Symmetries, length scales, magnetic response, and skyrmion chains in nematic superconductors

Abstract

The structure of vortex lattices for unconventional superconductors is mostly unknown and a mathematically challenging problem. The authors propose a general method to find vortex lattices for any superconducting system. They focus on the example of nematic superconductors, demonstrating that in an external magnetic field such superconductors form chains of fractional vortices. Their approach, by describing the geometry of the unit cell, directly maps to the signal such lattices exhibit in muon spin rotation experiments, producing a powerful tool to study the superconducting order parameter.