Beyond Zero Resistance

Phenomenology of Superconductivity

Nicholas P. Breznay
SASS Seminar Happy 50th!
SLAC
April 29, 2009
 Preview

Motivation / Paradigm Shift

Normal State behavior
Hallmarks of Superconductivity
Zero resistance
Perfect diamagnetism
Magnetic flux quantization
Phenomenology of SC
London Theory, Ginzburg-Landau Theory
Length scales: and
Type I and II SCs
 Physics of Metals - Introduction

Atoms form a periodic lattice

Know (!) electronic states key for

the behavior we are interested in

Solve the Schro

H E
2 2
H (r ) V (r )
2m

in a periodic potential K

V (r ) V (r K )
K is a Bravais lattice vector

Wikipedia
 Physics of Metals Blochs Theorem

2 2
V ( r ) E
2m

Blochs theorem tells us that

eigenstates have the form


( r ) e u( r )
ik r

where u(r) is a function with the

periodicity of the lattice Free particle Schro
2 2
u( r ) u( r K ) H E
2m


( r ) Ae ik r

Wikipedia
 Physics of Metals Drude Model

Model for electrons in a metal

Noninteracting, inertial gas
Scattering time
d p (t )
p(t ) qE damping
dt
term

Apply Fermi-Dirac statistics

2k 2
E
2m

http://www.doitpoms.ac.uk/tlplib/semiconductors/images/fermiDirac.jpg
 Physics of Metals Magnetic Response

B 0 ( H M ) in SI
Magnetism in media
Larmor/Landau diamagnetism M H linear response
Weak anti-// response B 0 (1 ) H
Pauli paramagnetism 0 r H
Moderate // response H familiarly
Typical values
Cu~ -1 x 10-5
Al~ +2 x 10-5

minimal response to B fields

r ~ 1 B = 0H
Physics of Metals Drude Model Comments

Wrong! d p (t ) ne 2
p(t ) qE J E
Lattice, e-e, e-p, defects, dt m
~ 10-14 seconds MFP ~ 1 nm p2 ne 2
( ) 1 2 , p
2

0 m
Useful!
DC, AC electrical conductivity 2k B 2 8 W
L 2. 44 10
T 3e 2 K2
Thermal transport
Lorenz number T Lmeas 2.1 2.6 108

Heat capacity of solids

Cv T AT 3 meas
~1
fe 's
Electronic Lattic
contribution e

Wikipedia
 Preview

Motivation / Paradigm Shift

Normal State behavior
Hallmarks of Superconductivity
Zero resistance
Perfect diamagnetism
Magnetic flux quantization
Phenomenology of SC
London Theory, Ginzburg-Landau Theory
Length scales: and
Type I and II SCs
 Hallmark 1 Zero Resistance

Metallic R vs T
e-p scattering (lattice interactions) at high temperature
Impurities at low temperatures

R Lattice (phonon)
interactions
Electrical resistance

metal
ur e
Imp
Residual R0
Resistance eta
l
e m
(impurities) Pur

TD/3 Temperature
 Hallmark 1 Zero Resistance

Superconducting R vs T

R u cto
r
n d
p erco
Su

R0

Tc Temperature
Transition temperature
 Hallmark 1 Zero Resistance

Hard to measure zero directly

Magnetic (dipole) field
Can try to look at an effect of the
zero resistance
Current flowing in a SC ring
Not thought experiment
standard configuration for high- I
field laboratory magnets (10-
20T)
Nonzero resistance changing Circulating
current changing magnetic supercurrent Superconductor
field
One such measurement
SC
1018
Cu
From Ustinov Superconductivity Lectures (WS 2008-2009)
 Hallmark 1 Zero Resistance Notes

R = 0 only for DC
AC response arises from kinetic
inductance of superconducting
electrons
Changing current electric field
Model: perfect resistor (normal
electrons), inductor (SC electrons) in
parallel

Magnitude of kinetic inductance:

At 1 kHz, L ~ 10
12
RNormal

http://www.apph.tohoku.ac.jp/low-temp-lab/photo/FUJYO1.png
Hallmark 2 Conductors in a Magnetic Field
Normal metal

E

Apply B 0
field
B B(t ) ~ B0 (1 e t / )
E
t

E L/ R
B 0 J
t

E j

Field of
Hallmark 2 Conductors in a Magnetic Field
Normal metal Perfect (metallic) conductor Superconductor

Apply Apply Apply

Cool Cool
field field field

Field of
 Hallmark 2 Meissner-Oschenfeld Effect
Superconductor

B = 0 perfect diamagnetism: M = -1

B 0 ( H M ) 0
M H H
Apply
Cool
Field expulsion unexpected; not discovered for field
20 years.
B/0 -M

Hc H Hc H
 Hallmark 3 Flux Quantization

B dA n0
Earths magnetic field ~ 500 mG,
so in 1 cm2 of BEarth there are ~ 2
million 0s.

h hc first appearance of h
0 ~ 2 1015V s ~ 2 107 G cm 2 in our description;
2e 2e
quantum
phenomenon

Total flux (field*area) is
integer multiple of
Hallmark 3 Flux Quantization

Apply uniform Measure

field flux
 Aside Cooper Pairing

In the presence of a weak

attractive interaction, the filled
Fermi sphere is unstable to the
formation of bound pairs
electrons

