Ultrathin two-dimensional superconductivity with strong spin–orbit coupling
Abstract
By studying epitaxially grown Pb thin films, this paper explores a new regime in the physics of uniform 2D superconductivity, in which the spin–orbit coupling-induced Rashba splitting is larger than the superconducting gap. The first quantitative determination of superfluid rigidity in nearly atomically thin 2D superconductors was performed using measurement that covers microscopic to macroscopic length scales to establish uniformity. The extraordinarily strong parallel critical fields were discovered, which is greatly in excess of the normal Clogston–Chandrasekhar limit. Moreover, this remarkable behavior is theoretically explained as a consequence of strong spin–orbit coupling in 2D superconductors that are uniform but in the dirty limit.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Pub Defense Publication
- Publication Date
- Sep 06, 2016
- Source ID
- 10.1073/pnas.1611967113
Entities
People
- Allan H. MacDonald
- Chendong Zhang
- Chih-Kang Shih
- Hua Chen
- Hyoungdo Nam
- Jie Yong
- Jisun Kim
- John R. Kirtley
- Kathryn Moler
- Philip A. Kratz
- Philip W. Adams
- Thomas R. Lemberger
- Tijiang Liu
Organizations
- Louisiana State University
- National Science Foundation
- Office of Naval Research
- Ohio State University
- Robert A. Welch Foundation
- Stanford University
- United States Department of Energy
- University of Texas at Austin