Picture of pinning landscape

Left: Magneto-optical images of the magnetic field distribution across a single crystal of Cobalt doped Iron Arsenide superconductor of size approximately 0.5 mm x 0.5 mm x 0.03 mm. The images are captured at different applied magnetic fields at 11 K. The upper panel of figures is recorded while magnetic field is increased from 0 to 87 Oe, while the lower panel is captured on reversing the field to zero. Each image shows the nature of magnetic field distribution across a sample. Images like these revealed anomalous superconducting state in these system.
Ref: Pabitra Mandal et al. Euro Phys. Lett. 100, 47002 (2012).

Right: Time resolved magneto-optical studies with the setup is used reveal the pinning landscape experienced by vortices in a high Tc superconductor (BSCCO) at 50 K. The pinning landscape variations are color coded with the scale bar on the right indicating the peaks and valleys in the landscape.
Ref: Gorky Shaw et al. New Journal Physics 14, 083042 (2012)

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