Abstract
Time reversal and spatial inversion are two key symmetries for conventional Bardeen–Cooper–Schrieffer (BCS) superconductivity1. Breaking inversion symmetry can lead to mixed-parity Cooper pairing and unconventional superconducting properties1,2,3,4,5. Two-dimensional (2D) NbSe2 has emerged as a new non-centrosymmetric superconductor with the unique out-of-plane or Ising spin–orbit coupling (SOC)6,7,8,9. Here we report the observation of an unusual continuous paramagnetic-limited superconductor–normal metal transition in 2D NbSe2. Using tunelling spectroscopy under high in-plane magnetic fields, we observe a continuous closing of the superconducting gap at the upper critical field at low temperatures, in stark contrast to the abrupt first-order transition observed in BCS thin-film superconductors10,11,12. The paramagnetic-limited continuous transition arises from a large spin susceptibility of the superconducting phase due to the Ising SOC. The result is further supported by self-consistent mean-field calculations based on the ab initio band structure of 2D NbSe2. Our findings establish 2D NbSe2 as a promising platform to explore novel spin-dependent superconducting phenomena and device concepts1, such as equal-spin Andreev reflection13 and topological superconductivity14,15,16.
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Acknowledgements
This research was supported by the ARO Award W911NF-17-1-0605 for the sample and device fabrication and the US Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences contract no. DESC0013883 for the tunelling spectroscopy measurements. A portion of this work was performed at the NHMFL, which is supported by National Science Foundation (NSF) Cooperative Agreement no. DMR-1644779 and the State of Florida. The work in Hong Kong was supported by the Croucher Foundation, the Dr. Tai-chin Lo Foundation and the Hong Kong Research Grants Council through HKUST3/CRF/13 G, C6026-16W and 16324216. The work in Lausanne was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation. We also acknowledge support from the NSF under Award nos DMR-1645901 (E.S.), DMR-1420451 (K.K.) and DMR-1410407 (Z.W.) and a David and Lucille Packard Fellowship and a Sloan Fellowship (K.F.M.).
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E.S., J.S. and K.F.M. designed the experiments. E.S. fabricated the devices and performed the measurements with the assistance of S.J., Z.W. and K.K., and of J.-H.P. at the NHMFL. X.X. contributed to all aspects of the experiment in its early phase. W.-Y.H. and K.T.L. performed the theoretical work. H.B. and L.F. synthesized the bulk NbSe2 crystals and screened the sample quality. E.S., W.H., K.T.L., J.S. and K.F.M. analysed the data and co-wrote the paper. All the authors discussed the results and commented on the manuscript.
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Sohn, E., Xi, X., He, WY. et al. An unusual continuous paramagnetic-limited superconducting phase transition in 2D NbSe 2 . Nature Mater 17, 504–508 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-018-0061-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-018-0061-1
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