Enhancing superconductivity in SrTiO<sub>3</sub> films with strain.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 31032417.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1126/sciadv.aaw0120 and PMC identifier 6486228.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC.
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Abstract
The nature of superconductivity in SrTiO<sub>3</sub>, the first oxide superconductor to be discovered, remains a subject of intense debate several decades after its discovery. SrTiO<sub>3</sub> is also an incipient ferroelectric, and several recent theoretical studies have suggested that the two properties may be linked. To investigate whether such a connection exists, we grew strained, epitaxial SrTiO<sub>3</sub> films, which are known to undergo a ferroelectric transition. We show that, for a range of carrier densities, the superconducting transition temperature is enhanced by up to a factor of two compared to unstrained films grown under the same conditions. Moreover, for these films, superconductivity emerges from a resistive state. We discuss the localization behavior in the context of proximity to ferroelectricity. The results point to new opportunities to enhance superconducting transition temperatures in oxide materials.