Like high Tc cuprates, the newly discovered iron based superconductors lie in close proximity to a magnetically ordered parent phase. However, while the magnetic order in parent cuprates is known to derive from a spin-spin local superexchange interaction, a plethora of experiments including neutron scattering have so far been unable to conclusively resolve whether a local moment Heisenberg description applies in parent iron based compounds, or whether magnetism arises from a collective SDW order instability. These two alternatives can in principle be distinguished by measuring the low energy momentum-resolved bulk-representative electronic structure of the magnetically ordered phase. Using a combination of polarization dependent ARPES and STM, we have isolated the complete low-lying bulk representative electronic structure of magnetic SrFe2As2 with d-orbital symmetry specificity for the first time. Our results show that while multiple bands with different iron d-orbital character indeed contribute to charge transport, only one pair of bands with opposite mirror symmetries microscopically exhibit an itinerant SDW instability with energy scales on the order of 50 meV. The orbital resolved band topology below T_SDW point uniquely to a nesting driven band hybridization mechanism of the observed antiferromagnetism in the iron pnictides, and is consistent with an unusual anisotropic nodal-density-wave state. In addition, these results place strong constraints on many theories of pnictide superconductivity that require a strict local moment magnetism starting point.
By applying density functional theory, we find strong evidence for an itinerant nature of magnetism in two families of iron pnictides. Furthermore, by employing dynamical mean field theory with continuous time quantum Monte Carlo as an impurity solver, we observe that the antiferromagnetic metal with small magnetic moment naturally arises out of coupling between unfrustrated and frustrated bands. Our results point to a possible scenario for magnetism in iron pnictides where magnetism originates from a strong instability at the momentum vector ($π$, $π$, $π$) while it is reduced by quantum fluc…
The appearance of superconductivity at ambient pressures in the undoped iron pnictide parent compound SrFe2As2 is studied experimentally using several techniques and approaches to aid in understanding the nature of this phase. Low temperature magnetization measurements of single crystals of SrFe2As2 reveal diamagnetic screening due to the onset of superconductivity below 21 K, with volume fraction estimates varying between 0 and 15 percent. The effects of heat treatment and cold-working via severe mechanical deformation on the superconducting phase found are studied, showing that superconducti…
Orbital polarization and electronic correlation are two essential aspects in understanding the normal state and superconducting properties of multiorbital FeAs-based superconductors. In this Letter, we present a systematical study on the orbital polarization of iron pnictides from weak to strong Coulomb correlations within the KRSB approach. The magnetic phase diagram of the two-orbital model for LaFeAsO clearly shows that the striped antiferromagnetic metallic phase with considerable orbital polarization exists over a wide doping range. The reversal of the orbital polarization occurs in the i…
We report quantum oscillation measurements that enable the direct observation of the Fermi surface of the low temperature ground state of \ba122. From these measurements we characterize the low energy excitations, revealing that the Fermi surface is reconstructed in the antiferromagnetic state, but leaving itinerant electrons in its wake. The present measurements are consistent with a conventional band folding picture of the antiferromagnetic ground state, placing important limits on the topology and size of the Fermi surface.
