Thermoelectric power of high-Tc superconductors calculated from the electronic structure

TL;DR

This paper calculates the thermoelectric power of high-Tc superconductors using ARPES-derived electronic structures, confirming the importance of the diffusion thermopower and the role of the van Hove singularity across the phase diagram.

Contribution

It introduces a model combining ARPES data, a pseudogap, and a marginal-Fermi liquid scattering rate to accurately reproduce thermopower measurements.

Findings

Good fits with experimental data across the phase diagram

Confirmation of the dispersion and vHs locations

Diffusion thermopower dominates over phonon drag

Abstract

We have calculated the thermopower of the Bi2Sr2CuO6 and Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8 superconductors using an ARPES-derived dispersion, with a model pseudogap, and a marginal-Fermi liquid scattering rate that has a minimum with respect to energy at the van Hove singularity (vHs). Good fits with data are achieved across the entire phase diagram, thus confirming the dispersions, the locations of the vHs and the dominance of the diffusion thermopower over the phonon drag contribution.