one above and one below, minimizing the torsional strain. In the chair form, the bond angle is very close to the ideal...
16.3K
02:42Valence Bond Theory
11.4K
Coordination compounds and complexes exhibit different colors, geometries, and magnetic behavior, depending on the metal atom/ion and ligands from which they are composed. In an attempt to explain the bonding and structure of coordination complexes, Linus Pauling proposed the valence bond theory, or VBT, using the concepts of hybridization and the overlapping of the atomic orbitals. According to VBT, the central metal atom or ion (Lewis acid) hybridizes to provide empty orbitals of suitable...
11.4K
04:01VSEPR Theory and the Effect of Lone Pairs
53.5K
Effect of Lone Pairs of Electrons on Molecule Geometry
53.5K