Concepts in High Temperature Superconductivity

TL;DR

This paper explores the core theoretical issues of high temperature superconductivity, emphasizing the importance of kinetic energy mechanisms and mesoscale structures in pairing, especially in cuprates and related materials.

Contribution

It provides a focused analysis on the theoretical mechanisms behind high temperature superconductivity, highlighting the roles of kinetic energy and mesoscale effects.

Findings

Kinetic energy driven pairing mechanisms are crucial.

Mesoscale structures enhance pairing from repulsive interactions.

Focus on intermediate temperature scales and the pseudogap regime.

Abstract

It is the purpose of this paper to explore the theory of high temperature superconductivity. Much of the motivation for this comes from the study of the cuprate high temperature superconductors. However, our primary focus is on the core theoretical issues associated with the mechanism of high temperature superconductivity more generally. We concentrate on physics at intermediate temperature scales of order $T_c$ (as well as the somewhat larger "pseudogap" temperature) and energies of order the gap maximum, $\Delta_0$. Prominent themes throughout the article are the need for a kinetic energy driven mechanism, and the role of mesoscale structure in enhancing pairing from repulsive interactions.