Proximity-induced surface superconductivity in Dirac semimetal Cd3As2

Ce Huang, Benjamin T. Zhou, Huiqin Zhang, Bingjia Yang, Ran Liu, Hanwen Wang, Yimin Wan, Ke Huang, Zhiming Liao, Enze Zhang, Shanshan Liu, Qingsong Deng, Yanhui Chen, Xiaodong Han, Jin Zou, Xi Lin, Zheng Han, Yihua Wang, Kam Tuen Law and Faxian Xiu ()
Additional contact information
Ce Huang: Fudan University
Benjamin T. Zhou: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay
Huiqin Zhang: Fudan University
Bingjia Yang: Fudan University
Ran Liu: Fudan University
Hanwen Wang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yimin Wan: Fudan University
Ke Huang: Peking University
Zhiming Liao: The University of Queensland
Enze Zhang: Fudan University
Shanshan Liu: Fudan University
Qingsong Deng: University of Technology
Yanhui Chen: University of Technology
Xiaodong Han: University of Technology
Jin Zou: The University of Queensland
Xi Lin: Peking University
Zheng Han: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yihua Wang: Fudan University
Kam Tuen Law: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay
Faxian Xiu: Fudan University

Nature Communications, 2019, vol. 10, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract Cd3As2 is a three-dimensional Dirac semimetal with separated Dirac points in momentum space. In spite of extensive transport and spectroscopic studies on its exotic properties, the evidence of superconductivity in its surface states remains elusive. Here, we report the observation of proximity-induced surface superconductivity in Nb/Cd3As2 hybrid structures. Our four-terminal transport measurement identifies a pronounced proximity-induced pairing gap (gap size comparable to Nb) on the surfaces, which exhibits a flat conductance plateau in differential conductance spectra, consistent with our theoretical simulations. The surface supercurrent from Nb/Cd3As2/Nb junctions is also achieved with a Fraunhofer/SQUID-like pattern under out-of-plane/in-plane magnetic fields, respectively. The resultant mapping shows a predominant distribution on the top and bottom surfaces as the bulk carriers are depleted, which can be regarded as a higher dimensional analog of edge supercurrent in two-dimensional quantum spin Hall insulators. Our study provides the evidence of surface superconductivity in Dirac semimetals.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-10233-w

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