Direct spectroscopic evidence for mixed-valence Tl in the low carrier-density superconductor
- Stanford Univ., CA (United States). Geballe Lab. for Advanced Materials and Dept. of Applied Physics
- Ames Lab. and Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States). Dept. of Physics and Astronomy; Southern Univ. of Science and Technology (SUSTech), Shenzhen, Guangdong (China)
- Ames Lab. and Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States). Dept. of Physics and Astronomy; Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility (TJNAF), Newport News, VA (United States)
- Stanford Univ., CA (United States). Geballe Lab. for Advanced Materials and Dept. of Applied Physics; Univ. de Los Andes, Bogotá (Colombia). Dept. of Physics
- Ames Lab. and Iowa State Univ., Ames, IA (United States). Dept. of Physics and Astronomy
Upon doping with Tl the narrow band-gap semiconductor PbTe exhibits anomalously high-temperature superconductivity despite a very low carrier-density as well as signatures of the Kondo effect despite an absence of magnetic moments. These phenomena have been explained by invoking 2e fluctuations of the valence of the Tl dopants, but a direct measurement of the mixed valency implied by such a mechanism has not been reported to date. Here in this work we present the unambiguous observation of multiple valences of Tl in Tl-doped PbTe via photoemission spectroscopy measurements. It is shown via a quantitative analysis that the suppression of the carrier density in compositions exhibiting superconductivity and Kondo-like behavior can be accounted for by mixed valency, thus arguing against a self-compensation scenario proposed elsewhere for this material and strengthening the case for valence fluctuation models. In addition to the identification of Tl+ and Tl3+ a possible third intermediate local charge-density is suggested by full fits to the data, the origins of which are also discussed but remain unclear.
- Research Organization:
- Ames Laboratory (AMES), Ames, IA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC02-07CH11358; FA9550-09-1-0583; DMR 9212658
- OSTI ID:
- 1487218
- Alternate ID(s):
- OSTI ID: 1482285
- Report Number(s):
- IS-J-9823; PRBMDO
- Journal Information:
- Physical Review. B, Vol. 98, Issue 18; ISSN 2469-9950
- Publisher:
- American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Web of Science
Physics of Superconducting Transition Temperatures
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journal | November 2019 |
Physics of Superconducting Transition Temperatures | preprint | January 2019 |
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