Thermal properties of gauge-fields common to anyon superconductors and spin-liquids

Abstract

The thermally driven confinement-deconfinement transition exhibited by lattice quantum electrodynamics in two space dimensions is re-examined in the context of the statistical gauge-fields common to anyon superconductors and to spin-liquids. Particle-hole excitations in both systems are bound by a confining string at temperatures below the transition temperature $T_c$. We argue that $T_c$ coincides with the actual critical temperature for anyon superconductivity. The corresponding specific-heat contribution, however, shows a {\it smooth} peak just below $T_c$ characteristic of certain high-temperature superconductors.

13 pgs, TeX, to appear in Physical Review B (minor revisions)

Cited by in corpus (3)

• Theory of Decoupling in the Mixed Phase of Extremely Type-II Layered Superconductors
• Layered XY-Models, Anyon Superconductors, and Spin-Liquids
• Confinement of Spin and Charge in High-Temperature Superconductors