Anisotropy of the superconducting gap in the iron-based superconductor BaFe2(As(1-x)P(x))2.

We report peculiar momentum-dependent anisotropy in the superconducting gap observed by angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy in BaFe2(As(1-x)P(x))2 (x = 0.30, Tc = 30 K). Strongly anisotropic gap has been found only in the electron Fermi surface while the gap on the entire hole Fermi surfaces are nearly isotropic. These results are inconsistent with horizontal nodes but are consistent with modified s ± gap with nodal loops. We have shown that the complicated gap modulation can be theoretically reproduced by considering both spin and orbital fluctuations.

Universal heat conduction in the iron arsenide superconductor KFe2As2: evidence of a d-wave state.

The thermal conductivity κ of the iron arsenide superconductor KFe2As2 was measured down to 50 mK for a heat current parallel and perpendicular to the tetragonal c axis. A residual linear term at T→0, κ(0)/T is observed for both current directions, confirming the presence of nodes in the superconducting gap. Our value of κ(0)/T in the plane is equal to that reported by Dong et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 104, 087005 (2010)] for a sample whose residual resistivity ρ(0) was 10 times larger. This independence of κ(0)/T on impurity scattering is the signature of universal heat transport, a property of superconducting states with symmetry-imposed line nodes. This argues against an s-wave state with accidental nodes. It favors instead a d-wave state, an assignment consistent with five additional properties: the magnitude of the critical scattering rate Γ(c) for suppressing T(c) to zero; the magnitude of κ(0)/T, and its dependence on current direction and on magnetic field; the temperature dependence of κ(T).

Anisotropic energy gaps of iron-based superconductivity from intraband quasiparticle interference in LiFeAs.

If strong electron-electron interactions between neighboring Fe atoms mediate the Cooper pairing in iron-pnictide superconductors, then specific and distinct anisotropic superconducting energy gaps Δ(i)(k) should appear on the different electronic bands i. Here, we introduce intraband Bogoliubov quasiparticle scattering interference (QPI) techniques for determination of Δ(i)(k) in such materials, focusing on lithium iron arsenide (LiFeAs). We identify the three hole-like bands assigned previously as γ, α(2), and α(1), and we determine the anisotropy, magnitude, and relative orientations of their Δ(i)(k). These measurements will advance quantitative theoretical analysis of the mechanism of Cooper pairing in iron-based superconductivity.

Antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations and unconventional nodeless superconductivity in an iron-based new superconductor (Ca4Al2O(6-y))(Fe2As2): 75As nuclear quadrupole resonance study.

We report 75As nuclear quadrupole resonance studies on (Ca4Al2O(6-y))(Fe2As2) with T(c) = 27 K. Measurement of nuclear-spin-relaxation rate 1/T1 has revealed a significant development of two-dimensional antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations down to T(c) in association with the smallest As-Fe-As bond angle. Below T(c), the temperature dependence of 1/T1 without any trace of the coherence peak is well accounted for by a nodeless s(±)-wave multiple-gaps model. From the fact that its T(c) is comparable to T(c) = 28 K in the optimally doped LaFeAsO(1-y) in which antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations are not dominant, we remark that antiferromagnetic spin fluctuations are not a unique factor for enhancing T(c) among Fe-based superconductors, but a condition for optimizing superconductivity should be addressed from the lattice structure point of view.

Unprecedented anisotropic metallic state in undoped iron arsenide BaFe2As2 revealed by optical spectroscopy.

An ordered phase showing remarkable electronic anisotropy in proximity to the superconducting phase is now a hot issue in the field of high-transition-temperature superconductivity. As in the case of copper oxides, superconductivity in iron arsenides competes or coexists with such an ordered phase. Undoped and underdoped iron arsenides have a magnetostructural ordered phase exhibiting stripe-like antiferromagnetic spin order accompanied by an orthorhombic lattice distortion; both the spin order and lattice distortion break the tetragonal symmetry of crystals of these compounds. In this ordered state, anisotropy of in-plane electrical resistivity is anomalous and difficult to attribute simply to the spin order and/or the lattice distortion. Here, we present the anisotropic optical spectra measured on detwinned BaFe(2)As(2) crystals with light polarization parallel to the Fe planes. Pronounced anisotropy is observed in the spectra, persisting up to an unexpectedly high photon energy of about 2 eV. Such anisotropy arises from an anisotropic energy gap opening below and slightly above the onset of the order. Detailed analysis of the optical spectra reveals an unprecedented electronic state in the ordered phase.

Endoglucanase G from Fibrobacter succinogenes S85 belongs to a class of enzymes characterized by a basic C-terminal domain.

A 3.6-kb fragment of the Fibrobacter succinogenes S85 DNA was sequenced and found to contain two open reading frames (ORFs) on the same strand separated by 242 nucleotide bases. The translated protein from ORF1 had a predicted mass of 52.3 kDa. In a region of 320 amino acid overlap, it shares a 35% identity with the b-chain of the glutamate synthase of Escherichia coli. The ORF2 protein encodes a 519 residue protein designated CelG. It consists of an ORF of 1557 bp, encoding a polypeptide of 54.5 kDa. The N-terminal region, which contains the catalytic domain, is linked to a C-terminal basic domain, which has a predicted isoelectric point of 10.8. The catalytic domain in endoglucanase G (CelG) is homologous to the family 5 (A) cellulases. The enzyme has an apparent mass of 55 kDa, a pH optimum of 5.5, and temperature optimum of 25 degrees C. It had a specific activity of 16.5 mumols x min(-1) x mg-1 on barley b-glucan and produced a mixture of cellooligosaccharides from the hydrolysis of acid swollen cellulose and cellooligosaccharides. Antiserum raised against the purified form of CelG in E. coli failed to react with proteins from the native organism when grown on either glucose or crystalline cellulose, but reverse transcription and polymerase chain reaction techniques using RNA from the native organism demonstrated that the celG gene was expressed constitutively. Its distribution amongst subspecies of Fibrobacter was restricted to F. succinogenes S85.