Non-magnetic impurity effects in a three-dimensional topological superconductor: From p- to s-wave behaviors

Abstract

Unconventional features in superconductivity are revealed by responses to impurity scattering. We study non-magnetic impurity effects in a three-dimensional topological superconductor, focusing on an effective model (massive Dirac Hamiltonian with s-wave on-site pairing) of Copper-doped bismuth-selenium compounds. Using a self-consistent T-matrix approach for impurity scattering, we examine in-gap states in density of states. We find that the results are well characterized by a single material variable, which measures relativistic effects in the Dirac Hamiltonian. In non-relativistic regime, an odd-parity superconducting state is fragile against non-magnetic impurities. We show that this behavior is caused by a p-wave character involved in the topological superconducting state. In contrast, we show that in relativistic regime the superconductivity is robust against non-magnetic impurities, owing to an s-wave character. To summarize, the system has two aspects, p- and s-wave features, depending on the weight of relativistic effects.

arXiv comment7 pages, 4 figures, final version

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• Robust odd-parity superconductivity in the doped topological insulator Nb${}_x$Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$
• Impurity-induced bound states in superconductors with spin-orbit coupling
• Superconducting doped topological materials
• Characterizing unconventional superconductors from the spin structure of impurity-induced bound states
• Non-fragile superconductivity with nodes in the superconducting topological insulator CuxBi2Se3: Zeeman orbital field and non-magnetic impurities
• Asymptotic behavior of impurity-induced bound states in low-dimensional topological superconductors
• Resolving different pairing states in Weyl superconductors through the single-particle spectrum
• Impurity-induced resonant states in topological nodal-line semimetals
• Unusual upper critical fields of the topological nodal-line semimetal candidate Sn${}_x$NbSe${}_{2-\delta }$
• Nuclear magnetic relaxation rates of unconventional superconductivity in doped topological insulators
• Topological s-wave pairing superconductivity with spatial inhomogeneity: Mid-gap-state appearance and robustness of superconductivity
• Inverse coherence effects in nuclear magnetic relaxation rates as a sign of topological superconductivity
• Bound states around impurities in a superconducting bilayer
• Multi-band Eilenberger theory of superconductivity: Systematic low-energy projection
• Odd-frequency pairs and anomalous proximity effect in nematic and chiral states of superconducting topological insulators
• Possible two-component pairings in electron-doped Bi${}_2$Se${}_3$ based on a tight-binding model
• Probing Sign-Changing Order Parameters via Impurity States in unconventional superconductors: Implications for La${}_3$Ni${}_2$O${}_7$ Superconductors with interlayer pairing
• Theory of low-energy behaviors in topological $s$-wave pairing superconductors
• Layer-Resolved Impurity States Reveal Competing Pairing Mechanisms in Trilayer Nickelate Superconductor La${}_4$Ni${}_3$O${}_{10}$