Superconducting Stiffness and Coherence Length of FeSe$_{0.5}$Te$_{0.5}$ Measured in Zero-Applied Field

Abstract

Superconducting stiffness $\rho_s$ and coherence length $\xi$ are usually determined by measuring the penetration depth $\lambda$ of a magnetic field and the upper critical field $H_{c2}$ of a superconductor (SC), respectively. However, in magnetic SC, e.g. some of the iron-based, this could lead to erroneous results since the internal field could be very different from the applied one. To overcome this problem in Fe$_{1+y}$Se$_x$Te$_{1-x}$ with $x \sim 0.5$ and $y \sim 0$ (FST), we measure both quantities with the Stiffnessometer technique. In this technique, one applies a rotor-free vector potential $\textbf{A}$ to a superconducting ring and measures the current density $\textbf{j}$ via the ring's magnetic moment $\textbf{m}$. $\rho_s$ and $\xi$ are determined from London's equation $\textbf{j}=-\rho_s\textbf{A}$ and its range of validity. This method is particularly accurate at temperatures close to the critical temperature $T_c$. We find weaker $\rho_s$ and longer $\xi$ than existing literature reports, and critical exponents which agree better with expectations based on the Ginzburg-Landau theory.