We study the global phase diagram of magnetic orders and lattice structure in the Fe-pnictide materials at zero temperature within one unified theory, tuned by both doping and pressure. On the low doping and high pressure side of the phase diagram, there is one single transition, which is described by a $z=2$ mean field theory with very weak run-away flows; on the high doping and low pressure side the transition is expected to split to two transitions, with one O(3) spin density wave transition followed by a z = 3 quantum Ising transition at larger doping. The fluctuation of the strain field f…
We study a two-orbital spin model to describe (pi,0) stripe antiferromagnetism in the iron pnictides. The "double-spin" model has an on-site Hunds's coupling and inter-site interactions extending to second neighbors (inter- and intra-orbital) on the square lattice. Using a variational method based on a cluster decomposition, we optimize wave functions with up to 8 cluster sites (up to 2^16 variational parameters). We focus on the anomalously small ordered moments in the stripe state of the pnictides. To account for it, and large variations among different compounds, we show that the second-nei…
We report muon-spin relaxation measurements on SrFeAsF, which is the parent compound of a newly discovered iron-arsenic-fluoride based series of superconducting materials. We find that this material has very similar magnetic properties to LaFeAsO, such as separated magnetic and structural transitions (TN = 120 K, Ts = 175 K), contrasting with SrFe2As2 where they are coincident. The muon oscillation frequencies fall away very sharply at TN, which suggests that the magnetic exchange between the layers is weaker than in comparable oxypnictide compounds. This is consistent with our specific heat m…
We argue that superconductivity in the coexistence region with spin-density-wave (SDW) order in weakly doped Fe-pnictides differs qualitatively from the ordinary $s^{+-}$ state outside the coexistence region, as it develops an additional gap component which is a mixture of intra-pocket singlet ($s^{++}$) and inter-pocket spin-triplet pairings (the $t-$state). The coupling constant for the $t-$channel is proportional to the SDW order and involves interactions that do not contribute to superconductivity outside of the SDW region. We argue that the $s^{+-}$ and $t-$type superconducting orders coe…
The magnetic properties of various iron pnictides are investigated using first-principles pseudopotential calculations. We consider three different families, LaFePnO, BaFe$_2$Pn$_2$, and LiFePn with Pn=As and Sb, and find that the Fe local spin moment and the stability of the stripe-type antiferromagnetic phase increases from As to Sb for all of the three families, with a partial gap formed at the Fermi energy. In the meanwhile, the Fermi-surface nesting is found to be enhanced from Pn=As to Sb for LaFePnO, but not for BaFe$_2$Pn$_2$ and LiFePn. These results indicate that it is not the Fermi …
We consider phase transitions and potential co-existence of spin-density-wave (SDW) magnetic order and extended s-wave ($s^+$) superconducting order within a two-band itinerant model of iron pnictides, in which SDW magnetism and $s^+$ superconductivity are competing orders. We show that depending on parameters, the transition between these two states is either first order, or involves an intermediate phase in which the two orders co-exist. We demonstrate that such co-existence is possible when SDW order is incommensurate.
The parent compounds of the recently discovered iron-arsenic (pnictide) high temperature superconductors transition into an intriguing spin density wave (SDW) phase at low temperatures. Progress in understanding this SDW state has been complicated by a complex band structure and by the fact that the spin, electronic, and structural degrees of freedom are closely intertwined in these compounds. Scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) measurements have added to this complexity by revealing different topographies with no consensus on the surface structure. In this paper, we use a combination of high-…
We report Fe K beta x-ray emission spectroscopy study of local magnetic moments in various iron based superconductors in their paramagnetic phases. Local magnetic moments are found in all samples studied: PrFeAsO, Ba(Fe,Co)2As2, LiFeAs, Fe1+x(Te,Se), and A2Fe4Se5 (A=K, Rb, and Cs). The moment size varies significantly across different families. Specifically, all iron pnictides samples have local moments of about 1 $μ_B$/Fe, while FeTe and K2Fe4Se5 families have much larger local moments of ~2$μ_B$/Fe, ~3.3$μ_B$/Fe, respectively. In addition, we find that neither carrier doping nor temperature …
The ThCr2Si2-type arsenide-selenide phase KFe2AsSe is proposed as a parent system for a new "intermediate" group of Fe-based superconducting materials bridging the known families of Fe-pnictides (such as BaFe2As2) and Fe-chalcogenides (such as KxFe2-ySe2) superconductors. The characterization of the proposed charge-balanced phase by means of FLAPW-GGA approach covers the crystal structure, As/Se atomic ordering, stability, electronic bands, Fermi surface, and density of electronic states.
