Massimo Capone

Diisopropylammonium Bromide Is a High-Temperature Molecular Ferroelectric Crystal

Environmentally Friendly Ferroelectrics Ferroelectrics—which are widely used as piezo elements, sensors, and actuators—maintain charge polarization even in the absence of an external electric field. The best ferroelectric properties are found in perovskites such as barium titanate (BTO) and lead zirconate titanate; however, environmentally friendly, lead-free alternatives are highly desirable. Fu et al. (p. 425; see the Perspective by Bonnell) find that the organic molecular crystal diisopropylammonium bromide has ferroelectric properties comparable to those of BTO and may represent a viable alternative to perovskites. An organic molecular crystal is found to have ferroelectric properties comparable to those of barium titanate. [Also see Perspective by Bonnell] Molecular ferroelectrics are highly desirable for their easy and environmentally friendly processing, light weight, and mechanical flexibility. We found that diisopropylammonium bromide (DIPAB), a molecular crystal processed from aqueous solution, is a ferroelectric with a spontaneous polarization of 23 microcoulombs per square centimeter [close to that of barium titanate (BTO)], high Curie temperature of 426 kelvin (above that of BTO), large dielectric constant, and low dielectric loss. DIPAB exhibits good piezoelectric response and well-defined ferroelectric domains. These attributes make it a molecular alternative to perovskite ferroelectrics and ferroelectric polymers in sensing, actuation, data storage, electro-optics, and molecular or flexible electronics.

Strongly Correlated Superconductivity

High-temperature superconductivity in doped Mott insulators such as the cuprates contradicts the conventional wisdom that electron repulsion is detrimental to superconductivity. Because doped fullerene conductors are also strongly correlated, the recent discovery of high-critical-temperature, presumably s-wave, superconductivity in C60 field effect devices is even more puzzling. We examine a dynamical mean-field solution of a model for electron-doped fullerenes that shows how strong correlations can indeed enhance superconductivity close to the Mott transition. We argue that the mechanism responsible for this enhancement could be common to a wider class of strongly correlated models, including those for cuprate superconductors.

Selective Mott Physics as a Key to Iron Superconductors

We show that electron- and hole-doped BaFe(2)As(2) are strongly influenced by a Mott insulator that would be realized for half-filled conduction bands. Experiments show that weakly and strongly correlated conduction electrons coexist in much of the phase diagram, a differentiation which increases with hole doping. This selective Mottness is caused by the Hunds coupling effect of decoupling the charge excitations in different orbitals. Each orbital then behaves as a single-band doped Mott insulator, where the correlation degree mainly depends on how doped is each orbital from half filling. Our scenario reconciles contrasting evidences on the electronic correlation strength, implies a strong asymmetry between hole and electron doping, and establishes a deep connection with the cuprates.

Orbital-selective Mott transition out of band degeneracy lifting.

We outline a general mechanism for orbital-selective Mott transition, the coexistence of both itinerant and localized conduction electrons, and show how it can take place in a wide range of realistic situations, even for bands of identical width and correlation, provided a crystal field splits the energy levels in manifolds with different degeneracies and the exchange coupling is large enough to reduce orbital fluctuations. The mechanism relies on the different kinetic energy in manifolds with different degeneracy. This phase has Curie-Weiss susceptibility and non-Fermi-liquid behavior, which disappear at a critical doping, all of which is reminiscent of the physics of the pnictides.

Ultrafast optical spectroscopy of strongly correlated materials and high-temperature superconductors: a non-equilibrium approach

In the last two decades non-equilibrium spectroscopies have evolved from avant-garde studies to crucial tools for expanding our understanding of the physics of strongly correlated materials. The possibility of obtaining simultaneously spectroscopic and temporal information has led to insights that are complementary to (and in several cases beyond) those attainable by studying the matter at equilibrium. From this perspective, multiple phase transitions and new orders arising from competing interactions are benchmark examples where the interplay among electrons, lattice and spin dynamics can be disentangled because of the different timescales that characterize the recovery of the initial ground state. For example, the nature of the broken-symmetry phases and of the bosonic excitations that mediate the electronic interactions, eventually leading to superconductivity or other exotic states, can be revealed by observing the sub-picosecond dynamics of impulsively excited states. Furthermore, recent experimental and theoretical developments have made it possible to monitor the time-evolution of both the single-particle and collective excitations under extreme conditions, such as those arising from strong and selective photo-stimulation. These developments are opening the way for new, non-equilibrium phenomena that can eventually be induced and manipulated by short laser pulses. Here, we review the most recent achievements in the experimental and theoretical studies of the non-equilibrium electronic, optical, structural and magnetic properties of correlated materials. The focus will be mainly on the prototypical case of correlated oxides that exhibit unconventional superconductivity or other exotic phases. The discussion will also extend to other topical systems, such as iron-based and organic superconductors, and charge-transfer insulators. With this review, the dramatically growing demand for novel experimental tools and theoretical methods, models and concepts, will clearly emerge. In particular, the necessity of extending the actual experimental capabilities and the numerical and analytic tools to microscopically treat the non-equilibrium phenomena beyond the simple phenomenological approaches represents one of the most challenging new frontiers in physics.

Electronic correlation effects in superconducting picene from ab initio calculations

We show, by means of ab-initio calculations, that electron-electron correlations play an important role in potassium-doped picene (

Dynamical breakup of the fermi surface in a doped Mott insulator.

K_x

Optical conductivity and the correlation strength of high-temperature copper-oxide superconductors

-picene), recently characterized as a superconductor with

Modelling the unconventional superconducting properties of expanded A3C60 Fullerides

T_c = 18K

Dynamical behavior across the Mott transition of two bands with different bandwidths

. The inclusion of exchange interactions by means of hybrid functionals reproduces the correct gap for the undoped compound and predicts an antiferromagnetic state for