Muon spin rotation measurements of the vortex state in vanadium: A comparative analysis using iterative and analytical solutions of the Ginzburg-Landau equations

TL;DR

This study uses muon spin rotation to analyze the vortex state in vanadium, comparing iterative and analytical Ginzburg-Landau solutions, revealing field-dependent changes in superconducting parameters consistent with electronic structure variations.

Contribution

It introduces a comparative analysis of vortex lattice modeling in vanadium using two different Ginzburg-Landau solution methods, enhancing understanding of superconductor vortex states.

Findings

Magnetic penetration depth and coherence length show strong field dependence.

Zero-field lambda and kappa values agree with other experimental techniques.

Both models produce qualitatively similar results.

Abstract

We report muon spin rotation measurements on a single crystal of the marginal type-II superconductor V. The measured internal magnetic field distributions are modeled assuming solutions of the Ginzburg-Landau (GL) equations for an ideal vortex lattice obtained using (i) an iterative procedure developed by E.H. Brandt, Phys. Rev. Lett. 78, 2208 (1997) and (ii) a variational method. Both models yield qualitatively similar results. The magnetic penetration depth (lambda) and the GL coherence length (xi) determined from the data analysis exhibit strong field dependences, which are attributed to changes in the electronic structure of the vortex lattice. The zero-field extrapolated values of lambda and the GL parameter kappa agree well with values obtained by other experimental techniques that probe the Meissner state.