THEORY OF THE PSEUDOGAP IN HIGH-T-C SUPERCONDUCTORS

Several different experimental techniques have confirmed the existence of a ''pseudogap'' in normal high-T-c superconductors with low hole d ensities. Previous quasispin Monte Carlo simulations by the authors ha ve shown that a planar one-band model of the oxygen lattice, with a lo cal pairing interaction, produces uncorrelated bound hole pairs above the superconducting transition temperature when the hole densities are low. Results of normal-state simulations are reported in this work. T hey provide evidence for the identification of the binding energy of i ntraplanar uncorrelated hole pairs with the observed pseudogap.