Superconductivity in Pristine 2H_{a}-MoS_{2} at Ultrahigh Pressure

Area of Science:

• Condensed Matter Physics
• Materials Science
• Superconductivity Research

Background:

• Previous research demonstrated pressure-induced metallization in 2H$_{c}$-MoS$_{2}$.
• Exploring superconductivity in layered materials under extreme conditions is a key research area.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate superconductivity in 2H$_{a}$-MoS$_{2}$ at pressures exceeding the megabar range.
• To understand the relationship between pressure, electronic structure, and superconductivity in MoS$_{2}$.

Main Methods:

• Electrical transport measurements under high pressure (up to 220 GPa).
• Synchrotron X-ray diffraction to analyze structural stability.
• Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations to probe electronic structure changes.

Main Results:

• Superconductivity onset at approximately 90 GPa with a critical temperature (T$_{c}$) of ~3 K.
• T$_{c}$ rapidly increased beyond 10 K and stabilized around 12 K up to 220 GPa.
• No structural phase transitions, decomposition, or amorphization observed up to 155 GPa.
• DFT calculations revealed a new flat Fermi pocket linked to superconductivity.

Conclusions:

• Intrinsic superconductivity is achieved in 2H$_{a}$-MoS$_{2}$ under high pressure.
• Pressure-induced superconductivity in MoS$_{2}$ is associated with modifications in its electronic structure.
• This work presents a novel strategy for inducing superconductivity in 2H-MoS$_{2}$.