We report a combined study of the Nernst coefficient (v), Hall effect and thermoelectric power of CaFe2As2 and CaFe1.92Co0.08As2 single crystals. The absolute value of v in both samples is enhanced, probably due to ambipolar flow of electron- and hole-like quasiparticles. The onset of spin-density-wave order in CaFe2As2 causes further rapid rise of the Nernst coefficient. On the contrary, in the CaFe1.92Co0.08As2 crystal we do not see any feature of v(T), which could be clearly associated with SDW fluctuations. In this Co-doped sample there is also no noticeable increase in of v in the vicinit…
The magnetic excitations of the iron pnictides are explained within a degenerate double-exchange model. The local-moment spins are coupled by superexchanges $J_1$ and $J_2$ between nearest and next-nearest neighbors, respectively, and interact with the itinerant electrons of the degenerate $d_{xz}$ and $d_{yz}$ orbitals via a ferromagnetic Hund exchange. The latter stabilizes $(π,0)$ stripe antiferromagnetism due to emergent ferro-orbital order and the resulting kinetic energy gain by hopping preferably along the ferromagnetic spin direction. Taking the quantum nature of the spins into account…
The puzzling nature of magnetic and lattice phase transitions of iron pnictides is investigated via a first-principles Wannier function analysis of representative parent compound LaOFeAs. A rare ferro-orbital ordering is found to give rise to the recently observed highly anisotropic magnetic coupling, and drive the phase transitions--without resorting to widely employed frustration or nesting picture. The revealed necessity of the additional orbital physics leads to a correlated electronic structure fundamentally distinct from that of the cuprates. In particular, the strong coupling to the mag…
An optical analysis reveals that the electronic correlations in the `parent' compounds of the iron pnictide superconductors are sufficiently strong to significantly impede the mobility of the electrons.
Within the framework of density functional theory we investigate the nature of magnetism in various families of Fe-based superconductors. (i) We show that magnetization of stripe-type antiferromagnetic order always becomes stronger when As is substituted by Sb in LaOFeAs, BaFe$_2$As$_2$ and LiFeAs. By calculating Pauli susceptibilities, we attribute the magnetization increase obtained after replacing As by Sb to the enhancement of an instability at $(π,π)$. This points to a strong connection between Fermi surface nesting and magnetism, which supports the theory of the itinerant nature of magne…
Transverse-field muon-spin rotation measurements performed on two samples of LiFeAs demonstrate that the superfluid stiffness of the superconducting condensate in relation to its superconducting transition temperature is enhanced compared to other pnictide superconductors. Evidence is seen for a field-induced magnetic state in a sample with a significantly suppressed superconducting transition temperature. The results in this system highlight the role of direct Fe-Fe interactions in frustrating pairing mediated by antiferromagnetic fluctuations and suggest that, in common with other pnictide s…
Using nuclear quadrupole resonance, the phase diagram of 1111 $R$FeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_x$ ($R$$=$La, Ce, Sm) iron pnictides is constructed as a function of the local charge distribution in the paramagnetic state, which features low-doping-like (LD-like) and high-doping-like (HD-like) regions. Compounds based on magnetic rare earths (Ce, Sm) display a unified behavior, and comparison with La-based compounds reveals the detrimental role of static iron $3d$ magnetism on superconductivity, as well as a qualitatively different evolution of the latter at high doping. It is found that the LD-like regions f…
Superconducting pnictides are widely found to feature spin-singlet pairing in the vicinity of an antiferromagnetic phase, for which nesting between electron and hole Fermi surfaces is crucial. LiFeAs differs from the other pnictides by (i) poor nesting properties and (ii) unusually shallow hole pockets. Investigating magnetic and pairing instabilities in an electronic model that incorporates these differences, we find antiferromagnetic order to be absent. Instead we observe almost ferromagnetic fluctuations which drive an instability toward spin-triplet p-wave superconductivity.
