Structural and magnetic phase diagram of CeFeAsO1− xFx and its relation to high-temperature superconductivity

Published

October 26, 2008

Author(s)

Jun Zhao, Qingzhen Huang, Clarnia dela Cruz, Shiliang Li, Jeffrey Lynn, Ying Chen, Mark Green, G. F. Chen, Z. C. Li, J. L. Luo, N. L. Wang, Pengcheng Dai

Abstract

Recently, high-transition-temperature (high-Tc) superconductivity was discovered in the iron pnictide RFeAsO1−xFx (R, rare-earth metal) family of materials. We use neutron scattering to study the structural and magnetic phase transitions in CeFeAsO1−xFx as the system is tuned from a semimetal to a high-Tc superconductor through fluorine (F) doping, x. In the undoped state, CeFeAsO develops a structural lattice distortion followed by a collinear antiferromagnetic order with decreasing temperature. With increasing fluorine doping, the structural phase transition decreases gradually and vanishes within the superconductivity dome near x=0.10, whereas the antiferromagnetic order is suppressed before the appearance of superconductivity for x>0.06, resulting in an electronic phase diagram remarkably similar to that of the high-Tc copper oxides. Comparison of the structural evolution of CeFeAsO1−xFx with other Fe-based superconductors suggests that the structural perfection of the Fe–As tetrahedron is important for the high-Tc superconductivity in these Fe pnictides.

Citation

Nature Materials

Volume

7

Issue

12

Pub Type

Journals

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat2315

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Keywords

neutron diffraction, magnetic order, structural phase transition, iron based superconductor, quantum critical point, phase diagram

Citation

Zhao, J. , Huang, Q. , dela Cruz, C. , Li, S. , Lynn, J. , Chen, Y. , Green, M. , Chen, G. , Li, Z. , Luo, J. , Wang, N. and Dai, P. (2008), Structural and magnetic phase diagram of CeFeAsO1− xFx and its relation to high-temperature superconductivity, Nature Materials, [online], https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat2315, https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=610016 (Accessed October 28, 2025)