High-resolution measurements of the thermal expansion of superconducting Co-doped BaFe2As2

High-resolution thermal expansion measurements of single crystalline BaFe1.84Co0.16As2 and BaFe1.77Co0.23As2 in the temperature range 5 < T < 300 K are reported. The thermal expansion is highly anisotropic, with the largest expansion along the c axis. Distinct anomalies are present at the normal-to-superconducting phase-transition temperature T-c; the phase transition appears to be continuous. No structural transitions are observed over the temperature range of our measurements. The thermal expansion data and heat-capacity data acquired on the same specimens are used to estimate the volumetric pressure derivative of T-c using the Ehrenfest relation.