Non-magnetic impurity scattering in a $d_{x^2 - y^2}$ superconductor near a van Hove point: Zn versus Ni in the cuprates

Abstract

We consider the effect of non-magnetic impurities in a $d_{x^2 - y^2}$ superconductor with $\ef$ close to a van Hove singularity. It is shown that the non-trivial density of states (DOS) allows for resonant scattering already at intermediate potential strengths $|u| \approx 1-2$eV. The residual DOS at $\ef$, and the \tc suppression rate are found to strongly depend on the carrier concentration. Quantitative agreement with experiments on Zn and Ni doped cuprates is obtained by adjusting a single parameter, $u$.