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Phase fluctuations in strongly coupled d-wave superconductors
Matthias Mayr1, Gonzalo Alvarez, Cengiz Sen
1Max-Planck-Institut für Festkörperforschung, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany.
Physical Review Letters
|August 11, 2005
Summary
We present a numerical solution for the BCS theory, exploring weak to strong coupling regimes. Our findings suggest classical phase fluctuations alone do not explain pseudogap phenomena in high-temperature superconductors.
Area of Science:
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Superconductivity Theory
Background:
- The Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer (BCS) theory describes conventional superconductivity.
- Understanding strong-coupling regimes and high-temperature superconductors remains challenging.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide a numerically exact solution for the BCS Hamiltonian across all temperatures and coupling strengths.
- To investigate the role of classical phase and amplitude fluctuations in superconductivity.
- To explore the strong-coupling regime and its characteristic temperatures.
Main Methods:
- Monte Carlo integration to include classical phase and amplitude fluctuations.
- Numerical solution of the BCS Hamiltonian.
- Analysis of d-wave superconductors.
Main Results:
- Identified two characteristic temperatures, T(*) and T(c), in the strong-coupling regime.
- T(*) corresponds to the opening of a gap in the excitation spectrum.
- Classical phase fluctuations are insufficient to explain pseudogap features in high-temperature superconductors.
Conclusions:
- Developed a novel method for studying strongly coupled d-wave superconductors.
- Demonstrated that classical phase fluctuations alone do not account for the pseudogap in high-temperature superconductors.