Bound states around impurities in a superconducting bilayer

Yufei Zhu; Nico A. Hackner; P. M. R. Brydon

doi:10.1103/PhysRevB.107.134514

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Bound states around impurities in a superconducting bilayer

Yufei Zhu, Nico A. Hackner, P. M. R. Brydon

DOI 10.1103/PhysRevB.107.134514 · Physical Review B

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Abstract

We theoretically study the appearance of bound states around impurities in a superconducting bilayer. We focus our attention on s-wave pairing, which includes unconventional odd-parity states permitted by the layer degree of freedom. Utilizing numerical mean-field and analytical T-matrix methods, we survey the bound-state spectrum produced by momentum-independent impurity potentials in this model. For even-parity s-wave pairing, bound states are only found for impurities which break time-reversal symmetry. For odd-parity s-wave states, in contrast, bound states are generically found for all impurity potentials, and fall into six distinct categories. This categorization remains valid for nodal gaps. Our results are conveniently understood in terms of the “superconducting fitness” concept, and show an interplay between the pair-breaking effects of the impurity and the normal-state band structure.