Resistivity studies on different variants of κ-(BEDT-TTF)₂Cu[N(CN)₂]Br: evidence for disorder and/or defect-induced inelastic scattering contributions

Comparative resistivity measurements have been performed on differently prepared κ-(ET)2Cu[N(CN)2]Br single crystals. While the Tc values and their shifts under hydrostatic pressure are found to be sample independent, the resistivity profiles, especially around the resistivity hump at 90 K and the low-temperature T2 behavior, show striking sample-to-sample variations. In the absence of significant differences in the crystals’ structural parameters and chemical compositions, as proved by high-resolution X-ray and electron-probe-microanalysis studies, these results indicate that real structure phenomena, i.e. disorder and/or defects, strongly affect the inelastic scattering in these molecular conductors.