Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Types Of Superconductors

Types Of Superconductors

A superconductor is a substance that offers zero resistance to the electric current when it drops below a critical temperature. Zero resistance is not the only interesting phenomenon as materials reach their transition temperatures. A second effect is the exclusion of magnetic fields. This is known as the Meissner effect. A light, permanent magnet placed over a superconducting sample will levitate in a stable position above the superconductor. High-speed trains that levitate on strong...

Superconductor

Superconductor

A substance that reaches superconductivity, a state in which magnetic fields cannot penetrate, and there is no electrical resistance, is referred to as a superconductor. In 1911, Heike Kamerlingh Onnes of Leiden University, a Dutch physicist, observed a relation between the temperature and the resistance of the element mercury. The mercury sample was then cooled in liquid helium to study the linear dependence of resistance on temperature. It was observed that, as the temperature decreased, the...

P-N junction

P-N junction

A p-n junction is formed when p-type and n-type semiconductor materials are joined together. At the interface of the p-n junction, holes from the p-side and electrons from the n-side begin to diffuse into the opposite sides due to the concentration gradient. This diffusion of carriers leads to a region around the junction where there are no free charge carriers, known as the depletion region. The charge density within the depletion region for the n-side and p-side can be described by the...

Metal-Semiconductor Junctions

Metal-Semiconductor Junctions

The contact of metal and semiconductor can lead to the formation of a junction with either Schottky or Ohmic behavior.
Schottky Barriers
Schottky barriers arise when a metal with a work function (Φm) contacts a semiconductor with a different work function (Φs). Initially, electrons transfer until the Fermi levels of the metal and semiconductor align at equilibrium. For instance, if Φm > Φs, the semiconductor Fermi level is higher than the metal's before contact. The...

Types of Semiconductors

Types of Semiconductors

Intrinsic semiconductors are highly pure materials with no impurities. At absolute zero, these semiconductors behave as perfect insulators because all the valence electrons are bound, and the conduction band is empty, disallowing electrical conduction. The Fermi level is a concept used to describe the probability of occupancy of energy levels by electrons at thermal equilibrium. In intrinsic semiconductors, the Fermi level is positioned at the midpoint of the energy gap at absolute zero. When...

Carrier Transport

Carrier Transport

The generation of electrical current in semiconductors is fundamentally driven by two mechanisms: drift and diffusion. These processes are essential for the functionality and performance of semiconductor-based devices.
Drift Current:
The drift of charge carriers is started by an external electric field (E). Charged particles, such as electrons and holes, experience an acceleration between collisions with lattice atoms. For electrons, this results in a drift velocity (vd) given by:

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Strain Tuning the Occupation of Candidate Topological Weyl States in W-Doped MoTe<sub>2</sub>.

Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany)·2026

Same author

Atomic Imaging of Ion-Triggered Flexibility and Local Electric Field Response in Zeolite Rings.

Journal of the American Chemical Society·2026

Same author

Isolating Coupled Effects by Interface Editing of Intermetallic Heterostructures for Fuel Cells.

Journal of the American Chemical Society·2026

Same author

Promoting Heterogeneous Nickel Catalysis with Surface-Atomically Dispersed Tungstate Species.

Journal of the American Chemical Society·2026

Same author

Enhanced Stability in Zero-Excess Li-Metal Batteries via Prelithiated Carbon Nanofiber Interlayers.

Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany)·2026

Same author

Rare-Earth Atoms on Nb(110) as a Platform to Engineer Topological Superconductivity.

Nano letters·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 7, 2025

Scalable Quantum Integrated Circuits on Superconducting Two-Dimensional Electron Gas Platform

Scalable Quantum Integrated Circuits on Superconducting Two-Dimensional Electron Gas Platform

Published on: August 2, 2019

Atomic Diffusion-Induced Polarization and Superconductivity in Topological Insulator-Based Heterostructures.

Xian-Kui Wei¹, Abdur Rehman Jalil², Philipp Rüßmann^3,4

¹Ernst Ruska-Centre for Microscopy and Spectroscopy with Electrons, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, 52425 Jülich, Germany.

|December 21, 2023

Summary

We discovered palladium diffusion creating electric polarization at superconductor-topological insulator interfaces. This polarization impacts interface structure and is compatible with superconductivity and topological properties, crucial for Majorana zero modes.

Keywords:

atomic diffusion and intercalation polarization scanning transmission electron microscopy superconductivity topological insulator

More Related Videos

Comparison of Two Different Synthesis Methods of Single Crystals of Superconducting Uranium Ditelluride

Comparison of Two Different Synthesis Methods of Single Crystals of Superconducting Uranium Ditelluride

Published on: July 8, 2021

Electric-field Control of Electronic States in WS2 Nanodevices by Electrolyte Gating

Electric-field Control of Electronic States in WS2 Nanodevices by Electrolyte Gating

Published on: April 12, 2018

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 7, 2025

Scalable Quantum Integrated Circuits on Superconducting Two-Dimensional Electron Gas Platform

Scalable Quantum Integrated Circuits on Superconducting Two-Dimensional Electron Gas Platform

Published on: August 2, 2019

Comparison of Two Different Synthesis Methods of Single Crystals of Superconducting Uranium Ditelluride

Comparison of Two Different Synthesis Methods of Single Crystals of Superconducting Uranium Ditelluride

Published on: July 8, 2021

Electric-field Control of Electronic States in WS2 Nanodevices by Electrolyte Gating

Electric-field Control of Electronic States in WS2 Nanodevices by Electrolyte Gating

Published on: April 12, 2018

Area of Science:

Condensed Matter Physics
Materials Science
Nanotechnology

Background:

Superconductor-topological insulator interfaces are promising for Majorana zero modes.
Understanding interface structure and chemistry is crucial but underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

Investigate structural and chemical properties of superconductor-topological insulator interfaces.
Explore palladium diffusion and its effect on interface polarization.
Assess the robustness of superconductivity and topological properties.

Main Methods:

Atomic-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM).
Quantitative image analysis.
First-principles calculations.

Main Results:

Discovered palladium diffusion-induced polarization at superconductor-topological insulator interfaces.
Nanoscale lattice strain and quintuple layer polarity control palladium diffusion.
Superconductivity and topological properties remain robust despite broken inversion symmetry.

Conclusions:

Interface polarization is a key factor in superconductor-topological insulator heterostructures.
Palladium diffusion and resulting polarization must be considered for Majorana zero mode applications.
The coexistence of electric polarization, superconductivity, and topology is essential.