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Domain Meissner state and spontaneous vortex-antivortex generation in the ferromagnetic superconductor EuFe 2 (As 0.79 P 0.21 ) 2
- Source :
- Science Advances. 4
- Publication Year :
- 2018
- Publisher :
- American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), 2018.
-
Abstract
- The interplay between superconductivity and magnetism is one of the oldest enigmas in physics. Usually, the strong exchange field of ferromagnet suppresses singlet superconductivity via the paramagnetic effect. In EuFe2(As0.79P0.21)2, a material that becomes not only superconducting at 24.2 K but also ferromagnetic below 19 K, the coexistence of the two antagonistic phenomena becomes possible because of the unusually weak exchange field produced by the Eu subsystem. We demonstrate experimentally and theoretically that when the ferromagnetism adds to superconductivity, the Meissner state becomes spontaneously inhomogeneous, characterized by a nanometer-scale striped domain structure. At yet lower temperature and without any externally applied magnetic field, the system locally generates quantum vortex-antivortex pairs and undergoes a phase transition into a domain vortex-antivortex state characterized by much larger domains and peculiar Turing-like patterns. We develop a quantitative theory of this phenomenon and put forth a new way to realize superconducting superlattices and control the vortex motion in ferromagnetic superconductors by tuning magnetic domains—unprecedented opportunity to consider for advanced superconducting hybrids.
- Subjects :
- Superconductivity
Physics
Phase transition
Multidisciplinary
Field (physics)
Condensed matter physics
Magnetism
02 engineering and technology
021001 nanoscience & nanotechnology
Ferromagnetic superconductor
01 natural sciences
Vortex
Magnetic field
Ferromagnetism
Condensed Matter::Superconductivity
0103 physical sciences
010306 general physics
0210 nano-technology
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 23752548
- Volume :
- 4
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Science Advances
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi...........f2e31ca953c8b25a483df4271a1f8e01