Towards Holographic Hydrodynamics in Strange Metal Cuprates

Unconventional superconductivity comes in a variety of forms, of which the high-Tc cuprates are one with a complex phase diagram containing rich physics. Over certain doping range, strange metal behaviour is seen, for which a theoretical explanation is still lacking. This thesis reviews the theoretical advances in strange metal research and provides an overview of the experimental tools available. The experimental suggestions are based on the predictions of the AdS-CFT correspondence as a possible explanation for the strange metal peculiarities. This theory of holographic duality is characterised by the prediction of unconventional hydrodynamics in the strange metal cuprates. Therefore, several suggestions for hydrodynamic experimentation are given, firstly on the boundary effects for the electron current flow profile and secondly on viscous electron backflow after a nano-sized constriction. These are phenomena only yet observed in graphene. Thirdly, the sign-reversing Hall effect...Show moreUnconventional superconductivity comes in a variety of forms, of which the high-Tc cuprates are one with a complex phase diagram containing rich physics. Over certain doping range, strange metal behaviour is seen, for which a theoretical explanation is still lacking. This thesis reviews the theoretical advances in strange metal research and provides an overview of the experimental tools available. The experimental suggestions are based on the predictions of the AdS-CFT correspondence as a possible explanation for the strange metal peculiarities. This theory of holographic duality is characterised by the prediction of unconventional hydrodynamics in the strange metal cuprates. Therefore, several suggestions for hydrodynamic experimentation are given, firstly on the boundary effects for the electron current flow profile and secondly on viscous electron backflow after a nano-sized constriction. These are phenomena only yet observed in graphene. Thirdly, the sign-reversing Hall effect as seen in graphene possibly points towards unconventional hydrodynamics in the cuprates as well. This is followed by the description of preparatory experiments conducted on exfoliated flakes of Bi2Sr2CuO6+x, with a determined Tc of 10.0 K ± 0.3 K. These strange metal experiments confirm literature values and provide a solid platform for conducting future experiments on possible unconventional electron hydrodynamics in this material.Show less

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Towards Holographic Hydrodynamics in Strange Metal Cuprates