Strong-Coupling Theory of Impure Superconductors : Correspondence with Weak-Coupling Theory

Abstract

We reconsider the ordinary impurity effect on the transition temperature $T_{c}$ of superconductors using the Eliashberg formalism. It is shown that the correspondence principle, which relates strong-coupling and weak-coupling theories, works only when Anderson's pairing condition between the time-reversed scattered-states is used. For an Einstein phonon model, the change of the electron density of states caused by the impurity scattering leads to a $T_{c}$ decrease proportional to ${1/ E_{F}τ}$ in the dirty limit. It is pointed out that the phonon-mediated interaction decreases by the same weak localization correction term as that of the conductivity. Accordingly, for strongly localized states the phonon-mediated interaction is exponentially small. We also discuss the case of Debye phonon model.