Diamagnetic vortex barrier stripes in underdoped BaFe2(As1xPx)2

A. Yagil, Y. Lamhot, A. Almoalem, S. Kasahara, T. Watashige, T. Shibauchi, Y. Matsuda, and O. M. Auslaender
Phys. Rev. B 94, 064510 – Published 11 August 2016

Abstract

We report magnetic force microscopy (MFM) measurements on underdoped BaFe2(As1xPx)2 (x=0.26) that show enhanced superconductivity along stripes parallel to twin boundaries. These stripes of enhanced diamagnetic response repel superconducting vortices and act as barriers for them to cross. The width of the stripes is hundreds of nanometers, on the scale of the penetration depth, well within the inherent spatial resolution of MFM and implying that the width is set by the interaction of the superconductor with the MFM's magnetic tip. Unlike similar stripes observed previously by scanning SQUID in the electron doped Ba(Fe1xCox)2As2, the stripes in the isovalently doped BaFe2(As1xPx)2 disappear gradually when we warm the sample towards the superconducting transition temperature. Moreover, we find that the stripes move well below the reported structural transition temperature in BaFe2(As1xPx)2 and that they can be much denser than in the Ba(Fe1xCox)2As2 study. When we cool in finite magnetic field we find that some vortices appear in the middle of stripes, suggesting that the stripes may have an inner structure, which we cannot resolve. Finally, we use both vortex decoration at higher magnetic field and deliberate vortex dragging by the MFM magnetic tip to obtain bounds on the strength of the interaction between the stripes and vortices. We find that this interaction is strong enough to play a significant role in determining the critical current in underdoped BaFe2(As1xPx)2.

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  • Received 28 October 2015
  • Revised 30 May 2016

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.94.064510

©2016 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

  1. Physical Systems
Condensed Matter, Materials & Applied Physics

Authors & Affiliations

A. Yagil1, Y. Lamhot1, A. Almoalem1, S. Kasahara2, T. Watashige2, T. Shibauchi3, Y. Matsuda2, and O. M. Auslaender1,*

  • 1Department of Physics, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
  • 2Department of Physics, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8502, Japan
  • 3Department of Advanced Materials Science, University of Tokyo 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8561, Japan

  • *ophir@physics.technion.ac.il

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Vol. 94, Iss. 6 — 1 August 2016

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