Concepts in High Temperature Superconductivity

Abstract

It is the purpose of this paper to explore the theory of high temperature superconductivity. Much of the motivation for this comes from the study of the cuprate high temperature superconductors. However, our primary focus is on the core theoretical issues associated with the mechanism of high temperature superconductivity more generally. We concentrate on physics at intermediate temperature scales of order $T_c$ (as well as the somewhat larger "pseudogap" temperature) and energies of order the gap maximum, $\Delta_0$. Prominent themes throughout the article are the need for a kinetic energy driven mechanism, and the role of mesoscale structure in enhancing pairing from repulsive interactions.