Title: Anisotropic thermodynamic and transport properties of single-crystalline ${\mathrm{CaKFe}}_4{\mathrm{As}}_4$

Abstract

We grew single-crystalline, single-phase CaKFe ₄As ₄ out of a high-temperature, quaternary melt. Temperature-dependent measurements of x-ray diffraction, anisotropic electrical resistivity, elastoresistivity, thermoelectric power, Hall effect, magnetization, and specific heat, combined with field-dependent measurements of electrical resistivity and field and pressure-dependent measurements of magnetization indicate that CaKFe ₄As ₄ is an ordered, stoichiometric, Fe-based superconductor with a superconducting critical temperature, T _c=35.0±0.2 K. Other than superconductivity, there is no indication of any other phase transition for 1.8K≤T≤300 K. All of these thermodynamic and transport data reveal striking similarities to those found for optimally or slightly overdoped (Ba _1-xKx)Fe ₂As ₂, suggesting that stoichiometric CaKFe ₄As ₄ is intrinsically close to what is referred to as “optimal-doped” on a generalized, Fe-based superconductor, phase diagram. Furthermore, the anisotropic superconducting upper critical field, H _c2(T), of CaKFe ₄As ₄ was determined up to 630 kOe. The anisotropy parameter γ(T)=H$$⊥\atop{c2}$$/H$$∥\atop{c2}$$, for H applied perpendicular and parallel to the c axis, decreases from ≃2.5 at T _c to ≃1.5 at 25 K, which can be explained by interplay of paramagnetic pair breaking and orbital effects. The slopes of dH$$∥\atop{c2}$$/dT≃-44 kOe/K and dH$$⊥\atop{c2}$$/dT≃-109 kOe/K at T _c yield an electron mass anisotropy of m _⊥/m _∥≃1/6more » and short Ginzburg-Landau coherence lengths ξ _∥(0)≃5.8Å and ξ _⊥(0)≃14.3Å. Finally, the value of H$$⊥\atop{c2}$$(0) can be extrapolated to ≃920 kOe, well above the BCS paramagnetic limit.« less

Authors:

Meier, W. R. ^[1]; Kong, T. ^[1]; Kaluarachchi, U. S. ^[1]; Taufour, V. ^[2]; Jo, N. H. ^[1]; Drachuck, G. ^[1]; Böhmer, A. E. ^[2]; Saunders, S. M. ^[1]; Sapkota, A. ^[1]; Kreyssig, A. ^[1]; Tanatar, M. A. ^[1]; Prozorov, R. ^[1]; Goldman, A. I. ^[1]; Balakirev, Fedor F. ^[3]; Gurevich, Alex ^[4]; Bud'ko, S. L. ^[1]; Canfield, P. C. ^[1]

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+ Show Author Affiliations

1. Ames Lab. and Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States); Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States). Dept. of Physics and Astronomy
2. Ames Lab. and Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States)
3. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). National High Magnetic Field Lab.
4. Old Dominion Univ., Norfolk, VA (United States). Dept. of Physics

Publication Date:

2016-08-01

Research Org.:

Ames Lab., Ames, IA (United States)

Sponsoring Org.:

USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)

OSTI Identifier:

1326848

Alternate Identifier(s):

OSTI ID: 1280184

Report Number(s):

IS-J 9081
Journal ID: ISSN 2469-9950; PRBMDO

Grant/Contract Number:  

AC02-07CH11358; AC02-06CH11357; DMR-1157490; GBMF4411

Resource Type:

Journal Article: Accepted Manuscript

Journal Name:

Physical Review B

Additional Journal Information:

Journal Volume: 94; Journal Issue: 6; Journal ID: ISSN 2469-9950

Publisher:

American Physical Society (APS)

Country of Publication:

United States

Language:

English

Subject:

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE