Cuprate high Tc superconductors (HTSC) may hold the promise of lossless transport of electrical power, a net positive fusion power generation and quantum computing devices, but after more than 35 years of the discovery and intense research, the mechanism of HTSC in cuprates remains unresolved. Here, I will present capabilities of angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) and show that this technique is perfectly suited to provide a smoking gun evidence for the pairing mechanism in cuprates, just as the planar tunneling was for conventional superconductors. I will present the ARPES studies of a prototypical cuprate, Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+d, in a wide range of doping, covering not only the superconducting dome, but also its endpoint on the overdoped side and the non-superconducting metallic phase. Our studies suggest that the resolution of high Tc problem might finally be in sight by providing a direct connection of the detected coupling effects with superconductivity. I will also indicate some of the new directions where the ARPES and HTSCs, in combination with other materials, might continue to amaze us.

LOCATION:  Institute of Physics, 1st wing, big lecture hall + online