Correlation of low-temperature thermal expansion with oxygen nonstoichiometry in Bi17Pb03 Sr2Ca2Cu3O10+y

Abstract

Low-temperature thermal expansion and its correlation with oxygen nonstoichiometry have been studied for Bi1.7Pb0.3Sr2Ca2Cu3O10+y samples. An anomalously big jump of the thermal expansion in the c direction of Bi1.7Pb0.3Sr2Ca2Cu3O10+y has been observed at a temperature slightly above the superconductivity transition temperature. The corresponding temperature and the magnitude of the jump are found to be correlated with the oxygen nonstoichiometry, carrier concentration and superconductivity. The results reveal that the anomalously big jump of the thermal expansion is an electron-assisted lattice softening transition. Its correlation with the superconductivity suggests that phonon-electron interaction still plays a certain role in the superconductivity in high-Tc cuprates.