Theory of the vortex matter transformations in high Tc superconductor YBCO

Abstract

Flux line lattice in type II superconductors undergoes a transition into a "disordered" phase like vortex liquid or vortex glass, due to thermal fluctuations and random quenched disorder. We quantitatively describe the competition between the thermal fluctuations and the disorder using the Ginzburg -- Landau approach. The following T-H phase diagram of YBCO emerges. There are just two distinct thermodynamical phases, the homogeneous and the crystalline one, separated by a single first order transitions line. The line however makes a wiggle near the experimentally claimed critical point at 12T. The "critical point" is reinterpreted as a (noncritical) Kauzmann point in which the latent heat vanishes and the line is parallel to the T axis. The magnetization, the entropy and the specific heat discontinuities at melting compare well with experiments.

4 pages 3 figures

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Cited by in corpus (18)

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• Langevin simulations of the out-of-equilibrium dynamics of the vortex glass in high-temperature superconductors
• Interplay of Anisotropy and Disorder in the Doping-Dependent Melting and Glass Transitions of Vortices in Bi${}_2$Sr${}_2$CaCu${}_2$O${}_{8+\delta }$
• Strong thermal fluctuations in cuprate superconductors in magnetic field above Tc
• Supercooled vortex liquid and quantitative theory of melting of the flux line lattice in type II superconductors
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• Defect induced melting of vortices in high-${\mathbf{T}}_{\mathbf{c}}$ superconductors: A model based on continuum elasticity theory
• Phase Diagram of Vortices in High-Tc Superconductors from Lattice Defect Model with Pinning
• Unified Phase Diagram for the Three-Dimensional XY Model of a Point Disordered Type-II Superconductor
• Reply to "Comment on "Effects of Point Defects on the Phase Diagram of Vortex States in High-Tc Superconductors in the B//c Axis""
• Phase Diagram of Vortices in High-T_c Superconductors with a Melting Line in the deep H_{c2} Region
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