10 research outputs found
Superconductivity in the Chalcogens up to Multimegabar Pressures
Highly sensitive magnetic susceptibility techniques were used to measure the
superconducting transition temperatures in S up to 231(5) GPa. S
transforms to a superconductor with T of 10 K and has a discontinuity in
T_c dependence at 160 GPa corresponding to bco to beta-Po phase transition.
Above this pressure T_c in S has a maximum reaching about 17.3(+/-0.5) K at 200
GPa and then slowly decreases with pressure to 15 K at 230 GPa.
This trend in the pressure dependence parallels the behavior of the heavier
members Se and Te. Superconductivity in Se was also observed from 15 to 25 GPa
with T_c changing from 4 to 6 K and above 150 GPa with T_c of 8 K.
Similiarities in the T_c dependences for S, Se, and Te, and the implications
for oxygen are discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 10 figure
Transparent dense sodium
Under pressure, metals exhibit increasingly shorter interatomic distances.
Intuitively, this response is expected to be accompanied by an increase in the
widths of the valence and conduction bands and hence a more pronounced
free-electron-like behaviour. But at the densities that can now be achieved
experimentally, compression can be so substantial that core electrons overlap.
This effect dramatically alters electronic properties from those typically
associated with simple free-electron metals such as lithium and sodium, leading
in turn to structurally complex phases and superconductivity with a high
critical temperature. But the most intriguing prediction - that the seemingly
simple metals Li and Na will transform under pressure into insulating states,
owing to pairing of alkali atoms - has yet to be experimentally confirmed. Here
we report experimental observations of a pressure-induced transformation of Na
into an optically transparent phase at 200 GPa (corresponding to 5.0-fold
compression). Experimental and computational data identify the new phase as a
wide bandgap dielectric with a six-coordinated, highly distorted
double-hexagonal close-packed structure. We attribute the emergence of this
dense insulating state not to atom pairing, but to p-d hybridizations of
valence electrons and their repulsion by core electrons into the lattice
interstices. We expect that such insulating states may also form in other
elements and compounds when compression is sufficiently strong that atomic
cores start to overlap strongly.Comment: Published in Nature 458, 182-185 (2009
The 2021 room-temperature superconductivity roadmap.
Designing materials with advanced functionalities is the main focus of contemporary solid-state physics and chemistry. Research efforts worldwide are funneled into a few high-end goals, one of the oldest, and most fascinating of which is the search for an ambient temperature superconductor (A-SC). The reason is clear: superconductivity at ambient conditions implies being able to handle, measure and access a single, coherent, macroscopic quantum mechanical state without the limitations associated with cryogenics and pressurization. This would not only open exciting avenues for fundamental research, but also pave the road for a wide range of technological applications, affecting strategic areas such as energy conservation and climate change. In this roadmap we have collected contributions from many of the main actors working on superconductivity, and asked them to share their personal viewpoint on the field. The hope is that this article will serve not only as an instantaneous picture of the status of research, but also as a true roadmap defining the main long-term theoretical and experimental challenges that lie ahead. Interestingly, although the current research in superconductor design is dominated by conventional (phonon-mediated) superconductors, there seems to be a widespread consensus that achieving A-SC may require different pairing mechanisms.In memoriam, to Neil Ashcroft, who inspired us all
Conventional superconductivity at 203 kelvin at high pressures in the sulfur hydride system
A superconductor is a material that can conduct electricity without resistance below a superconducting transition temperature, Tc. The highest Tc that has been achieved to date is in the copper oxide system: 133 kelvin at ambient pressure and 164 kelvin at high pressures. As the nature of superconductivity in these materials is still not fully understood (they are not conventional superconductors), the prospects for achieving still higher transition temperatures by this route are not clear. In contrast, the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer theory of conventional superconductivity gives a guide for achieving high Tc with no theoretical upper bound--all that is needed is a favourable combination of high-frequency phonons, strong electron-phonon coupling, and a high density of states. These conditions can in principle be fulfilled for metallic hydrogen and covalent compounds dominated by hydrogen, as hydrogen atoms provide the necessary high-frequency phonon modes as well as the strong electron-phonon coupling. Numerous calculations support this idea and have predicted transition temperatures in the range 50-235 kelvin for many hydrides, but only a moderate Tc of 17 kelvin has been observed experimentally. Here we investigate sulfur hydride, where a Tc of 80 kelvin has been predicted. We find that this system transforms to a metal at a pressure of approximately 90 gigapascals. On cooling, we see signatures of superconductivity: a sharp drop of the resistivity to zero and a decrease of the transition temperature with magnetic field, with magnetic susceptibility measurements confirming a Tc of 203 kelvin. Moreover, a pronounced isotope shift of Tc in sulfur deuteride is suggestive of an electron-phonon mechanism of superconductivity that is consistent with the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer scenario. We argue that the phase responsible for high-Tc superconductivity in this system is likely to be H3S, formed from H2S by decomposition under pressure. These findings raise hope for the prospects for achieving room-temperature superconductivity in other hydrogen-based materials
High-Temperature Superconductivity in Hydrides : Experimental Evidence and Details
Since the discovery of superconductivity at ~ 200 K in H3S, similar or higher transition temperatures, Tcs, have been reported for various hydrogen-rich compounds under ultra-high pressures. Superconductivity was experimentally proved by different methods, including electrical resistance, magnetic susceptibility, optical infrared, and nuclear resonant scattering measurements. The crystal structures of superconducting phases were determined by X-ray diffraction. Numerous electrical transport measurements demonstrate the typical behavior of a conventional phonon-mediated superconductor: zero resistance below Tc, shift of Tc to lower temperatures under external magnetic fields, and pronounced isotope effect. Remarkably, the results are in good agreement with the theoretical predictions, which describe superconductivity in hydrides within the framework of the conventional BCS theory. However, despite this acknowledgement, experimental evidences for the superconducting state in these compounds have recently been treated with criticism, which apparently stems from misunderstanding and misinterpretation of complicated experiments performed under very high pressures. Here, we describe in greater detail the experiments revealing high-temperature superconductivity in hydrides under high pressures. We show that the arguments against superconductivity can be either refuted or explained. The experiments on the high-temperature superconductivity in hydrides clearly contradict the theory of hole superconductivity and eliminate it
The 2021 Room-Temperature Superconductivity Roadmap
Last year, the report of Room-Temperature Superconductivity in high-pressure carbonaceous sulfur hydride marked a major milestone in the history of physics: one of the holy grails of condensed matter research was reached after more than one century of continuing efforts. This long path started with Neil Ashcroft's and Vitaly Ginzburg's visionary insights on high-temperature superconductivity in metallic hydrogen in the 60's and 70's, and has led to the current hydride fever, following the report of high-Tc high-pressure superconductivity in H3S in 2014. This Roadmap collects selected contributions from many of the main actors in this exciting chapter of condensed matter history. Key for the rapid progress of this field has been a new course for materials discovery, where experimental and theoretical discoveries proceed hand in hand. The aim of this Roadmap is not only to offer a snapshot of the current status of superconductor materials research, but also to define the theoretical and experimental obstacles that must be overcome for us to realize fully exploitable room temperature superconductors, and foresee future strategies and research directions. This means improving synthesis techniques, extending first-principles methods for superconductors and structural search algorithms for crystal structure predictions, but also identifying new approaches to material discovery based on artificial intelligence