Anisotropic magnetotransport of superconducting and normal state in an electron-doped Nd1.85Ce0.15CuO4−δ single crystal

The anisotropic properties of an optimally doped Nd1.85Ce0.15CuO4−δ single crystal have been studied both below and above the critical temperature Tc via the resistivity measurement in magnetic field H up to 12 T. By scaling the conductivity fluctuation around the superconducting transition, the upper critical field Hc2(T) has been determined for field parallel to the c-axis or to the basal ab  -plane. The anisotropy factor γ=Hc2‖ab/Hc2‖c is estimated to be about 8. In the normal state (50 ⩽ T ⩽ 180 K), the magnetoresistance (MR) basically follows an H2 dependence and for H∥c it is almost 10 times larger than that for H∥ab. Comparing with hole-doped cuprates it suggests that the optimally doped Nd1.85Ce0.15CuO4−δ cuprate superconductor has a moderate anisotropy.