Iron Based Superconductors: Pnictides versus Chalcogenides

TL;DR

This review compares iron-based pnictide and chalcogenide superconductors, highlighting recent discoveries, differences in electronic structures, and the role of vacancies and magnetic order in their superconducting properties.

Contribution

It provides a comparative analysis of the electronic structures and magnetic properties of new FeSe superconductors versus traditional FeAs systems, emphasizing the impact of vacancies and magnetic order.

Findings

New FeSe superconductors lack Fermi surface nesting.

High-temperature antiferromagnetic order coexists with superconductivity.

Superconducting T_c correlates with the density of states at the Fermi level.

Abstract

We present a brief review of the present day situation with studies of high-temperature superconductivity in iron pnictides and chalcogenides. Recent discovery of superconductivity with T_c > 30 K in A_xFe_{2-x/2}Se_2 (A=K,Cs,Tl,...) represents the major new step in the development of new concepts in the physics of Fe - based high-temperature superconductors. We compare LDA and ARPES data on the band structure and Fermi surfaces of novel superconductors and those of the previously studied FeAs superconductors, especially isostructural 122 - superconductors like BaFe_2As_2. It appears that electronic structure of new superconductors is rather different from that of FeAs 122 - systems. In particular, no nesting properties of electron and hole - like Fermi surfaces is observed, casting doubts on most popular theoretical schemes of Cooper pairing for these systems. The discovery of Fe vacancies ordering and antiferromagnetic (AFM) ordering at pretty high temperatures (T_N> 500 K), much exceeding superconducting T_c makes these systems unique antiferromagnetic superconductors with highest T_N observed up to now. We discuss the role of both vacancies and AFM ordering in transformations of band structure and Fermi surfaces, as well as their importance for superconductivity. In particular, we show that system remains metallic with unfolded Fermi surfaces quite similar to that in paramagnetic state. Superconducting transition temperature T_c of new superconductors is discussed within the general picture of superconductivity in multiple band systems. It is demonstrated that both in FeAs - superconductors and in new FeSe - systems the value of T_c correlates with the value of the total density of states (DOS) at the Fermi level.