Probing -wave superconducting gap of the high- cuprate by resonant inelastic x-ray scattering
Phys. Rev. B 113, 224510 – Published 8 June, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/4tm5-f5mj
Abstract
The superconducting gap is a characteristic feature of high- superconductors and provides crucial information on the pairing mechanism underlying high-temperature superconductivity. Here, we employ high-resolution resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) at the Cu edge to investigate the superconducting gap in the overdoped cuprate (. By analyzing antisymmetrized, temperature-dependent RIXS spectra over a range of in-plane momentum transfers, we observe a clear suppression of low-energy spectral weight below , indicative of superconducting-gap formation. This suppression is most pronounced at small momentum transfers r.l.u. (reciprocal lattice units)] and corresponds to a gap size of approximately meV. Comparison with theoretical calculations of the momentum-dependent charge susceptibility supports a -wave symmetry of the superconducting gap, while an isotropic -wave gap fails to reproduce key experimental features. These findings establish RIXS as a powerful, bulk-sensitive probe of superconducting-gap symmetry and highlight its utility for studying materials beyond the reach of surface-sensitive techniques such as ARPES and STM.