Alkali-doped fullerides: narrow-band solids with unusual properties

Olle Gunnarsson981238667X, 9789812386670, 9789812794956

Alkali-doped fullerides have attracted strong interest since their production became possible about fifteen years ago. This book presents recent work which may solve intriguing problems arising from a variety of remarkable properties. For example, these solids are superconductors with high transition temperatures, although the similarity between the electronic and phonon energy scales should suppress superconductivity. Moreover, the Ioffe–Regel condition for electrical conductivity is strongly violated. The book shows why superconductivity is nevertheless possible, owing to a local pairing mechanism. The Ioffe–Regel condition is derived quantum-mechanically, and it is explained why the underlying assumptions are violated for fullerides and high-Tc cuprates, for example. The book treats electronic and transport properties, reviewing theoretical and experimental results. It focuses on superconductivity, electrical conductivity and metal–insulator transitions, emphasizing the electron–electron and electron–phonon interactions as well as the Jahn–Teller effect.