Anisotropy of the field-induced kinetic energy density in Bi2212

We present an experimental study of the in-field kinetic energy density in two Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ single crystals. The kinetic energy density is determined from magnetization measurements performed above the irreversibility line. Anisotropy effects are observed when an external magnetic field is applied in the direction perpendicular or parallel to the superconducting Cu–O2 planes. When the field is applied parallel to the c-axis, the most relevant contribution to the kinetic energy comes from the Abrikosov vortices. At low fields, an additional term related to granularity is also observed. A kink in the kinetic energy density associated to the decoupling of the superconducting layers is identified when the field is applied parallel to the ab planes