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On the Possibility of Neutron Spectroscopy of Microwave Currents in Thin Superconducting Films

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Abstract

The inelastic magnetic scattering of polarized neutrons from thin superconducting films irradiated with microwave radiations is analyzed. This process is due to the interaction of the magnetic field generated by the neutron, with the oscillating current induced by the electromagnetic field penetrated into the film. In the Born approximation, the neutron energy can both increase and decrease by the energy quantum of the microwave field. The scattering cross-section, which is proportional to the square of the supercurrent density in the film, is derived. Results of calculations of the scattering cross-section as a function of both the neutron energy and the field frequency are presented for the superconducting thin films made of the BCS superconductors, cuprate, and iron-based superconductors. Measurements of this cross section give directly the frequency-dependent supercurrents in the films without involving any model concepts.

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Acknowledgments

Author would like to thank A.S. Ivanov for his interest in the work and for the useful discussions

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  1. National Research Center Kurchatov Institute, Moscow, 123182, Russia

    A. I. Agafonov

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  1. A. I. Agafonov
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Agafonov, A.I. On the Possibility of Neutron Spectroscopy of Microwave Currents in Thin Superconducting Films. J Supercond Nov Magn 27, 2467–2473 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10948-014-2605-1

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