Using femtosecond time-resolved x-ray diffraction we investigate the structural dynamics of the coherently excited A1g phonon mode in the Fe-pnictide parent compound BaFe2As2. The fluence dependent intensity oscillations of two specific Bragg reflections with distinctly different sensitivity to the pnictogen height in the compound allow us to quantify the coherent modifications of the Fe-As tetrahedra, indicating a transient increase of the Fe magnetic moments. By a comparison with time-resolved photoemission data we derive the electron-phonon deformation potential for this particular mode. Th…
Using angle resolved photoemission it is shown that the low lying electronic states of the iron pnictide parent compound EuFe$_2$As$_2$ are strongly modified in the magnetically ordered, low temperature, orthorhombic state compared to the tetragonal, paramagnetic case above the spin density wave transition temperature. Back-folded bands, reflected in the orthorhombic/ anti-ferromagnetic Brillouin zone boundary hybridize strongly with the non-folded states, leading to the opening of energy gaps. As a direct consequence, the large Fermi surfaces of the tetragonal phase fragment, the low temperat…
We report ultrafast quasiparticle (QP) dynamics and coherent acoustic phonons in undoped CaFe_2As_2 iron pnictide single crystals exhibiting spin-density wave (SDW) and concurrent structural phase transition at temperature TSDW ~ 165 K using femtosecond time-resolved pump-probe spectroscopy. The contributions in transient differential reflectivity arising from exponentially decaying QP relaxation and oscillatory coherent acoustic phonon mode show large variations in the vicinity of T_SDW. From the temperature-dependence of the QP recombination dynamics in the SDW phase, we evaluate a BCS-like …
In a wide variety of materials, such as copper oxides, heavy fermions, organic salts, and the recently discovered iron pnictides, superconductivity is found in close proximity to a magnetically ordered state. The character of the proximate magnetic phase is thus believed to be crucial for understanding the differences between the various families of unconventional superconductors and the mechanism of superconductivity. Unlike the AFM order in cuprates, the nature of the magnetism and of the underlying electronic state in the iron pnictide superconductors is not well understood. Neither density…
Charge, spin and lattice degrees of freedom are strongly entangled in iron superconductors. A neat consequence of this entanglement is the behavior of the A_{1g} As-phonon resonance in the different polarization symmetries of Raman spectroscopy when undergoing the magneto-structural transition. In this work we show that the observed behavior could be a direct consequence of the coupling of the phonons with the electronic excitations in the anisotropic magnetic state. We discuss this scenario within a five orbital tight-binding model coupled to phonons via the dependence of the Slater-Koster pa…
Emergent superconductivity is strongly correlated with the symmetry of local atomic configuration in the parent compounds of iron-based superconductors. While chemical doping or hydrostatic pressure can change the local geometry, these conventional approaches do not provide a clear pathway in tuning the detailed atomic arrangement predictably, due to the parent compounds complicated structural deformation in the presence of the tetragonal-to-orthorhombic phase transition. Here, we demonstrate a systematic approach to manipulate the local structural configurations in BaFe2As2 epitaxial thin fil…
The impurity-induced quasiparticle interference(QPI) in the parent compounds of iron-pnictide superconductors is investigated based on a phenomenological two-orbital four-band model and T-matrix method. We find the QPI is sensitive to the value of the magnetic order which may vary from one compound to another. For small value of the magnetic order, the pattern of oscillation in the local density of states (LDOS) induced by the QPI exhibits two-dimensional characteristics, consistent with the standing wave state observed in the 1111 compound. For larger value of the magnetic order, the main fea…
We investigate the electronic and magnetic structures of the 122 (AM$_2$B$_2$) hexagonal transition-metal pnictides with A=(Sr, Ca), M=(Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) and B=(As, P, Sb). It is found that the family of materials share critical similarities with those of tetragonal structures that include the famous iron-based high temperature superconductors. In both families, the next nearest neighbor(NNN) effective antiferromagnetic(AFM) exchange couplings reach the maximum value in the iron-based materials. While the NNN couplings in the latter are known to be responsible for the C-type AFM state and to…
