Electronic inhomogeneity and competing phases in electron-doped superconducting Pr{sub 0.88}LaCe{sub 0.12}CuO{sub 4-{delta}}

Journal Article · Tue Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 2005 · Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.71.100502· OSTI ID:20666233

Pengcheng, Dai ^[1]; Kang, H J ^[1]; Mook, H A; Matsuura, M ^[2]; Lynn, J W ^[3]; Kurita, Y; Komiya, Seiki; Ando, Yoichi ^[4]

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1. Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996-1200 (United States)
2. Condensed Matter Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831-6393 (United States)
3. NIST Center for Neutron Research, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-8562 (United States)
4. Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry, Komae, Tokyo 201-8511 (Japan)

We use neutron scattering to demonstrate that electron-doped superconducting Pr{sub 0.88}LaCe{sub 0.12}CuO{sub 4-{delta}} in the underdoped regime is electronically phase separated in the ground state, showing the coexistence of a superconducting phase with a three-dimensional antiferromagnetically ordered phase and a quasi-two-dimensional spin-density wave modulation. The Neel temperature of both antiferromagnetic phases decreases linearly with increasing superconducting transition temperature (T{sub c}) and vanishes when optimal superconductivity is achieved. These results indicate that the electron-doped copper oxides are close to a quantum critical point, where the delicate energetic balance between different competing states leads to microscopic heterogeneity.

• OSTI ID: 20666233
• Journal Information: Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics, Journal Name: Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics Journal Issue: 10 Vol. 71; ISSN 1098-0121
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
ANTIFERROMAGNETIC MATERIALS
ANTIFERROMAGNETISM
CERIUM COMPOUNDS
COPPER OXIDES
DOPED MATERIALS
ELECTRONS
GROUND STATES
HIGH-TC SUPERCONDUCTORS
LANTHANUM COMPOUNDS
NEEL TEMPERATURE
NEUTRON DIFFRACTION
PRASEODYMIUM COMPOUNDS
SPIN
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY