Robust upward dispersion of the neutron spin resonance in the heavy fermion superconductor Ce1−xYbxCoIn5

Abstract

The neutron spin resonance is a collective magnetic excitation that appears in the unconventional copper oxide, iron pnictide and heavy fermion superconductors. Although the resonance is commonly associated with a spin-exciton due to the d(s±)-wave symmetry of the superconducting order parameter, it has also been proposed to be a magnon-like excitation appearing in the superconducting state. Here we use inelastic neutron scattering to demonstrate that the resonance in the heavy fermion superconductor Ce1−xYbxCoIn5 with x=0, 0.05 and 0.3 has a ring-like upward dispersion that is robust against Yb-doping. By comparing our experimental data with a random phase approximation calculation using the electronic structure and the momentum dependence of the -wave superconducting gap determined from scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) for CeCoIn5, we conclude that the robust upward-dispersing resonance mode in Ce1−xYbxCoIn5 is inconsistent with the downward dispersion predicted within the spin-exciton scenario.

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NEWS COVERAGE: A news release based on this journal publication is available online: http://news.rice.edu/2016/09/29/physicists-probe-magnetic-fluctuations-in-heavy-fermion/
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Song, Yu, Van Dyke, John, Lum, I.K., et al.. "Robust upward dispersion of the neutron spin resonance in the heavy fermion superconductor Ce1−xYbxCoIn5." Nature Communications, 7, (2016) Springer Nature: http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ncomms12774.

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