Quasiparticle Density of State Study of n-type Cuprate Superconductor Pr0.88LaCe0.12CuO4-δ

Superconductivity is one of the most beautiful physical phenomena with many existing applications such as Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), highly sensitive magnetometer, ultra-high magnetic field generator etc. Besides having the wonderful existing applications more exotic superconductivity based applications for 21st century such as levitating train, quantum computing, zero-loss electric transmission lines etc, are still under development. To turn these research level applications into technology we need to understand the superconductivity phenomenon. Superconductivity has been one of the most enigmatic physical phenomenon for more than a century since its discovery in 1911. Although many complicated questions related to the phenomenon has been answered in last century there are some fundamental questions such as the mechanism that governs superconductivity in unconventional superconductors and presence of pseudo gap in cuprate superconductors are still puzzling the researchers. We are proposing here to explore the superconducting properties of an electron-doped (n-type) superconductor, Pr0.88LaCe0.12CuO4- (PLCCO) by using Scanning Tunneling Spectroscopy (STS). The presence of pseudo gap, in extensively studied hole-doped cuprates (p-type), is well-established fact. However, the subject is still under debate for their n-type counterparts. The absence of superconductivity phenomenon in as grown samples of n-type cuprates is another anomaly. This proposal is to focus on these two unusual properties of n-type cuprates. We will first measure the tunneling conductance (dI/dV) spectra with sub-angstrom resolution by using low temperature ultra-high vacuum Scanning Tunneling Microscope (STM). Such measured tunneling spectra will be analyzed to answer some fundamental questions of superconductivity such as the presence of pseudo gap and quasiparticle scattering in n-type high Tc cuprate superconductors.