Emergent gauge field from self-referencing phase factor on many-body wave functions and superconductivity

TL;DR

This paper proposes a fundamental revision of superconductivity theory by using Berry phase formalism to explain supercurrent generation through emergent gauge fields, addressing contradictions in standard BCS theory.

Contribution

It introduces a novel approach using Berry phase to identify emergent gauge fields that explain superconductivity beyond the standard BCS framework.

Findings

Berry phase formalism detects emergent gauge fields in superconductors.

Self-referencing phase factor explains supercurrent generation.

Provides a gauge field mechanism consistent with experimental anomalies.

Abstract

Superconductivity is a phenomenon where electrical current flows without friction. The current standard theory for it is the BCS (Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer) theory, which explains it as due to the energy gap formation by the electron-pairing, and the key ingredient for the supercurrent generation is the gauge symmetry breaking brought about by it. It was thought that superconductivity was fully understood by this standard theory; however, the discovery of superconductivity in cuprates in 1986 changed this situation, showing a number of experimental results that contradict the standard theory. It is also notable that the standard theory contradicts in the supecurrent carrier mass in the London moment; the predicted mass is an effective mass, while the experimental value is the free electron mass. The above contradictions suggest the necessity for a fundamental revision for the theory of superconductivity. Here we show that the required revision may be achieved by using the Berry phase formalism. It was developed after the establishment of the BCS theory, and provides a way to detect emergent gauge fields. A self-referencing phase factor on the wave function detected by the Berry phase formalism explains the supercurrent generation in the conventional and cuprate superconductors. It gives rise to a gauge field that enables the gauge symmetry breaking in the standard theory interpretation.