# Effects of spin-orbit coupling on the neutron spin resonance in iron-based superconductors

## TL;DR

This study models the impact of spin-orbit coupling on the neutron spin resonance in iron-based superconductors, revealing how it influences magnetic anisotropy and resonance features consistent with experimental observations.

## Contribution

It introduces a realistic bandstructure model including spin-orbit coupling and Hubbard-Hund interactions to explain magnetic anisotropy in the neutron resonance of iron-based superconductors.

## Key findings

- Reproduces experimental magnetic anisotropy features
- Predicts double resonance and c-axis polarization
- Shows enhanced magnetic anisotropy in the superconducting state

## Abstract

The so-called neutron spin resonance consists of a prominent enhancement of the magnetic response at a particular energy and momentum transfer upon entering the superconducting state of unconventional superconductors. In the case of iron-based superconductors, the neutron resonance has been extensively studied experimentally, and a peculiar spin-space anisotropy has been identified by polarized inelastic neutron scattering experiments. Here we perform a theoretical study of the energy- and spin-resolved magnetic susceptibility in the superconducting state with $ s_{+-} $-wave order parameter, relevant to iron-pnictide and iron-chalcogenide superconductors. Our model is based on a realistic bandstructure including spin-orbit coupling with electronic Hubbard-Hund interactions included at the RPA level. Spin-orbit coupling is taken into account both in the generation of spin-fluctuation mediated pairing, as well as the numerical computation of the spin susceptibility in the superconducting state. We find that spin-orbit coupling and superconductivity in conjunction can reproduce the salient experimentally observed features of the magnetic anisotropy of the neutron resonance. This includes the possibility of a double resonance, the tendency for a $c$-axis polarized resonance, and the existence of enhanced magnetic anisotropy upon entering the superconducting phase.