Elia Razzoli

Observation of an isotropic superconducting gap at the Brillouin zone centre of Tl0.63K0.37Fe1.78Se2

We performed a high-resolution angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy study on superconducting (SC) Tl0.63K0.37Fe1.78Se2 (T-c = 29 K) in the whole Brillouin zone (BZ). In addition to a nearly isotropic similar to 8.2 meV 2-dimensional (2D) SC gap (2 Delta/k(B)T(c) similar to 7) on quasi-2D electron Fermi surfaces (FSs) located around M(pi, 0, 0)-A(pi, 0, pi), we observe a similar to 6.2 meV isotropic SC gap (2 Delta/k(B)T(c) similar to 5) on the Z-centred electron FS that rules out any d-wave pairing symmetry and rather favors an s-wave symmetry. All isotropic SC gap amplitudes can be fit by a single-gap function derived from a local strong-coupling approach suggesting an enhancement of the next-nearest neighbor exchange interaction in the ferrochalcogenide superconductors. Copyright (C) EPLA, 2012

Electron scattering, charge order, and pseudogap physics in La1.6–xNd0.4SrxCuO4: An angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy study

We report an angle-resolved photoemission study of the charge stripe ordered La1.6-xNd0.4SrxCuO4 (Nd-LSCO) system. A comparative and quantitative line-shape analysis is presented as the system evolves from the overdoped regime into the charge ordered phase. On the overdoped side (x = 0.20), a normal-state antinodal spectral gap opens upon cooling below 80 K. In this process, spectral weight is preserved but redistributed to larger energies. A correlation between this spectral gap and electron scattering is found. A different line shape is observed in the antinodal region of charge ordered Nd-LSCO x = 1/8. Significant low-energy spectral weight appears to be lost. These observations are discussed in terms of spectral-weight redistribution and gapping originating from charge stripe ordering.

Possible nodal superconducting gap and Lifshitz transition in heavily hole-doped Ba0.1K0.9Fe2As2

We performed a high energy resolution ARPES investigation of over-doped Ba0.1K0.9Fe2As2 with T_c= 9 K. The Fermi surface topology of this material is similar to that of KFe2As2 and differs from that of slightly less doped Ba0.3K0.7Fe2As2, implying that a Lifshitz transition occurred between x=0.7 and x=0.9. Albeit for a vertical node found at the tip of the emerging off-M-centered Fermi surface pocket lobes, the superconducting gap structure is similar to that of Ba0.3K0.7Fe2As2, suggesting that the paring interaction is not driven by the Fermi surface topology.

Spectroscopic evidence for preformed Cooper pairs in the pseudogap phase of cuprates

Angle-resolved photoemission on underdoped La1.895Sr0.105CuO4 reveals that in the pseudogap phase, the dispersion has two branches located above and below the Fermi level with a minimum at the Fermi momentum. This is characteristic of the Bogoliubov dispersion in the superconducting state. We also observe that the superconducting and pseudogaps have the same d-wave form with the same amplitude. Our observations provide direct evidence for preformed Cooper pairs, implying that the pseudogap phase is a precursor to superconductivity.

Comprehensive study of the spin-charge interplay in antiferromagnetic La2−xSrxCuO4

The origin of the pseudogap and its relationship with superconductivity in the cuprates remains vague. In particular, the interplay between the pseudogap and magnetism is mysterious. Here we investigate the newly discovered nodal gap in hole-doped cuprates using a combination of three experimental techniques applied to one, custom made, single crystal. The crystal is an antiferromagnetic La(2-x)Sr(x)CuO4. with x=1.92%. We perform angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy measurements as a function of temperature and find: quasi-particle peaks, Fermi surface, anti-nodal gap and below 45 K a nodal gap. Muon spin rotation measurements ensure that the sample is indeed antiferromagnetic and that the doping is close, but below, the spin-glass phase boundary. We also perform elastic neutron scattering measurements and determine the thermal evolution of the commensurate and incommensurate magnetic order, where we find that a nodal gap opens well below the commensurate ordering at 140 K, and close to the incommensurate spin density wave ordering temperature of 30 K.Gil Drachuck, Elia Razzoli, 3 Galina Bazalitski, Amit Kanigel, Christof Niedermayer, Ming Shi, and Amit Keren Department of Physics, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel Swiss Light Source, Paul Scherrer Institute, CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland Dpartement de Physique and Fribourg Center for Nanomaterials, Universit de Fribourg, CH-1700 Fribourg, Switzerland Laboratory for Neutron Scattering, Paul Scherrer Institute, CH-5232 Villigen PSI, Switzerland (Dated: February 28, 2014)

