Amalia Coldea

Abstract:

We present experimental evidence for a hitherto unconfirmed type of angle-dependent magnetoresistance oscillation caused by magnetic breakdown. The effect was observed in the organic superconductor κ- (BEDT-TTF)2 Cu (NCS)2 using hydrostatic pressures of up to 9.8 kbar and magnetic fields of up to 33 T. In addition, we show that similar oscillations are revealed in ambient-pressure measurements, provided that the Shubnikov-de Haas oscillations are suppressed either by elevated temperatures or filtering of the data. These results provide a compelling validation of Pippard's semiclassical picture of magnetic breakdown. © 2007 The American Physical Society.

Abstract:

The interlayer magnetoresistance rho(zz) of the organic metal kappa-(BEDT-TTF)(2)Cu(NCS)(2) is studied in fields of up to 45 T and at temperatures T from 0.5 to 30 K. The peak in rho(zz) seen in in-plane fields, a definitive signature of interlayer coherence, remains to Ts exceeding the Anderson criterion for incoherent transport by a factor approximately 30. Angle-dependent magnetoresistance oscillations are modeled using an approach based on field-induced quasiparticle paths on a 3D Fermi surface, to yield the T dependence of the scattering rate tau(-1). The results suggest that tau(-1) does not vary strongly over the Fermi surface, and that it has a T(2) dependence due to electron-electron scattering.

Abstract:

We report high-field magnetotransport studies on quasi-two dimensional β″-(BEDT-TTF) 4[(H 3O)M(C 2 O 4) 3]·Y where Y is a solvent in the anionic layer. By changing the size of the solvent the low temperatures electronic behaviour varies from superconducting (for larger solvents, Y = C 6H 5NO 2 and C 6 H 5CN) to metallic (for smaller solvents, Y = C 5 H 5N and CH 2Cl 2). These changes in the ground state are connected with modications of the Fermi surface, which varies from having one or two pockets for the superconducting charge- transfer salts to at least four pockets in the case of metallic ones. When superconducting, the materials have very large in-plane critical fields (up to 32 T) and enhanced effective masses compared with the metallic compounds. The role of the charge-order fluctuations in stabilizing the superconducting ground state and the effects of intrinsic local disorder is discussed. © 2007 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.