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Creating superconductivity in WB2 through pressure-induced metastable planar defects.
J Lim1, A C Hire2,3, Y Quan1,2,3
1Department of Physics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA.
Nature Communications
|December 22, 2022
Summary
Mechanical deformation of ultra-hard WB2 under high pressure induces superconductivity. This discovery opens new avenues for designing novel superconducting materials by creating specific structural defects.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Superconductivity
Background:
- Ultra-hard materials like WB2 are typically not superconducting.
- Understanding pressure-induced phenomena in solids is crucial for materials discovery.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the high-pressure behavior of WB2.
- To explore the induction of superconductivity in WB2 through mechanical deformation.
Main Methods:
- High-pressure electrical resistivity measurements up to 187 GPa.
- Synchrotron X-ray diffraction up to 145 GPa.
- Theoretical calculations (electron-phonon coupling).
Main Results:
- Superconductivity observed above 50 GPa, with Tc reaching 17 K at 91 GPa.
- Tc decreases with further compression to 187 GPa.
- Mechanically induced stacking faults and twin boundaries, resembling MgB2, are responsible for superconductivity.
Conclusions:
- Superconductivity in WB2 is mechanically induced by defects, not a bulk structural transition.
- This work presents a new strategy for designing superconducting materials via mechanical deformation.
- The formation of metastable stacking faults is key to pressure-induced superconductivity.
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