We report on the recovery of the short-range static magnetic order and on the concomitant degradation of the superconducting state in optimally F-doped SmFe_(1-x)Ru_(x)AsO_0.85F_0.15 for 0.1< x<0.6. The two reduced order parameters coexist within nanometer-size domains in the FeAs layers and finally disappear around a common critical threshold x_c=0.6. Superconductivity and magnetism are shown to be closely related to two distinct well-defined local electronic environments of the FeAs layers. The two transition temperatures, controlled by the isoelectronic and diamagnetic Ru substitution, scal…
Iron chalcogenides display a rich variety of electronic orders in their phase diagram. A particularly enigmatic case is FeTe, a metal which possesses co-existing hole and electron Fermi surfaces as in the iron pnictides but has a distinct ($π$/2,$π/2$) bicollinear antiferromagnetic order in the Fe square lattice. While local-moment physics has been recognized as essential for understanding the electronic order, it has been a long-standing challenge to understand how the bicollinear antiferromagnetic ground state emerges in a proper quantum spin model. We show here that a bilinear-biquadratic s…
We use angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) to study the electronic properties of CaFe2As2 - parent compound of a pnictide superconductor. We find that the structural and magnetic transition is accompanied by a three- to two-dimensional (3D-2D) crossover in the electronic structure. Above the transition temperature (Ts) Fermi surfaces around Gamma and X points are cylindrical and quasi-2D. Below Ts the former becomes a 3D ellipsoid, while the latter remains quasi-2D. This finding strongly suggests that low dimensionality plays an important role in understanding the superconducting…
We have successfully synthesized the fluo-arsenide SrFeAsF, a new parent phase with the ZrCuAsSi structure. The temperature dependence of resistivity and dc magnetization both reveal an anomaly at about T_{an} = 173 K, which may correspond to the structural and/or Spin-Density-Wave (SDW) transition. Strong Hall effect and magnetoresistance were observed below T_{an}. Interestingly, the Hall coefficient R_H is positive below T_{an}, which is opposite to the cases in the two parent phases of FeAs-based systems known so far, i.e., LnFeAsO (Ln = rare earth elements) and (Ba, Sr)Fe_2As_2 where the …
We examine the magnetic phase diagram of iron pnictides using a five band model. For the intermediate values of the interaction expected to hold in the iron pnictides, we find a metallic low moment state characterized by antiparallel orbital magnetic moments. The anisotropy of the interorbital hopping amplitudes is the key to understanding this low moment state. This state accounts for the small magnetization measured in undoped iron pnictides and leads to the strong exchange anisotropy found in neutron experiments. Orbital ordering is concomitant with magnetism and produces the large zx orbit…
We show that the competition between magnetism and superconductivity can be used to determine the pairing state in the iron arsenides. To this end we demonstrate that the itinerant antiferromagnetic phase (AFM) and the unconventional $s^{+-}$ sign-changing superconducting state (SC) are near the borderline of microscopic coexistence and macroscopic phase separation, explaining the experimentally observed competition of both ordered states. In contrast, conventional $s^{++}$ pairing is not able to coexist with magnetism. Expanding the microscopic free energy of the system with competing orders …
A review of the magnetism in the parent compounds of the iron-based superconductors is given based on the transmission Moessbauer spectroscopy of 57Fe and 151Eu. It was found that the 3d magnetism is of the itinerant character with varying admixture of the spin-polarized covalent bonds. For the 122 compounds a longitudinal spin density wave (SDW) develops. In the case of the EuFe2As2 a divalent europium orders antiferromagnetically at much lower temperature as compared to the onset of SDW. These two magnetic systems remain almost uncoupled one to another. For the non-stoichiometric Fe(1+x)Te p…
