Abstract
An infinite-volume limit solution of the thermodynamics of a BCS superconductor containing spin 1/2 and 7/2 magnetic impurities, obtained recently in [D. Borycki, J. Maćkowiak, Supercond. Sci. Technol. 24, 035007 (2011)] is exploited to derive the expressions for critical magnetic field \(\mathcal{H}_c\)(T). The credibility of the resulting thermodynamically limited theoretical equations, which depend on the magnetic coupling constant g and impurity concentration c, is verified on the experimental data for the following superconducting alloys: LaCe, ThGd and SmRh4B4. Good quantitative agreement with experimental data is found for sufficiently small values of c. The discrepancies between theoretical and experimental values of \(\mathcal{H}_c\)(T) for larger values of c in case of LaCe and ThGd are reduced by introducing the concept of the effective temperature \(\tilde T\), which accounts for the Coulomb interactions between the electron gas and impurity ions. At low temperatures, the critical magnetic field is found to increase with decreasing temperature T. This enhancement of the critical magnetic field provides evidence of the Jaccarino-Peter effect, which was experimentally observed in the Kondo systems like LaCe, (La1 − x Ce x )Al2 and also in the pseudoternary compounds, including Sn1 − x Eu x Mo6S8, Pb1 − x Eu x Mo6S8 and La1.2 − x Eu x Mo6S8. The effect of an external magnetic field \(\mathcal{H}\) on a BCS superconductor perturbed by magnetic impurities was also studied. On these grounds, by analyzing the dependence of superconducting transition temperature T c on \(\mathcal{H}\) of (La1 − x Ce x )Al2, we have shown, that for certain parameter values, external magnetic field compensates the destructive effect of magnetic impurities.
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Borycki, D. Enhancement of superconductivity by an external magnetic field in magnetic alloys. Eur. Phys. J. B 87, 118 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1140/epjb/e2014-40787-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1140/epjb/e2014-40787-y