Fluctuations of the order parameter's phase in layered superconductors

Abstract

The influence of the quantum fluctuations of the order parameter's phase on the critical temperature T-c is studied for a Josephson coupled layered superconductor. Two characteristic critical temperatures exist for a system, namely the superconducting critical temperature T-c((2)) for a single layer estimated by the mean-field theory and the transition temperature for the outset or the superconducting phase coherence T*(c). The true critical temperature T-c is shown to vary inside the intervals T*(c) less than or equal to T-c less than or equal to T-c((2)). For a strong quantum phase fluctuation limit, the superconducting layers become decoupled.