Investigating the limits of superconductivity in UTe ₂

Journal Article · 13 September 2022 · JPhys Materials

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7639/ac8ba9 · OSTI ID:1886966

Weiland, A. ; Thomas, S. M. ; Rosa, P. F. S.

Abstract Spin-triplet bulk superconductors are a promising route to topological superconductivity, and UTe ₂ is a recently discovered contender. The superconducting properties of UTe ₂ , however, vary substantially as a function of the synthetic route, and even nonsuperconducting single crystals have been reported. To understand the driving mechanism suppressing superconductivity, we investigate UTe ₂ single crystals grown close to the nonsuperconducting boundary (growth temperature ∼710  ^∘ C) through a combination of thermodynamic and x-ray diffraction measurements. Specific heat measurements reveal a sharp decrease in the superconducting volume and a concomitant increase in the residual specific heat coefficient close to the nonsuperconducting boundary. Notably, these crystals are inhomogeneous and show an apparent double transition in specific heat measurements, similar to samples grown at much higher temperatures (∼1000  ^∘ C). Our single crystal x-ray diffraction measurements reveal that there are two important tuning parameters: uranium vacancies and the atomic displacement along the c axis, which shows a twofold increase in samples with a reduced superconducting volume. Our results highlight the key role of local disorder along the uranium-uranium dimers and suggest that the apparent double superconducting transition is more likely to emerge close to the superconducting limits of UTe ₂ .

• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• OSTI ID: 1886966
• Journal Information: JPhys Materials, Journal Name: JPhys Materials Journal Issue: 4 Vol. 5; ISSN 2515-7639
• Publisher: IOP PublishingCopyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United Kingdom
• Language: English