Field-Induced Quantum Critical Point and Nodal Superconductivity in the Heavy-Fermion Superconductor Ce_{2}PdIn_{8}

Abstract

The in-plane resistivity ρ and thermal conductivity κ of the heavy-fermion superconductor Ce_{2}PdIn_{8} single crystals were measured down to 50 mK. A field-induced quantum critical point, occurring at the upper critical field H_{c2}, is demonstrated from the ρ(T)∼T near H_{c2} and ρ(T)∼T^{2} when further increasing the field. The large residual linear term κ_{0}/T at zero field and the rapid increase of κ(H)/T at low field give evidence for nodal superconductivity in Ce_{2}PdIn_{8}. The jump of κ(H)/T near H_{c2} suggests a first-order-like phase transition at low temperature. These results mimic the features of the famous CeCoIn_{5} superconductor, implying that Ce_{2}PdIn_{8} may be another interesting compound to investigate for the interplay between magnetism and superconductivity.