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The nature of the superconducting order parameter in {Sr}$_2${RuO}$_4$ has generated intense interest in recent years. Since the superconducting gap is very small, high resolution methods such as scanning tunneling spectroscopy might be the best chance to directly resolve the gap symmetry. Recently, a Bogoliubov quasiparticle interference imaging (BQPI) experiment has suggested that the $d_{x^2-y^2}$ gap symmetry is appropriate for {Sr}$_2${RuO}$_4$. In this work, we use a material-specific theoretical approach based on Wannier functions of the surface of {Sr}$_2${RuO}$_4$ to calculate the continuum density of states as detected in scanning tunneling microscopy experiments. We examine several different proposed gap order parameters, and calculate the expected BQPI pattern for each case. Comparing to the available experimental data, our results suggest that a $s'+id_{xy}$ gap order parameter is the most probable state, but the measured BQPI patterns still display features unaccounted for by the theory for any of the states currently under discussion., Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures

There have been several proposals for platforms sustaining topological superconductivity in high temperature superconductors, in order to make use of the larger superconducting gap and the expected robustness of Majorana zero modes towards perturbations. In particular, the iron-based materials offer relatively large $T_c$ and nodeless energy gaps. In addition, atomically flat surfaces enable the engineering of defect structures and the subsequent measurement of spectroscopic properties to reveal topological aspects. From a theory perspective, a materials-specific description is challenging due to the correlated nature of the materials and complications arising from the multiband nature of the electronic structure. Here we include both aspects in realistic interacting models, and find that the correlations themselves can lead to local magnetic order close to linear potential scattering defects at the surface of the superconductor. Using a self-consistent Bogoliubov-de Gennes framework in a real-space setup using a prototype electronic structure, we allow for arbitrary magnetic orders and show how a topological superconducting state emerges. The calculation of the topological invariant and the topological gap allows us to map out the phase diagram for the case of a linear chain of potential scatterers. While intrinsic spin-orbit coupling is not needed to enter the topological state in presence of spin-spiral states, it enlarges the topological phase. We discuss the interplay of a triplet component of the superconducting order parameter and the spin spiral leading effectively to extended spin orbit coupling terms, and connect our results to experimental efforts on the Fe(Se,Te) system., 13 pages, 9 figures

The single-layered ruthenate Sr$_2$RuO$_4$ is one of the most enigmatic unconventional superconductors. While for many years it was thought to be the best candidate for a chiral $p$-wave superconducting ground state, desirable for topological quantum computations, recent experiments suggest a singlet state, ruling out the original $p$-wave scenario. The superconductivity as well as the properties of the multi-layered compounds of the ruthenate perovskites are strongly influenced by a van Hove singularity in proximity of the Fermi energy. Tiny structural distortions move the van Hove singularity across the Fermi energy with dramatic consequences for the physical properties. Here, we determine the electronic structure of the van Hove singularity in the surface layer of Sr$_2$RuO$_4$ by quasiparticle interference imaging. We trace its dispersion and demonstrate from a model calculation accounting for the full vacuum overlap of the wave functions that its detection is facilitated through the octahedral rotations in the surface layer., 13 pages, 6 figures, and supplementary information

The leading superconducting instabilities of the two-dimensional extended repulsive one-band Hubbard model within spin-fluctuation pairing theory depend sensitively on electron density, band and interaction parameters. We map out the phase diagrams within a random phase approximation (RPA) spin- and charge-fluctuation approach, and find that while $B_{1g}$ ($d_{x^2-y^2}$) and $B_{2g}$ ($d_{xy}$) pairing dominates in the absence of repulsive longer-range Coulomb interactions $V_{\rm NN}$, the latter induces pairing in other symmetry channels, including e.g $A_{2g}$ ($g$-wave), nodal $A_{1g}$ (extended $s$-wave), or nodal $E_u$ ($p$-wave) spin-triplet superconductivity. At the lowest temperatures, transition boundaries in the phase diagrams between symmetry-distinct spin-singlet orders generate complex time-reversal symmetry broken superpositions. By contrast, we find that boundaries between singlet and triplet regions are characterized by first-order transitions. Finally, motivated by recent photoemission experiments, we have determined the influence of an additional explicitly attractive nearest-neighbor interaction, $V_{\rm NN}, 12 pages, 6 figures

The superconductor Sr2RuO4 has been the subject of enormous interest over more than two decades, but until now the form of its order parameter has not been determined. Since groundbreaking NMR experiments revealed that the pairs are of dominant spin-singlet character, attention has focused on time-reversal symmetry breaking linear combinations of $s$-, $d$- and $g$-wave one-dimensional (1D) irreducible representations. However, a state of the form $d_{xz}+id_{yz}$ has also been proposed. We present a systematic study of the stability of various superconducting candidate states, assuming that pairing is driven by the fluctuation exchange mechanism, including a realistic three-dimensional Fermi surface, full treatment of both local and non-local spin-orbit couplings, and a wide range of interaction parameters $U,J,U',J'$. The leading superconducting instabilities are found to exhibit nodal even-parity $A_{1g} (s')$ or $B_{1g} (d_{x^2-y^2})$ symmetries, similar to the findings in two-dimensional models without longer-range Coulomb interaction which tends to favor $d_{xy}$ over $d_{x^2-y^2}$. Within the so-called Hund's coupling mean-field pairing scenario, the $E_g (d_{xz}/d_{yz})$ solution can be stabilized for large $J$ and specific forms of the spin-orbit coupling, but for all cases studied here the eigenvalues of other superconducting solutions are significantly larger when the full fluctuation exchange vertex is included in the pairing kernel. Additionally, we compute the spin susceptibility in relevant superconducting candidate phases and compare to recent neutron scattering and NMR Knight shift measurements., 11 pages, 5 figures

Hund's pairing refers to Cooper pairing generated by onsite interactions that become attractive due to large Hund's exchange $J$. This is possible in multiorbital systems even when all local bare interactions are repulsive, since attraction in specific channels are given by certain linear combinations of interaction parameters. On the other hand, pairing processes such as the exchange of spin fluctuations, are also present. We compare these two mechanisms on an equal footing using electronic bands appropriate for different classes of multiorbital systems over a wide range of interaction parameters. We find that for systems without clear nesting features, the superconducting state generated by the Hund's mechanism agrees well with that from the full fluctuation exchange vertex when Hund's exchange and spin-orbit coupling are sufficiently large. On the other hand, for systems characterized by a peaked finite-momentum particle-hole susceptibility, spin-fluctuation pairing generally dominates over Hund's pairing. We conclude that Hund's pairing states are unlikely to be realized in systems like Sr$_2$RuO$_4$ and generic iron-based superconductors., Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures, including supplemental material

A small number of superconductors are believed to exhibit intrinsic spin triplet pairing, and they are often discussed in terms of a simple, $^3$He-like picture where ferromagnetic spin fluctuations provide the "glue". However, in some cases in which reliable inelastic neutron scattering measurements are available, spin excitations are found to be peaked at finite momentum $\bf q$ rather than ${\bf q}=0$. Here we investigate some simple models that exhibit triplet pairing arising from antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations. We show that a strong peak at larger ${\bf q}$ in the magnetic susceptibility can drive such states and can give rise to pairing states with nodes in the $k_z$ plane even in the presence of a pure 2D Fermi surface. In these situations, dominant pair scattering processes occur between Fermi surface segments with like signs of the superconducting order parameter, yet they are consistent with an overall odd parity state. We examine the applicability of these scenarios to putative triplet superconductors UTe$_2$ by calculations based on three dimensional Fermi surfaces., 11 pages, 9 figures, including supplemental material