Monday, August 18, 2008

Iron-Arsenic High-Tc Superconductors Are Equally Kinky

I wrote a while back on the issues surrounding the observed kinks in the ARPES spectra of the cuprate superconductors. The origin of this kink (both the low energy kink and the recently discovered high energy kink) is still being highly debated.

It is inevitable that the same technique is used on the newly-discovered FeAs-based superconductor, and it has. This latest (first?) ARPES experiment on one of this compound has revealed a number of interesting observations, including ... (wait for it) ... a "kink" in the spectra as well! The preprint appeared on arXiv today and I'm guessing its heading to PRL.

It really isn't unexpected, especially if there's any kind of coupling of the quasiparticle to a bosonic mode. Such strong coupling phenomenon is expected to show up in the spectra, and it does. The only question here is whether this truly is a coupling that is responsible for the superconductivity phenomena. Expect a lot more experimental results in this area in the coming few years.

Zz.

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