Impact of electronic correlations on the superconductivity of high-pressure CeH$_9$

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Chen, Siyu, Wei, Yao, Monserrat, Bartomeu, Tomczak, Jan M., Poncé, Samuel
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Chen, Siyu
Wei, Yao
Monserrat, Bartomeu
Tomczak, Jan M.
Poncé, Samuel
author_facet Chen, Siyu
Wei, Yao
Monserrat, Bartomeu
Tomczak, Jan M.
Poncé, Samuel
contents Rare-earth superhydrides have attracted considerable attention because of their high critical superconducting temperature under extreme pressures. They are known to have localized valence electrons, implying strong electronic correlations. However, such many-body effects are rarely included in first-principles studies of rare-earth superhydrides because of the complexity of their high-pressure phases. In this work, we use a combined density functional theory and dynamical mean-field theory approach to study both electrons and phonons in the prototypical rare-earth superhydride CeH$_9$, shedding light on the impact of electronic correlations on its critical temperature for phonon-mediated superconductivity. Our findings indicate that electronic correlations result in a larger electronic density at the Fermi level, a bigger superconducting gap, and softer vibrational modes associated with hydrogen atoms. Together, the inclusion of these correlation signatures increases the Migdal-Eliashberg superconducting critical temperature from 47 K to 96 K, close to the measured 95 K. Our results reconcile experimental observations and theoretical predictions for CeH$_9$ and herald a path towards the quantitative modeling of phonon-mediated superconductivity for interacting electron systems.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2507_12506
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Impact of electronic correlations on the superconductivity of high-pressure CeH$_9$
Chen, Siyu
Wei, Yao
Monserrat, Bartomeu
Tomczak, Jan M.
Poncé, Samuel
Superconductivity
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Materials Science
Strongly Correlated Electrons
Rare-earth superhydrides have attracted considerable attention because of their high critical superconducting temperature under extreme pressures. They are known to have localized valence electrons, implying strong electronic correlations. However, such many-body effects are rarely included in first-principles studies of rare-earth superhydrides because of the complexity of their high-pressure phases. In this work, we use a combined density functional theory and dynamical mean-field theory approach to study both electrons and phonons in the prototypical rare-earth superhydride CeH$_9$, shedding light on the impact of electronic correlations on its critical temperature for phonon-mediated superconductivity. Our findings indicate that electronic correlations result in a larger electronic density at the Fermi level, a bigger superconducting gap, and softer vibrational modes associated with hydrogen atoms. Together, the inclusion of these correlation signatures increases the Migdal-Eliashberg superconducting critical temperature from 47 K to 96 K, close to the measured 95 K. Our results reconcile experimental observations and theoretical predictions for CeH$_9$ and herald a path towards the quantitative modeling of phonon-mediated superconductivity for interacting electron systems.
title Impact of electronic correlations on the superconductivity of high-pressure CeH$_9$
topic Superconductivity
Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics
Materials Science
Strongly Correlated Electrons
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.12506