Neutron irradiation of heavy-fermion superconductors
B. Andraka, M. W. Meisel, J. S. Kim, P. Wölfle, G. R. Stewart, C. L. Snead, Jr., A. L. Giorgi, M. S. Wire
DOI 10.1103/PhysRevB.38.6402 · Physical Review B
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Abstract
Upon neutron irradiation by 1018 neutrons/cm2, E>1 MeV, the superconducting transition temperatures of UBe13 and UPt3 fall by 40% and 60%, respectively—a factor of 3 more rapid than found in any other superconductor. We argue that this extreme sensitivity of heavy-fermion superconductors (HFS’s) to neutron-irradiation-induced defects does not serve as evidence for unconventional pairing, since the defects produced apparently act as magnetic impurities. Such ease of magnetic impurity formation in HFS’s, already found in UPt3 by chemical doping, makes any attempt to investigate unconventional pairing via introduction of nonmagnetic defects more difficult. The neutron irradiation severely affects the low-temperature spin-fluctuation specific heat of UPt3. An explanation for the drastic suppression of Tc by doping with ‘‘nonmagnetic’’ Cu in UBe13 is proposed.
Source-reported materials — not catalogue approval
| Formula | Reported Tc (K) | Pressure (GPa) | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| UPt3 Archive — visibility unverified Source-occurrence policy only; no material identity or catalogue acceptance is inferred from the formula. | 0.5 | Pressure not reported | onset |
| UBe13 Archive — visibility unverified Source-occurrence policy only; no material identity or catalogue acceptance is inferred from the formula. | 0.87 | Pressure not reported | onset |
| UBe12.94Cu0.06 Archive — visibility unverified Source-occurrence policy only; no material identity or catalogue acceptance is inferred from the formula. | 0.015 | Pressure not reported | onset |
| CeCu2Si2 Archive — visibility unverified Source-occurrence policy only; no material identity or catalogue acceptance is inferred from the formula. | 0.6 | Pressure not reported | unknown |
| PbMo6S7 Archive — visibility unverified Source-occurrence policy only; no material identity or catalogue acceptance is inferred from the formula. | — | Pressure not reported | unknown |
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