The bad-metal behavior of the iron pnictides has motivated a theoretical description in terms of a proximity to Mott localization. Since the parent compounds of the iron pnictides contain an even number of 3d-electrons per Fe, it is important to determine whether a Mott transition robustly exists and the nature of the possible Mott insulating phases. We address these issues in a minimal two-orbital model and a more realistic four-orbital model for the parent iron pnictides using a slave-spin approach. In the two-orbital model with two electrons per Fe, we identify a transition from metal to Mo…
The presence of macroscopic phase separation into superconducting and magnetic phases in LaFeAsO$_{1-x}$F$_x$ (LFAOF) and CaFe$_{1-x}$Co$_x$AsF (CFCAF) is demonstrated by muon spin rotation (muSR) measurement across their phase boundaries ($x=0.06$ for LFAOF and $x=0.075$--0.15 for CFCAF). In LFAOF, both magnetism and superconductivity develop simultaneously below a common critical temperature, $T_m =~ T_c =~ 18$ K, where the magnetism is characterized by strong randomness. A similar, but more distinct segregation of these two phases is observed in CFCAF, where the magnetic phase retains $T_m$…
Motivated by the recent angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) on FeSe and iron pnictide families of iron-based superconductors, we have studied the orbital nematic order and its interplay with antiferromagnetism within the two-orbital Hubbard model. We used random phase approximation (RPA) to calculate the dependence of the orbital and magnetic susceptibilities on the strength of interactions and electron density (doping). To account for strong electron correlations not captured by RPA, we further employed non-perturbative variational cluster approximation (VCA) capable of capturin…
We investigate the origin of exoticity in Fe-based systems via studying the Fermiology of CaFe2As2 employing Angle Resolved Photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). While the Fermi surfaces (FSs) at 200 K and 31 K are observed to exhibit two dimensional (2D) and three dimensional (3D) topology, respectively, the FSs at intermediate temperatures reveal emergence of the 3D topology at much lower temperature than the structural & magnetic phase transition temperature (170 K, for the sample under scrutiny). This leads to the conclusion that the evolution of FS topology is not directly driven by the str…
Insight into the electronic structure of the pnictide family of superconductors is obtained from quantum oscillation measurements. Here we review experimental quantum oscillation data that reveal a transformation from large quasi-two dimensional electron and hole cylinders in the paramagnetic overdoped members of the pnictide family to significantly smaller three-dimensional Fermi surface sections in the antiferromagnetic parent members, via a potential quantum critical point at which an effective mass enhancement is observed. Similarities with the Fermi surface evolution from the overdoped to…
Motivated by recent experiments in Ba$_{1-x}$K$_{x}$Fe$_{2}$As$_{2}$ {[}A. E. Böhmer \textit{et al}, to be published{]}, we analyze the type of spin-density wave (SDW) order in doped iron-pnictides and the discontinuities of the superconducting transition temperature $T_{c}$ in the coexistence phase with SDW magnetism. By tracking the magnetic transition line $T_{N}(x)$ towards optimal doping within an itinerant fermionic model, we find a sequence of transitions from the stripe-orthorhombic ($C_{2}$) SDW order to the tetragonal ($C_{4}$) order and then back to the $C_{2}$ order. We argue that …
One of the unifying concepts in the iron-pnictide superconductors, both for the mechanism of magnetic ordering and of unconventional order parameter character, has been the electron and hole Fermi surfaces that are approximately nested. Using the density functional methods that have predicted Fermi surfaces correctly in SrFe$_2$P$_2$, we find that the recently reported superconducting Sr$_2$VO$_3$FeAs, with $T_c$=37 K and no apparent competition between magnetism and superconductivity, possesses different Fermi surface geometry and character than previous classes of iron pnictides. The interve…
We report detailed measurements of temperature dependence and ab initio lattice dynamical calculations of the phonon density-of-states of two Sr based iron pnictide parent compounds; SrFe2As2 and SrFeAsF. Although both compounds undergo a magnetic as well as a tetragonal-to-orthorhombic structural phase transitions, no drastic change of their phonon spectra is found in the temperature range from 2 to 300 K.. In both the systems the Fe-As stretching modes at 32 meV react to the temperature change and shift towards higher energies with decreasing temperature. Furthermore, we found that in the an…
