Title
Universal magnetic-field-driven metal-insulator-metal transformations in graphite and bismuth
Date Issued
10 May 2006
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Author(s)
Universidade Estadual de Campinas
Abstract
Applied magnetic field induces metal-insulator and reentrant insulator-metal transitions in both graphite and rhombohedral bismuth. The corresponding transition boundaries plotted on the magnetic field-temperature (B-T) plane nearly coincide for these semimetals and can be best described by power laws T∼ (B- Bc) κ, where Bc is a critical field at T=0 and κ=0.45±0.05. We show that insulator-metal-insulator (I-M-I) transformations take place in the Landau level quantization regime and illustrate how the insulator-metal transformation in graphite samples with a moderate anisotropy transforms into a cascade of I-M-I transitions, related to the quantum Hall effect in strongly anisotropic, quasi-two-dimensional graphite samples. We discuss the possible coupling of superconducting and excitonic correlations with the observed phenomena, as well as the signatures of quantum phase transitions associated with the M-I and I-M transformations. © 2006 The American Physical Society.
Volume
73
Issue
16
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
FÃsica y AstronomÃa
Ciencias naturales
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-33646260488
Source
Physical Review B - Condensed Matter and Materials Physics
ISSN of the container
1550235X
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción CientÃfica
Scopus