RUI: Thermal Properties of Strongly-Coupled Extreme Type-II Superconductors in the Mixed State

该提案支持研究和教育，作为NSF本科院校研究（RUI）计划的一部分，并涉及强耦合超导体特性的理论研究。 最近在2008年1月发现的铁基超导体，以及在2001年发现的二硼化镁超导体，激发了极大的科学兴趣。 这些超导体都是极端的II型品种，允许超导性与高磁场共存，并具有高转变温度。PI的目的是计算强耦合极端II型超导体的热力学性质从高场极限的朗道水平配对计划。首先，将推导出一个理论模型，并根据实验确定的参数进行数值计算，这些参数有助于深入了解这些超导体的热力学和输运性质。最终目标是阐明II型超导体混合态的本质。该项目的计算方面将为物理，数学和计算机科学本科生提供各种学习机会。 这项研究也将被纳入古彻学院的学术课程，在那里它将有助于跨学科材料科学的重点已经在物理课程。 非技术性总结本提案支持位于马里兰州巴尔的摩县的独立男女同校文科学院古彻学院物理系的研究和教育工作。 该计划的研究部分将侧重于提高我们对过去十年中发现的两类新超导材料的理解，即2001年发现的二硼化镁和2008年发现的铁基超导体。 作为本研究的一部分，开发所研究的改进型超导材料为提升国家电网的可靠性、容量和效率提供了潜在的希望。 该研究将专注于开发描述这些新型超导体特性的理论模型，然后进行数值模拟，以帮助了解这些材料在不同条件下的行为，例如温度变化。该项目的计算方面将为物理，数学和计算机科学本科生提供各种学习机会。 这项研究也将被纳入古彻学院的学术课程，在那里它将有助于跨学科材料科学的重点已经在物理课程。

TECHNICAL SUMMARYThis proposal supports research and education as part of the NSF Research at Undergraduate Institutions (RUI) program, and involves the theoretical study of the properties of strongly-coupled superconductors. The recent discovery of iron-based superconductors in January 2008, and the discovery of the magnesium diboride superconductors in 2001, has stimulated great scientific interest. These superconductors are all of the extreme type-II variety which permits coexistence of superconductivity with high magnetic field as well as having high transition temperatures. The PI aims to calculate the thermodynamic properties of strongly coupled extreme type-II superconductors starting from the high-field limit of the Landau level pairing scheme. First, a theoretical model will be derived and used to perform numerical calculations based on experimentally-determined parameters that help provide insight into the thermodynamic and transport properties of these superconductors. The ultimate goal is to elucidate the nature of the mixed state of type-II superconductors.The computational aspects of the project will provide a variety of learning opportunities for physics, mathematics, and computer science undergraduate students. The research will also be integrated into the academic program at Goucher College, where it will contribute to an interdisciplinary materials science emphasis already in place in the physics curriculum. NONTECHNICAL SUMMARYThis proposal supports a research and education effort in the Department of Physics at Goucher College, an independent, co-educational liberal arts college located in Baltimore County, Maryland. The research component of this program will focus on enhancing our understanding of two new classes of superconducting materials that have been discovered in the past decade, magnesium diboride in 2001 and iron-based superconductors in 2008. Development of improved superconducting materials of the type studied as part of this research offer potential promise for upgrading the reliability, capacity, and efficiency of the national power grid. The research will focus on developing theoretical models that describe the properties of these novel superconductors, and then carry out numerical simulations to help understand how these materials behave under different conditions, such as changes in temperature. The computational aspects of the project will provide a variety of learning opportunities for physics, mathematics, and computer science undergraduate students. The research will also be integrated into the academic program at Goucher College, where it will contribute to an interdisciplinary materials science emphasis already in place in the physics curriculum.