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Title: Appearance of superconductivity at the vacancy order-disorder boundary in K x Fe 2 - y Se 2

Abstract

The role of phase separation and the effect of Fe-vacancy ordering in the emergence of superconductivity in alkali metal doped iron selenides A(x)Fe(2-y)Se(2) (A = K, Rb, Cs) is explored. High energy x-ray diffraction and Monte Carlo simulation were used to investigate the crystal structure of quenched superconducting (SC) and as-grown nonsuperconducting (NSC) KxFe2-ySe2 single crystals. The coexistence of superlattice structures with the in-plane root 2 x root 2 K-vacancy ordering and the root 5 x root 5 Fe-vacancy ordering were observed in both the SC and NSC crystals alongside the I4/mmm Fe-vacancy-free phase. Moreover, in the SC crystals, an Fevacancy-disordered phase is additionally proposed to be present. Monte Carlo simulations suggest that it appears at the boundary between the I4/mmm vacancy-free phase and the I4/m vacancy-ordered phases (root 5 x root 5). The vacancy-disordered phase is nonmagnetic and is most likely the host of superconductivity.

Authors:
 [1];  [1];  [2]; ORCiD logo [3];  [1]
  1. Univ. of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA (United States)
  2. Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
  3. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Science (SC). Basic Energy Sciences (BES) (SC-22); USDOE; USDOE Office of Science - Office of Basic Energy Sciences - Scientific User Facilities Division
OSTI Identifier:
1471306
Alternate Identifier(s):
OSTI ID: 1437075; OSTI ID: 1473670
Report Number(s):
LA-UR-18-28713
Journal ID: ISSN 2469-9950; PRBMDO
Grant/Contract Number:  
AC52-06NA25396; FG02-01ER45927; AC02-06CH11357
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Physical Review B
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 97; Journal Issue: 18; Journal ID: ISSN 2469-9950
Publisher:
American Physical Society (APS)
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY; 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE

Citation Formats

Duan, Chunruo, Yang, Junjie, Ren, Yang, Thomas, Sean Michael, and Louca, Despina. Appearance of superconductivity at the vacancy order-disorder boundary in KxFe2-ySe2. United States: N. p., 2018. Web. doi:10.1103/PhysRevB.97.184502.
Duan, Chunruo, Yang, Junjie, Ren, Yang, Thomas, Sean Michael, & Louca, Despina. Appearance of superconductivity at the vacancy order-disorder boundary in KxFe2-ySe2. United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.97.184502
Duan, Chunruo, Yang, Junjie, Ren, Yang, Thomas, Sean Michael, and Louca, Despina. Mon . "Appearance of superconductivity at the vacancy order-disorder boundary in KxFe2-ySe2". United States. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.97.184502. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1471306.
@article{osti_1471306,
title = {Appearance of superconductivity at the vacancy order-disorder boundary in KxFe2-ySe2},
author = {Duan, Chunruo and Yang, Junjie and Ren, Yang and Thomas, Sean Michael and Louca, Despina},
abstractNote = {The role of phase separation and the effect of Fe-vacancy ordering in the emergence of superconductivity in alkali metal doped iron selenides A(x)Fe(2-y)Se(2) (A = K, Rb, Cs) is explored. High energy x-ray diffraction and Monte Carlo simulation were used to investigate the crystal structure of quenched superconducting (SC) and as-grown nonsuperconducting (NSC) KxFe2-ySe2 single crystals. The coexistence of superlattice structures with the in-plane root 2 x root 2 K-vacancy ordering and the root 5 x root 5 Fe-vacancy ordering were observed in both the SC and NSC crystals alongside the I4/mmm Fe-vacancy-free phase. Moreover, in the SC crystals, an Fevacancy-disordered phase is additionally proposed to be present. Monte Carlo simulations suggest that it appears at the boundary between the I4/mmm vacancy-free phase and the I4/m vacancy-ordered phases (root 5 x root 5). The vacancy-disordered phase is nonmagnetic and is most likely the host of superconductivity.},
doi = {10.1103/PhysRevB.97.184502},
journal = {Physical Review B},
number = 18,
volume = 97,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon May 14 00:00:00 EDT 2018},
month = {Mon May 14 00:00:00 EDT 2018}
}

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Figures / Tables:

FIG. 1 FIG. 1: The diffraction patterns from the hk0 plane from (a) as-grown and (b) quenched crystals. In (c) and (d) are the plots along the 00l direction in the as-grown and quenched crystal, respectively. The hk0 patterns consist of two configurations of the I4/m phase highlighted by the two innermore » dashed boxes, and the I4/mmm phase with a $\sqrt{2}$ × $\sqrt{2}$ superlattice structure highlighted by the outer dashed box. Subplot (e) shows the specific heat measurement of the SC sample at zero magnetic field (0 T). (f) is the difference of the SC sample's specific heat data at 0 T and 1 T in the vicinity of Tc ~ 29 K.« less

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Works referencing / citing this record:

Multiple Electronic Components and Lifshitz Transitions by Oxygen Wires Formation in Layered Cuprates and Nickelates
journal, January 2019


Fermi-Bose Mixtures and BCS-BEC Crossover in High-Tc Superconductors
journal, June 2019


Figures/Tables have been extracted from DOE-funded journal article accepted manuscripts.