Larkin-Ovchinnikov-Fulde-Ferrell phase in the superconductor (TMTSF)2ClO4 : Theory versus experiment

We consider a formation of the Larkin-Ovchinnikov-Fulde-Ferrell (LOFF) phase in a quasi-one-dimensional (Q1D) conductor in a magnetic field, parallel to its conducting chains, where we take into account both the paramagnetic spin splitting and orbital destructive effects against superconductivity. We show that, due to a relative weakness of the orbital effects in a Q1D case, the LOFF phase appears in (TMTSF)₂ClO₄ superconductor for real values of its Q1D band parameters. We compare our theoretical calculations with the recent experimental data by Y. Maeno’s group [S. Yonezawa , Phys. Rev. Lett. 100, 117002 (2008)10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.117002] and show that there is a good qualitative and quantitative agreement between the theory and experimental data.