Superconductivity, magnetic ordering, and its interplay in HoNi2B2C

TL;DR

This study explores how superconductivity and magnetic order coexist and influence each other in HoNi2B2C, revealing the interplay between magnetic structures and superconducting properties at low temperatures.

Contribution

It provides detailed experimental insights into the magnetic and superconducting phases and their interactions in HoNi2B2C using ac-susceptibility and neutron diffraction.

Findings

Magnetic order affects superconductivity via pair-breaking.

Multiple magnetic structures coexist and evolve with temperature.

Superconducting volume fraction is influenced by magnetic ordering.

Abstract

We investigated the low-temperature properties of polycrystalline HoNi_2^11B_2C by means of ac-susceptibility and neutron powder diffraction in the temperature range of 1.5 to 10 K and zero magnetic field. A sample with pronounced re-entrant behaviour was chosen since it exhibits a superconducting state which is strongly affected by the intrinsic magnetism, the formation of long range magnetic order, via pair-breaking. The evolution and volume fractions of the three different magnetic structures were observed and correlated to the superconducting behaviour.