Spatial line nodes and fractional vortex pairs in the Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov phase

TL;DR

This paper predicts a novel FFLO vortex phase with complex spatial line node structures and fractional vortex pairs in superconductors under magnetic fields, suggesting experimental detection via neutron scattering.

Contribution

It introduces a new non-trivial FFLO vortex solution featuring intricate line node lattices and fractional vortices, expanding understanding of vortex structures in superconductors.

Findings

Existence of a non-trivial FFLO vortex phase with spatial line nodes.

Decay of Abrikosov vortices into fractional vortex pairs.

Potential observation of fractional vortices via neutron scattering.

Abstract

A Zeeman magnetic field can induce a Fulde-Ferrell-Larkin-Ovchinnikov (FFLO) phase in spin-singlet superconductors. Here we argue that there is a non-trivial solution for the FFLO vortex phase that exists near the upper critical field in which the wavefunction has only spatial line nodes that form intricate and unusual three-dimensional structures. These structures include a crisscrossing lattice of two sets of non-parallel line nodes. We show that these solutions arise from the decay of conventional Abrikosov vortices into pairs of fractional vortices. We propose that neutron scattering studies can observe these fractional vortex pairs through the observation of a lattice of 1/2 flux quanta vortices. We also consider related phases in non-centrosymmetric (NC) superconductors.