Thermodynamic Phase Diagrams in $\lambda$-(BETS)${}_2$GaBr${}_x$Cl${}_{4-x}$ under Physical and Chemical Pressure

Abstract

The evolution of electron correlation in the superconducting state of the mixed-crystal series $\lambda$-(BETS)${}_2$GaBr${}_x$Cl${}_{4-x}$ was investigated by magnetic and transport measurements. Br concentrations evaluated by electron-probe microanalysis agree well with single-crystal X-ray diffraction refinement. Demagnetization-corrected susceptibility and magnetization of crystals with $x_{c(rf)}$ = 0.22, 0.24, 0.42, and 0.63 all show a diamagnetic superconducting transition. The lower critical field $H_{c1}$, determined from the deviation from the Meissner response, shows a dome-like maximum at $x_{c(rf)}$ = 0.24. The upper critical field $H_{c2}$, obtained from the first high-field magnetoresistance measurements in this system, decreases with increasing Br concentration up to $x_{c(rf)}$ = 0.42, establishing the high-field superconducting boundary on the chemical-pressure side. Combining these results with reported transport data under chemical and physical pressure, we propose a pressure-temperature phase diagram for $\lambda$-(BETS)${}_2$GaCl${}_4$. Its double-dome-like structure has a local minimum near x = 0, where a quantum-critical point was proposed at P $\approx$ 0.13 GPa, separating a low-pressure regime of superconductivity coexisting with magnetism and an unconventional metallic state from a higher-pressure regime with conventional metallic behavior. A low-temperature resistivity upturn, previously reported only under physical pressure, is also found under chemical pressure, suggesting that spin-density-wave fluctuations may extend continuously across both pressure axes. The phase diagram overlaps with that of $\lambda$-(STF)${}_2$GaCl${}_4$ under physical pressure, indicating that chemical substitution, external pressure, and molecular substitution can be unified in a single bandwidth-controlled phase diagram for $\lambda$-type molecular superconductors.

arXiv comment20 pages, 10 figures, 6 tables. Submitted to Superconductor Science and Technology