Symmetry-Enforced Line Nodes in Unconventional Superconductors [Nodal-Line Superconductors and Band-Sticking]

Journal Article · Thu May 18 00:00:00 EDT 2017 · Physical Review Letters

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.118.207001 · OSTI ID:1374185

Micklitz, T. ^[1]; Norman, M. R. ^[2]

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1. Centro Brasileiro de Pesquisas Fisicas, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
2. Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

We classify line nodes in superconductors with strong spin-orbit interactions and time-reversal symmetry, where the latter may include nonprimitive translations in the magnetic Brillouin zone to account for coexistence with antiferromagnetic order. We find four possible combinations of irreducible representations of the order parameter on high-symmetry planes, two of which allow for line nodes in pseudospin-triplet pairs and two that exclude conventional fully gapped pseudospin-singlet pairs. We show that the former can only be realized in the presence of band-sticking degeneracies, and we verify their topological stability using arguments based on Clifford algebra extensions. Lastly, our classification exhausts all possible symmetry protected line nodes in the presence of spin-orbit coupling and a (generalized) time-reversal symmetry. Implications for existing nonsymmorphic and antiferromagnetic superconductors are discussed.

• Research Organization: Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES) (SC-22)
• Grant/Contract Number: AC02-06CH11357
• OSTI ID: 1374185
• Journal Information: Physical Review Letters, Journal Name: Physical Review Letters Journal Issue: 20 Vol. 118; ISSN 0031-9007; ISSN PRLTAO
• Publisher: American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English