Eliashberg Analysis of Tunneling Experiments: Support for the Pairing Glue Hypothesis in Cuprate Superconductors

Abstract

Evidence for the validity of the pairing glue interpretation of high temperature superconductivity is presented using a modified Eliashberg analysis of experimental superconductor-insulator-superconductor (SIS) tunneling data in B2Sr2CaCu2O8 (Bi2212) over a wide range of doping. This is accomplished by extracting detailed information on the diagonal and anomalous contributions to the quasiparticle self-energy. In particular, a comparison of the imaginary part of the anomalous self-energy ImΦ(ω) and the pairing glue spectral function α2F(ω) used in the model is consistent with Hubbard model simulations in the literature. In addition, the real part of the diagonal self-energy for optimal doped Bi2212 bears a strong resemblance to that obtained from photoemission experiments.