Abstract
We consider a bilayer consisting of a -wave layered superconductor and diffusive ferromagnet with a domain wall (DW). The axis in the superconductor and DW in the ferromagnet are assumed to be perpendicular to the interface. We demonstrate that in such a heterostructure the inhomogeneous exchange field enhances the proximity effect. It is shown that, whereas in the absence of the exchange field the -wave condensate decays in the normal metal on the mean free path , the superconductivity penetrates the ferromagnet along the DW over much larger distances. This happens because the presence of the DW results in a generation of an odd-frequency triplet -wave component of the condensate. The phenomenon discovered here may help to explain a recent experiment on high-temperature superconductor-ferromagnet bilayers.
- Received 5 August 2008
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.102.077002
©2009 American Physical Society