2016/09/30 by Eli Levenson-Falk, E. M. Levenson-Falk, E. R. Schemm +7 · 1 citation
Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Condensed Matter Physics #Condensed matter physics #Electrical resistivity and conductivity #Geometry #Iron-based superconductors research #Kerr effect #Magneto-optic Kerr effect #Phase (matter) #Phase transition #Physics #Polar #Quantum mechanics #Rare-earth and actinide compounds #Skutterudite #Superconductivity #Symmetry (geometry) #cond-mat.supr-con
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevlett.120.187004
published as Phys. Rev. Lett. 120, 187004 (2018)
openalex created_date 2016/10/07 · arxiv created 2018/04/16 · openalex publication_date 2018/05/04 · arxiv updated 2018/05/09 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We present polar Kerr effect measurements of the filled skutterudite superconductor PrOs4Sb12. Simultaneous ac susceptibility measurements allow us to observe the superconducting transition under the influence of heating from the optical beam. A nonzero Kerr angle θK develops below the superconducting transition, saturating at ∼300 nrad at low temperatures. This result is repeated across several measurements of multiple samples. By extrapolating the measured θK(T) to zero optical power, we are able to show that the Kerr angle onset temperature in one set of measurements is consistent with the transition to the B phase at TC2. We discuss the possible explanations for this result and its impact on the understanding of multiphase and inhomogeneous superconductivity in PrOs4Sb12.