Universal limiting transition temperature for the high $T_{\mathrm{c}}$ superconductors

Abstract

Since their discovery three decades ago it has emerged that the physics of high-$T_{\mathrm{c}}$ cuprate superconductors is characterised by multiple temperature scales, and a phenomenology that deviates significantly from the conventional paradigm of superconductivity. Below the "pseudogap" temperature, $T^{\ast }$, a range of experiments indicate a reduction in the density of states. Lower in temperature, $T_{\mathrm{c}}$ marks the onset of a bulk zero-resistance state. Intermediate between these, numerous other temperature boundaries and cross-overs have been identified, often postulated to be associated with fluctuations of some kind. However, for the most part there is little consensus either over their definitions or the physical mechanisms at play. One of these temperature scales is the Nernst onset temperature, $T_{\mathrm{onset}}$, below which thermoelectric phenomena characteristic of superconductivity are observed. Depending on the material, the difference between $T_{\mathrm{onset}}$ and $T_{\mathrm{c}}$ ranges from almost nothing to over 100K. In this paper, we identify $T_{\mathrm{onset}}$ from published experimental data according to a consistent definition; this reveals a remarkable consistency of behaviour across the whole high-$T_{\mathrm{c}}$ family, despite the appreciable variations in other parameters. Our analysis suggests that in the cuprates there is an inherent limit to $T_{\mathrm{c}}\sim 135$K. We compare this behaviour with other strongly-correlated superconductors and propose a unified picture of superconducting fluctuations close to the Mott state.

References in corpus (19)

• The pseudogap in high-temperature superconductors: an experimental survey
• How to detect fluctuating order in the high-temperature superconductors
• Theory of Intertwined Orders in High Temperature Superconductors
• The Nernst effect in high-$T_c$ superconductors
• Broken rotational symmetry in the pseudogap phase of a high-Tc superconductor
• Field-enhanced diamagnetism in intense magnetic field in the pseudogap state of the cuprate $\rm Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+δ}
• Gaussian superconducting fluctuations, thermal transport, and the Nernst effect
• The Nernst effect and the boundaries of the Fermi liquid picture
• Enhancement of the Nernst effect by stripe order in a high-Tc superconductor
• Nernst and Seebeck Coefficients of the Cuprate SuperconductorYBa${}_2$Cu${}_3$O${}_{6.67}$: A Study of Fermi Surface Reconstruction
• Entropy of vortex cores on the border of the superconductor-to-insulator transition in an underdoped cuprate
• Pair density wave, charge density wave and vortex in high Tc cuprates
• Pair Density Waves in Superconducting Vortex Halos
• A Strained Organic Field-Effect-Transistor with a Gate-Tunable Superconducting Channel
• Two-dimensional ground-state mapping of a Mott-Hubbard system in a flexible field-effect device
• Nernst Effect and Superconducting Fluctuations in Zn-doped YBa${}_2$Cu${}_3$O${}_{7-\delta }$
• Influence of the pseudogap on the Nernst coefficient of Y0.9Ca0.1Ba2Cu3Oy
• Enhancement of superconducting fluctuation under the coexistence of a competing pseudogap state in Bi2Sr2-xRxCuOy
• Correlation between incoherent phase fluctuations and disorder in Y${}_{1-x}$Pr${}_x$Ba${}_2$Cu${}_3$O${}_{7-\delta }$ epitaxial films from Nernst effect measurements