Fermions on half-quantum vortex
Abstract
The spectrum of the fermion zero modes in the vicinity of the vortex with fractional winding number is discussed. This is inspired by the observation of the 1/2 vortex in high-temperature superconductors (Kirtley, et al, Phys. Rev. Lett. 76 (1996) 1336). The fractional value of the winding number leads to the fractional value of the invariant, which describes the topology of the energy spectrum of fermions. This results in the phenomenon of the "half-crossing": the spectrum approaches zero but does not cross it, being captured at the zero energy level. The similarity with the phenomenon of the fermion condensation is discussed.
Cite
@article{arxiv.cond-mat/9604046,
title = {Fermions on half-quantum vortex},
author = {G. E. Volovik},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:cond-mat/9604046},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
In revised version the discussion is extended and 4 references are added. The paper is accepted for publication in JETP Letters. 10 pages, LaTeX file, 3 figures are available at ftp://boojum.hut.fi/pub/publications/lowtemp/LTL-96004.ps