Can excite two electrons above

Ef, obtain bound-state energy <
2Ef due to attraction

New minimum-energy state

allows attractive interaction (e-p
scattering) by smearing the FS

The physics of superconductors Shmidt, Mller, Ustinov

 Preview

Motivation / Paradigm Shift

Normal State behavior
Hallmarks of Superconductivity
Zero resistance
Perfect diamagnetism
Magnetic flux quantization
Phenomenology of SC
London Theory, Ginzburg-Landau Theory
Length scales: and
Type I and II SCs
 SC Parameter Review

Magnetic field energy density

Extract free energy difference

between normal and SC states
with Hc
2
H g(H)
g 0 c
2 gnormal state

gsc state
Know magnetic response
important; use R = 0 + Maxwells
equations ?
Hc H
 London Theory 1

Newtons law (inertial response) for applied electric field

d d JS d m
F m vs eE m E J S
dt dt ns e dt ns e 2

Supercurrent density
J s isns evs
Faradays law

2
ns e E dJ S n s e 2 E dJ S n e dB 2 dJ
s S
m dt m dt m dt dt

d ns e 2 ns e 2
JS B 0 JS B
dt m m

We know B = 0 inside
superconductors
Fritz & Heinz London, (1935)
 London Theory 2

London Equations Amperes

law

d m E
E J S B 0 J 0 0
dt ns e 2 t

B 0 J
ns e 2
JS B
m 2
B B 0
ns e 2
B
m

=0; Gausss 2 ns e 2
law for
B 0 B
m
electrostatics
 Magnetic Penetration Depth -

Screening not immediate; m 2 1

2
B 2B
characteristic decay length 0 n s e 2

Typical ~ 50 nm
B( z ) B0e z /
m,e fixed uniquely specifies SC
the superconducting electron
B(z)
density ns

B0
Sometimes
called the
superfluid
z
density
 Ginzburg-Landau Theory - 1

First consider zero magnetic field

Free energy of
Order parameter superconducting state
Free energy of
normal state
Associate with cooper pair
density: 2 2 4
ns fs fn
2

Expand f in powers of ||2

Free energy
of SC state
~ # of
To make sense, > 0, (T) cooper pairs
Need > -Infinity; B > 0
 Ginzburg-Landau Theory - 2

2 4
fs fn
2

For < 0, solve for minimum

in fs-fn

2 4
fs fn
2
d
2
f s f n
2
0
d
2

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pseudofunci%C3%B3n_de_onda_(teor%C3%ADa_Ginzburg-Landau).png
 Ginzburg-Landau Theory - 3

2
2
fs fn
4

2
fs fn
2 2
1 2
Know that fn-fs is the condensation energy: fn fs Bc
2 0

fn fs
0 2
Bc

1 2
Bc
2 0
 Ginzburg-Landau Theory - 4

p2
Momentum term in H: H V , p i
2m
2
B
Now include magnetic field f magnetic
2 0

Classically, know that to include p i qA

magnetic fields
2
4 1 B
2
fs fn
4 2
fs fn 2
i 2eA
2 2 2m 2 0
 Ginzburg-Landau Theory - 5
2
1 B
Free Energy Density f s f n 4
2
i 2eA 2
2 2m 2 0

4 1 B
2

F 0
2
i 2eA dV 0
2

2 2m 2 0

1
2
i 2eA 2 0
2m

J
2e
m

Re * i 2eA
 Ginzburg-Landau Theory - 6
1
2
i 2eA 2 0
2m
3
2 2
Take 2
0
real,
2m
normalize
2
Defin 2 3 0
e (T ) 2m

2 2
Linearize in (T ) 2
2
0

(T ) 2m (T )
 Superconducting coherence length -
1
2
i 2eA 2 0 2
2 2
0
2m (T )

Characteristic length scale for SC

wavefunction variation

Vacuum SC
(x)

Superconductor

x
 Pause

London Theory magnetic penetration depth

Ginzburg-Landau Theory coherence length

two kinds of superconductors!

 Surface Energy and Type II

H(x) H(x)
(x) (x)

x x

 Surface Energy:
H(x)
(x)

SC

gmagnetic(x) energy penalty for excluding

2
B
H
g cond 0 c
2

2
H
g cond 0 c
2
gsc(x)

energy gain for being in SC

state
 Surface Energy:
H(x)
(x)

SC

gmagnetic(x) energy penalty for excluding

2
B
H
g cond 0 c
2

2
H
g cond 0 c
2
gsc(x)

energy gain for being in SC

gnet(x)
state
net energy penalty at a surface /
interface
 Surface Energy:
H(x)
(x)

SC

gmagnetic(x) energy penalty for excluding

2
B
H
g cond 0 c
2

2
H
g cond 0 c
2
gsc(x)

energy gain for being in SC

state
gnet(x) net energy gain at a surface / interface
 Type I Type II




1 1

2 2

elemental superconductors predicted in 1950s by Abrikosov

nm (nm) Tc (K) Hc2 (T) nm (nm) Tc (K) Hc2 (T)

Al 1600 50 1.2 .01 Nb3Sn 11 200 18 25
Pb 83 39 7.2 .08 YBCO 1.5 200 92 150
Sn 230 51 3.7 .03 MgB2 5 185 37 14
 Type II Superconductors
Normal state Superconducting
cores region

http://www.nd.edu/~vortex/research.html
 The End

London Theory magnetic penetration depth

Ginzburg-Landau Theory coherence length

two kinds of superconductors