Response to tilted magnetic fields in $Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_8$ with columnar defects : Evidences for transverse Meissner effect

TL;DR

This study provides transport evidence for the transverse Meissner effect in a layered superconductor with columnar defects, demonstrating the persistence of the Bose glass phase and a transition at a critical perpendicular magnetic field.

Contribution

It offers detailed experimental evidence for the transverse Meissner effect and characterizes the vortex phase transition in $Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+y}$ with columnar defects.

Findings

Persistence of Bose glass phase below critical field

Linear vanishing of energy barriers near transition

Observation of kink chains indicating a transition scenario

Abstract

The transverse Meissner effect (TME) in the highly layered superconductor $Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+y}$ with columnar defects is investigated by transport measurements. We present detailed evidence for the persistence of the Bose glass phase for $H_{\perp}<H_{\perp c}$ : (i) the variable-range vortex hopping process for low currents crosses over to the half-loops regime for high currents; (ii) in both regimes near $H_{\perp c}$ the energy barriers vanish linearly with $H_{\perp}$ ; (iii) the transition temperature is governed by $T_{BG}(H_{\parallel},0) -T_{BG}(H_{\parallel},H_{\perp}) \sim |H_{\perp}| ^{1/\nu_{\perp}}$ with $\nu_{\perp}=1.0 \pm 0.1$. Furthermore, above the transition as $H_{\perp}\to H_{\perp c}^+$, moving kink chains consistent with a commensurate-incommensurate transition scenario are observed. These results thereby clearly show the existence of the TME for $H_{\perp}<H_{\perp c}$ .