Tuning electronic correlations in transition metal pnictides: Chemistry beyond the valence count

The effects of electron-electron correlations on the low-energy electronic structure and their relationship with unconventional superconductivity are central aspects in the research on iron-based pnictide superconductors. Here we use soft x-ray angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy to study how electronic correlations evolve in different chemically substituted iron pnictides. We find that correlations are intrinsically related to the effective filling of the correlated orbitals, rather than to the filling obtained by valence counting. Combined density functional theory and dynamical mean-field theory calculations capture these effects, reproducing the experimentally observed trend in the correlation strength. The occupation-driven trend in the electronic correlation reported in our paper supports and extends the recently proposed connection between cuprate and pnictide phase diagrams.

Possible nodal superconducting gap and Lifshitz transition in heavily hole-doped Ba 0.1 K 0.9 Fe 2 As 2

We performed a high energy resolution ARPES investigation of over-doped Ba0.1K0.9Fe2As2 with T_c= 9 K. The Fermi surface topology of this material is similar to that of KFe2As2 and differs from that of slightly less doped Ba0.3K0.7Fe2As2, implying that a Lifshitz transition occurred between x=0.7 and x=0.9. Albeit for a vertical node found at the tip of the emerging off-M-centered Fermi surface pocket lobes, the superconducting gap structure is similar to that of Ba0.3K0.7Fe2As2, suggesting that the paring interaction is not driven by the Fermi surface topology.

Short-range phase coherence and origin of the 1T-TiSe2 charge density wave

The impact of variable Ti self-doping on the 1T−TiSe2 charge density wave (CDW) is studied by scanning tunneling microscopy. Supported by density functional theory, we show that agglomeration of intercalated-Ti atoms acts as preferential nucleation centers for the CDW that breaks up in phase-shifted CDW domains whose size directly depends on the intercalated-Ti concentration and which are separated by atomically sharp phase boundaries. The close relationship between the diminution of the CDW domain size and the disappearance of the anomalous peak in the temperature-dependent resistivity allows to draw a coherent picture of the 1T−TiSe2 CDW phase transition and its relation to excitons.

The Fermi surface and band folding in La2−xSrxCuO4, probed by angle-resolved photoemission

A systematic angle-resolved photoemission study of the electronic structure of La2−xSrxCuO4 in a wide doping range is presented in this paper. In addition to the main energy band, we observed a weaker additional band, the (π, π) folded band, which shows unusual doping dependence. The appearance of the folded band suggests that a Fermi surface reconstruction is doping dependent and could already occur at zero magnetic field.

Tuning the metal-insulator transition in NdNiO3 heterostructures via Fermi surface instability and spin fluctuations

We employed in situ pulsed laser deposition (PLD) and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) to investigate the mechanism of the metal-insulator transition (MIT) in NdNiO3 (NNO) thin films, grown on NdGaO3(110) and LaAlO3(100) substrates. In the metallic phase, we observe three-dimensional hole and electron Fermi surface (FS) pockets formed from strongly renormalized bands with well-defined quasiparticles. Upon cooling across the MIT in NNO/NGO sample, the quasiparticles lose coherence via a spectral weight transfer from near the Fermi level to localized states forming at higher binding energies. In the case of NNO/LAO, the bands are apparently shifted upward with an additional holelike pocket forming at the corner of the Brillouin zone. We find that the renormalization effects are strongly anisotropic and are stronger in NNO/NGO than NNO/LAO. Our study reveals that substrate-induced strain tunes the crystal field splitting, which changes the FS properties, nesting conditions, and spin-fluctuation strength, and thereby controls the MIT via the formation of an electronic order parameter with QAF similar to (1/4,1/4,1/4 +/- delta).