Electronic Properties of Electron-Doped Oxide Superconductors.

University Of Maryland, College Park, College Park MD

Investigators

Abstract

Technical: This project supports an experimental investigation of the normal state properties of electron-doped high-temperature superconductors, primarily using a wide variety of transport techniques. An understanding of the normal state transport properties is expected to lead to a more fundamental understanding of the cause of high-temperature superconductivity, a major unsolved problem of condensed matter physics. The electron-doped superconductors are less well studied than their hole-doped counterparts and their properties must be explained by any final theory of high-Tc superconductivity. The experiments in this project will focus on a study of quantum critical behavior as a function of doping, pressure, temperature and magnetic field. It is hoped that the relationship between quantum criticality and superconductivity in the high-Tc materials will be elucidated by these experiments. This project integrates research and education in order to train students and postdoctoral researchers in modern condensed matter physics experimental techniques. The students and postdocs will also be involved in collaborative research with other institutions. Furthermore, they will be trained in thin film and single crystal growth methods, important research skills that are increasingly scarce in the United States. Non-Technical: This project is focused on discovering the key factors which cause high-temperature superconductivity, one of the most important unsolved problems of condensed matter physics. An understanding of high-temperature superconductivity may give insight into the creation of room temperature superconductors, materials that would have a significant technological and economic impact. An important aspect of this project is the use of a wide range of novel electrical transport techniques to probe the properties of high-temperature superconductors as a function of parameters, such as magnetic field, chemical doping, and pressure. It is thought that these parameters cause high-temperature superconductors to undergo a quantum phase transition. Special properties associated with this quantum phase transition are believed to cause the high-temperature superconductivity itself, although exactly how this happens is not understood. This project integrates research and education in order to train students and postdoctoral researchers in modern condensed matter physics experimental techniques. These young researchers will also be trained in thin film and crystal growth methods, important research skills that are scarce in the United States. All the techniques learned by these trainees will prepare them for careers in academe, national laboratories, and industry.