Multiphase superconductivity in skutterudite PrOs4Sb12

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2003 EDP Sciences
, , Citation K. Maki et al 2003 EPL 64 496 DOI 10.1209/epl/i2003-00250-2

0295-5075/64/4/496

Abstract

We propose a model of nodal order parameters for the superconducting A- and B-phase of skutterudite PrOs4Sb12 and discuss the associated angular-dependent magnetothermal conductivity at low temperatures. The model for the hybrid gap functions Δ(k) containing s- and g-wave parts is consistent with recent thermal-conductivity experiments in PrOs4Sb12. In particular, the model accounts for the data on the polar and azimuthal field angle dependence of κzz(θ,ϕ). The low-temperature behaviour of thermodynamic properties in zero field is also presented. We show that the effect of impurity scattering on a nodal hybrid gap function immediately leads the opening of a gap and the related exponential behaviour of low-temperature specific heat and thermal conductivity which is very different from d-wave superconductors.

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10.1209/epl/i2003-00250-2