Exotic interband pairing in multiband superconductors

Abstract

The electron Bloch states in crystals with spin-orbit coupling do not always transform under symmetry operations in the same way as the pure spin-\textonehalf{} states. This has profound consequences for the gap symmetry of superconductors. In conventional $s$-wave superconductors, the interband pairing exhibits unconventional features, such as triplet components and odd parity; it can produce line nodes in the excitation energy gap. In $d$-wave superconductors, the interband pairing changes the positions and topology of the lines of the gap nodes.

Topics & Concepts