Observation of Vortex Stripes in UTe<sub>2</sub>.
basic_science · Level V
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- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 40814021.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1021/acs.nanolett.5c02265.
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Abstract
In conventional type-II superconductors, quantum vortices determine the magnetic response of the system and tend to form regular lattices. UTe<sub>2</sub> is a recently discovered heavy Fermion superconductor exhibiting many anomalous macroscopic behaviors, but whether it has a multicomponent order parameter remains open. Here, we study the vortices of UTe<sub>2</sub> by employing scanning superconducting quantum interference device microscopy. While a small out-of-plane magnetic field produces typical isolated vortices, a higher field generates vortex stripe patterns that evolve with the vortex density. The stripes form at different locations and along different directions in the surface plane when the field is along the <i>b</i> or <i>c</i> axis. The behavior is reproduced by our simulation based on an anisotropic two-component order parameter. This study shows that UTe<sub>2</sub> has a nontrivial disparity of multiple length scales, placing constraints on the multicomponent superconductivity.