Geometric effects on T-breaking in p+ip and d+id superconductors

Abstract

Superconducting order parameters that change phase around the Fermi surface modify Josephson tunneling behavior, as in the phase-sensitive measurements that confirmed $d$ order in the cuprates. This paper studies Josephson coupling when the individual grains break time-reversal symmetry; the specific cases considered are $p \pm ip$ and $d \pm id$, which may appear in Sr$_2$RuO$_4$ and Na$_x$CoO$_2 \cdot $(H$_2$O)$_y$ respectively. $T$-breaking order parameters lead to frustrating phases when not all grains have the same sign of time-reversal symmetry breaking, and the effects of these frustrating phases depend sensitively on geometry for 2D arrays of coupled grains. These systems can show perfect superconducting order with or without macroscopic $T$-breaking. The honeycomb lattice of superconducting grains has a superconducting phase with no spontaneous breaking of $T$ but instead power-law correlations. The superconducting transition in this case is driven by binding of fractional vortices, and the zero-temperature criticality realizes a generalization of Baxter's three-color model.