Vortex lattice depinning vs. vortex lattice melting: a pinning-based explanation of the equilibrium magnetization jump

Citation
Y. Kopelevich et P. Esquinazi, Vortex lattice depinning vs. vortex lattice melting: a pinning-based explanation of the equilibrium magnetization jump, SOL ST COMM, 114(5), 2000, pp. 241-244
Citations number
40
Categorie Soggetti
Apllied Physucs/Condensed Matter/Materiales Science
Journal title
SOLID STATE COMMUNICATIONS
ISSN journal
00381098 → ACNP
Volume
114
Issue
5
Year of publication
2000
Pages
241 - 244
Database
ISI
SICI code
0038-1098(2000)114:5<241:VLDVVL>2.0.ZU;2-L
Abstract
In this communication we argue that the Vortex Lattice Melting scenario fai ls to explain several key experimental results published in the literature. From a careful analysis of these results we conclude that the Flux Line La ttice (FLL) does not melt along a material- and sample-dependent boundary H -j(T) but the opposite, it decouples from the superconducting matrix becomi ng more ordered. When the FLL depinning is sharp, the difference between th e equilibrium magnetization M-eq(T, H) of the pinned and unpinned FLL leads to the observed step-like change M-eq(T, H). We demonstrate that the exper imentally obtained Delta M-eq(T, H) can be well accounted for by a variatio n of the pinning efficiency of vortices along the H-j(T) boundary. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.