Direct role of structural dynamics in electron-lattice coupling of superconducting cuprates

Abstract

The mechanism of electron pairing in high-temperature superconductors is still the subject of intense debate. Here, we provide direct evidence of the role of structural dynamics, with selective atomic motions (buckling of copper–oxygen planes), in the anisotropic electron-lattice coupling. The transient structures were determined using time-resolved electron diffraction, following carrier excitation with polarized femtosecond heating pulses, and examined for different dopings and temperatures. The deformation amplitude reaches 0.5% of the c axis value of 30 Å when the light polarization is in the direction of the copper–oxygen bond, but its decay slows down at 45°. These findings suggest a selective dynamical lattice involvement with the anisotropic electron–phonon coupling being on a time scale (1–3.5 ps depending on direction) of the same order of magnitude as that of the spin exchange of electron pairing in the high-temperature superconducting phase.

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