Stripe structure, spectral feature and soliton gap in high Tc cuprates

TL;DR

This paper explains the stripe magnetic structure and soliton physics in lightly doped high-Tc cuprates, clarifying the relationship between stripe transitions, metal-insulator transition, and optical absorption, with implications for superconductivity.

Contribution

It introduces a solitonic physics framework to describe stripe phases and their transitions in high-Tc cuprates, linking magnetic structure to electronic properties.

Findings

Neutron observations of stripe transition are explained by soliton physics.

The phase diagram and doping dependence of stripe modulation are analyzed.

The origin of mid-infrared optical absorption is clarified.

Abstract

We show that the lightly doped La_{2-x}Sr_{x}CuO_{4} can be described in terms of a stripe magnetic structure or soliton picture. The internal relationship between the recent neutron observation of the diagonal (x=0.05) to vertical (x >= 0.06) stripe transition, which was predicted, and the concomitant metal-insulator transition is clarified by this solitonic physics. The phase diagram with the unidentified transition lines between antiferromagnetic to stripe phases, the doping dependence of the modulation period, the origin of the mid-infrared optical absorption are investigated comparatively with other single layer systems: La_{2-x}Sr_{x}NiO_{4} and (La,Nd)_{2-x}Sr_{x}CuO_{4}. The novel type of quasi-particles and holes is fully responsible for metallic conduction and ultimately superconductivity.