Decomposition of the Hall angle in the mixed state of superconductors

Abstract

Much work has gone into the study of the mixed-state Hall effect in high-temperature superconductors (HTS). One of the intriguing features is the reversal of the sign of the Hall angle upon entry into the superconducting state. A common observation for some of the HTS materials, is an empirical decomposition of the measured Hall angle into two terms, one proportional to field (like a normal metal) and the other weakly dependent on field. This observed decomposition can be explained in terms of the Hall effect within the normal vortex cores, combined with the hydrodynamic Magnus force on the body of the vortex. The problem has been treated in the framework of the time-dependent Ginzburg–Landau (TDGL) theory by Kopnin, Ivlev, and Kalatsky [J. Low Temp. Phys. 90 (1993) 1]. We show that the TDGL approach qualitatively explains the observed decomposition, and upon comparing with our data and several other published data, we find rough quantitative agreement as well.