High-temperature (high-$T_{\rm c}$) superconductivity appears as a consequence of the carrier-doping of an undoped parent compound exhibiting antiferromagnetic order; thereby, ground-state properties of the parent compound are closely relevant to the superconducting state. On the basis of the concept, a spin-fluctuation has been addressed as an origin of pairing of the superconducting electrons in cuprates. Whereas, there is growing interest in the pairing mechanism such as an unconventional spin-fluctuation or an advanced orbital-fluctuation due to the characteristic multi-orbital system in i…
I describe the issues of the competing orders in normal state of a parent and Ni-doped iron pnictide superconductor, SrF e 2 As 2 , using LMTO band structure calculation plus multi orbital dynamical mean-field theory. Strong, electronic correlations along with minimal antiferromagnetic instability create a partially gapped Fermi surface, in qualitative agreement with earlier experiments. A good semiquantitative similarity in both normal and ordered state with the earlier experimental transport data is observed along with suppression of magnetic ordering and explained within a correlated, mul- …
A number of recent experiments exhibit electronic anisotropy in the iron pnictides, and there is a growing body of experimental evidence that its origin is related to orbital ordering in Fe d_{xz} and d_{yz} orbitals. We examine this problem in the parent compounds of the iron pnictides by a combination of ab initio band theory calculations, phenomenological Ginzburg-Landau theory of coupled orbital and magnetic order parameters, and a microscopic mean-field study of the Kugel-Khomskii model. We find that orbital ordering is sufficient to explain a number of key experimental observations, in p…
Although the parent iron-based pnictides and chalcogenides are itinerant antiferromagnets, the use of local moment picture to understand their magnetic properties is still widespread. We study magnetic Raman scattering from a local moment perspective for various quantum spin models proposed for this new class of superconductors. These models vary greatly in the level of magnetic frustration and show a vastly different two-magnon Raman response. Light scattering by two-magnon excitations thus provides a robust and independent measure of the underlying spin interactions. In accord with other rec…
We consider the iron pnictides in terms of a proximity to a Mott insulator. The superexchange interactions contain competing nearest-neighbor and next-nearest-neighbor components. In the undoped parent compound, these frustrated interactions lead to a two-sublattice collinear antiferromagnet (each sublattice forming a Neel ordering), with a reduced magnitude for the ordered moment. Electron or hole doping, together with the frustration effect, suppresses the magnetic ordering and allows a superconducting state. The exchange interactions favor a d-wave superconducting order parameter; in the no…
We measured dispersive spin excitations in $\mathrm{SmFeAsO}$, parent compound of $\mathrm{SmFeAsO_{\text{1-x}}F_{\text{x}}}$ one of the highest temperature superconductors of Fe pnictides (T$_{\text{C}}\approx$55~K). We determine the magnetic excitations to disperse with a bandwidth energy of ca 170 meV at (0.47, 0) and (0.34, 0.34), which merges into the elastic line approaching the $Γ$ point. Comparing our results with other parent Fe pnictides, we show the importance of structural parameters for the magnetic excitation spectrum, with small modifications of the tetrahedron angles and As hei…
The one-particle spectral function and its orbital composition are investigated in a three-orbital model for the undoped parent compounds of the iron-based superconductors. In the realistic parameter regime, where results best fit experimental data, it is observed that the magnetization in the xz and yz orbitals are markedly different and the Fermi surface presents mostly xz character, as recently observed in photoemission experiments [T. Shimojima et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 057002 (2010)]. Since the ferro-orbital order in this regime is at most a few percent, these results are mainly drive…
