c-Axis Intra-Layer Couplings in the CuO_2 Planes of High-T_c Cuprates

TL;DR

This paper investigates the intrinsic lattice deformations in doped CuO_2 planes of high-temperature cuprate superconductors, highlighting c-axis displacements of copper atoms as a common feature driven by strong electron correlations.

Contribution

It distinguishes intrinsic lattice effects from extrinsic influences and identifies c-axis copper displacements as a generic property of metallic CuO_2 lattices.

Findings

c-axis displacements are intrinsic to doped CuO_2 planes

strong correlations drive lattice deformations

disentangling intrinsic and extrinsic effects

Abstract

We discuss the static deformations of the doped CuO_2 lattices in YBa_2Cu_3O_x. Intrinsic lattice effects driven by the strong correlations of the electron system are separated from extrinsic chemical and bandstructure effects. c-axis displacements of the planar copper atoms seem to be a generic property of the metallic CuO_2 lattices.