Seventh All-Union Conference on Coherent and Nonlinear Optics, Tashkent, May 10–13, 1974

Abstract

We investigate the coupling of an inhomogeneous electron system to phonons. The properties of an electronic system composed of a mixture of microscopic ordered and disordered islands are changed fundamentally by a phonon mode. In high-T c cuprates, such a phase separation scenario is supported by recent STM and nuclear quadrupole resonance studies. We show that even a weak or moderate electron-phonon coupling can be sufficient to produce dramatic changes in the electronic state of the inhomogeneous electron gas. The spectral properties calculated in our approach provide a natural explanation of the low-energy nodal ARPES features and exhibit a novel non-Fermi-liquid state stabilized through electron-phonon coupling.