We have performed an angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) study of the undoped and electron-doped iron pnictides BaFe2\_{-x}CoxAs2 (Ba122) (x=0, 0.14) and studied the Fermi surfaces (FSs) and band dispersions near the Fermi level. The FS sheets we observed are consistent with the shrinkage of the hole-like pockets around the Brillouin Zone (BZ) center and the expansion of the electron pockets around the BZ corner in the electron-doped compound as compared to the undoped parent compound. Band dispersions and FSs around the BZ center strongly depend on the photon energy, indicating …
Superconductivity develops in metals upon the formation of a coherent macroscopic quantum state of electron pairs. Iron pnictides and chalcogenides are materials that have high superconducting transition temperatures. In this Review, we describe the advances in the field that have led to higher superconducting transition temperatures in iron-based superconductors and the wide range of materials that form them. We summarize both the essential aspects of the normal state and the mechanism for superconductivity. We emphasize the degree of electron-electron correlations and their manifestation in …
One of the major puzzles regarding unconventional superconductivity is how some of the most interesting superconductors are related to an insulating phase that lies in close proximity. Here we report scanning tunneling microscopy studies of the local electronic structure of Cu doped NaFeAs across the superconductor to insulator transition. We find that in the highly insulating regime the electronic spectrum develops an energy gap with diminishing density of state at the Fermi level. The overall lineshape and strong spatial variations of the spectra are strikingly similar to that of lightly dop…
The present article reviews recent experimental investigations of spin dynamics in iron-based superconductors and their parent compounds by means of inelastic neutron scattering. It mainly focuses on the most contemporary developments in this field, pertaining to the observations of magnetic resonant modes in new superconductors, spin anisotropy of low-energy magnetic fluctuations that has now been observed in a wide range of chemical compositions and doping levels, as well as their momentum-space anisotropy incurred by the spin-nematic order. The implications of these new findings for our und…
The recent discovery of iron-based superconductors challenges the existing paradigm of high-temperature superconductivity. Owing to their unusual multi-orbital band structure, magnetism, and electron correlation, theories propose a unique sign reversed s-wave pairing state, with the order parameter changing sign between the electron and hole Fermi pockets. However, because of the complex Fermi surface topology and material related issues, the predicted sign reversal remains unconfirmed. Here we report a novel phase-sensitive technique for probing unconventional pairing symmetry in the polycrys…
We report on orbital-dependent quasiparticle dynamics in EuFe$_2$As$_2$, a parent compound of Fe-based superconductors and a novel way to experimentally identify this behavior, using time- and angle-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy across the spin density wave transition. We observe two different relaxation time scales for photo-excited d$_x$$_z$/d$_y$$_z$ and d$_x$$_y$ electrons. While d$_x$$_z$/d$_y$$_z$ electrons relax faster through the electron-electron scattering channel, showing an itinerant character, d$_x$$_y$ electrons form a quasi-equilibrium state with the lattice due to their l…
Recent applications of Quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) technique to Fe-based superconductors opened a way to directly verify the applicability of the itinerant scenario for these systems. Fe-based superconductors undergo various instabilities upon lowering temperature (magnetism, superconductivity, nematicity/orbital order), and one can check whether the hierarchy of instabilities obtained within the itinerant approach is the same as in unbiased QMC simulations. In a recent paper [arXiv:1512:08523] the authors considered the simplest two-band model with interaction tailored to favor orbital order. T…
Superconductivity in a novel class of layered materials, Ti-based pnictide oxides, was recently discovered. These compounds have attracted interest since they combine features of copper oxide and iron pnictide superconductors. Here the transition metal (titanium) forms two-dimensional Ti$_2$O layers (anti structure to the CuO$_2$ planes), capped by pnictogen ions (similar to Fe$_2$As$_2$ layers). The pnictide oxide compounds show a spin or charge density wave phase which coexists with superconductivity in some members of the family. Unlike the cuprates, but similar to iron pnictides, the paren…
