Model of C-Axis Resistivity of High-$\Tc$ Cuprates

TL;DR

This paper introduces a simple model explaining the c-axis resistivity in high-$T_c$ cuprates, highlighting the roles of in-plane dephasing and barrier scattering, and predicts impurity effects in yttrium barium copper oxide.

Contribution

The model uniquely separates contributions to c-axis resistivity, linking it to in-plane density of states suppression and barrier scattering, providing a unified explanation for experimental observations.

Findings

Explains the semiconductor-like behavior of $ ho_c$ at low temperatures.

Predicts impurity doping effects on $ ho_c$ in $ ext{YBa}_2 ext{Cu}_3 ext{O}_y$.

Accounts for systematic variations across different cuprate materials.

Abstract

We propose a simple model which accounts for the major features and systematics of experiments on the $c$-axis resistivity, $\rho_c$, for $\lsco$, $\ybco$ and $\bsco $. We argue that the $c$-axis resistivity can be separated into contributions from in-plane dephasing and the $c$-axis ``barrier'' scattering processes, with the low temperature semiconductor-like behavior of $\rho_c$ arising from the suppression of the in-plane density of states measured by in-plane magnetic Knight shift experiments. We report on predictions for $\rho_c$ in impurity-doped $\ybco$ materials.