ARPES measurements of the superconducting gap of Fe-based superconductors and their implications to the pairing mechanism

TL;DR

This review discusses ARPES measurements of the superconducting gap in Fe-based superconductors, highlighting the limitations of Fermi-surface-driven pairing theories and emphasizing the importance of short-range interactions for understanding their superconductivity.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of ARPES studies on Fe-based superconductors and evaluates theoretical models, favoring short-range interaction approaches over Fermi-surface-driven mechanisms.

Findings

Fermi-surface-driven pairing mechanisms are insufficient for universal explanation.

Short-range interaction models offer a more consistent description.

Implications extend to broader unconventional superconductivity contexts.

Abstract

Its direct momentum sensitivity confers to angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) a unique perspective in investigating the superconducting gap of multi-band systems. In this review we discuss ARPES studies on the superconducting gap of the high-temperature Fe-based superconductors. We show that while Fermi-surface-driven pairing mechanisms fail to provide a universal scheme for the Fe-based superconductors, theoretical approaches based on short-range interactions lead to a more robust and universal description of superconductivity in these materials. Our findings are also discussed in the broader context of unconventional superconductivity.