On‐Demand Local Modification of High‐Tc Superconductivity in Few Unit‐Cell Thick Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ

• Published in: Advanced materials (Weinheim) Vol. 32; no. 37
• Main Authors: Ghosh, Sanat, Vaidya, Jaykumar, Datta, Sawani, Pandeya, Ram Prakash, Jangade, Digambar A., Kulkarni, Ruta N., Maiti, Kalobaran, Thamizhavel, Arumugam, Deshmukh, Mandar M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Weinheim Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01-09-2020
• Subjects: Bi 2Sr 2CaCu 2O 8+δ; Bismuth strontium calcium copper oxide; Chromium; Heterostructures; high‐temperature superconductors; Materials science; superconducting CuO 2 planes; Superconducting devices; Superconductivity; tuning of superconductivity; van der Waals materials
• ISSN: 0935-9648; 1521-4095
• DOI: 10.1002/adma.202002220

High‐temperature superconductors (HTSs) are important for potential applications and for understanding the origin of strong correlations. Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ (BSCCO), a van der Waals material, offers a platform to probe the physics down to a unit‐cell. Guiding the flow of electrons by patterning 2DEGS and oxide heterostructures has brought new functionality and access to new science. Similarly, modifying superconductivity in HTS locally, on a small length scale, is of immense interest for superconducting electronics. A route to modify superconductivity locally by depositing metal on the surface is reported here by transport studies on few unit‐cell thick BSCCO. Deposition of chromium (Cr) on the surface over a selected area of BSCCO results in insulating behavior of the underlying region. Cr locally depletes oxygen in CuO2 planes and disrupts the superconductivity in the layers below. This technique of modifying superconductivity is suitable for making sub‐micrometer superconducting wires and more complex superconducting devices.
A nondestructive method of patterning high‐temperature superconductivity in few unit‐cell thick Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+δ (BSCCO) is developed. Deposition of reactive metals like Cr or Ti on the surface of few unit‐cell thick BSCCO alters the superconductivity in the underlying layers by locally depleting the oxygen content. Using this technique, superconductivity in BSCCO can be spatially patterned to make superconducting devices like nanowires.