  Raman scattering experiments on Na_{x}CoO_2 yH_2O single crystals show a
broad electronic continuum with a pronounced peak around 100 cm-1 and a cutoff
at approximately 560 cm-1over a wide range of doping levels. The electronic
Raman spectra in superconducting and non-superconducting samples are similar at
room temperature, but evolve in markedly different ways with decreasing
temperature. For superconducting samples, the low-energy spectral weight is
depleted upon cooling below T* sim 150K, indicating a opening of a pseudogap
that is not present in non-superconducting materials. Weak additional phonon
modes observed below T* suggest that the pseudogap is associated with charge
ordering.
