Stripes and Pairing in High Temperature Superconductors

TL;DR

This paper reviews various approaches to understanding stripe phases in high-temperature superconductors, highlighting how charge inhomogeneities influence pairing and the role of orbital degeneracy in different materials.

Contribution

It introduces the role of orbital degeneracy in stripe formation and its impact on the symmetry of the superconducting state in pnictides.

Findings

Charge inhomogeneities enhance pairing interactions.

Orbital degeneracy influences stripe formation mechanisms.

Orbital degeneracy determines superconducting symmetry in pnictides.

Abstract

We review briefly several approaches used to investigate the stability of stripe phases in high temperature superconductors, where charge inhomogeneities arise from competing kinetic and magnetic energies. The mechanism of stripe formation, their consequences for the normal state and enhancement of pairing interaction triggered by charge inhomogeneities are briefly summarized. Finally, we demonstrate that orbital degeneracy ($i$) leads to a more subtle mechanism of stripe formation, and ($ii$) plays an important role and determines the symmetry of the superconducting state in pnictides.