TY - JOUR
T1 - Odd-frequency pairing in the Kondo lattice
AU - Coleman, P.
AU - Miranda, E.
AU - Tsvelik, A.
PY - 1994
Y1 - 1994
N2 - We discuss the possibility that heavy-fermion superconductors involve odd-frequency triplet pairing. A key technical innovation here is a Majorana representation for the local moments which avoids the use of a Gutzwiller projection. We employ the Kondo lattice model and develop a mean-field theory for odd-frequency pairing that entails pairing between local moments and conduction electrons, as described by a spinor order parameter. We confirm that the Meissner stiffness is positive and the state is stable. A residual band of gapless quasiparticles whose spin and charge coherence factors vanish linearly in energy, decouples from the condensate. The unusual energy dependence of these coherence factors leads to a T3 NMR relaxation rate at a conduction electron site that coexists with a linear specific heat. Two verifiable predictions of the theory are (i) that a Korringa relaxation will fail to develop in heavy-fermion superconductors, even in the limit of strong pair breaking and severe gaplessness and (ii) that the hitherto unmeasured NMR relaxation rate at the actinide or rare-earth site will become exponentially activated in the superconducting phase.
AB - We discuss the possibility that heavy-fermion superconductors involve odd-frequency triplet pairing. A key technical innovation here is a Majorana representation for the local moments which avoids the use of a Gutzwiller projection. We employ the Kondo lattice model and develop a mean-field theory for odd-frequency pairing that entails pairing between local moments and conduction electrons, as described by a spinor order parameter. We confirm that the Meissner stiffness is positive and the state is stable. A residual band of gapless quasiparticles whose spin and charge coherence factors vanish linearly in energy, decouples from the condensate. The unusual energy dependence of these coherence factors leads to a T3 NMR relaxation rate at a conduction electron site that coexists with a linear specific heat. Two verifiable predictions of the theory are (i) that a Korringa relaxation will fail to develop in heavy-fermion superconductors, even in the limit of strong pair breaking and severe gaplessness and (ii) that the hitherto unmeasured NMR relaxation rate at the actinide or rare-earth site will become exponentially activated in the superconducting phase.
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U2 - 10.1103/PhysRevB.49.8955
DO - 10.1103/PhysRevB.49.8955
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:5844333796
SN - 0163-1829
VL - 49
SP - 8955
EP - 8982
JO - Physical Review B-Condensed Matter
JF - Physical Review B-Condensed Matter
IS - 13
ER -