Hydrogen-Doped c-BN as a Promising Path to High-Temperature Superconductivity Above 120 K at Ambient Pressure

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Condensed Matter Physics
• Superconductivity

Background:

• Discovering high-temperature superconductivity at ambient pressure remains a significant challenge.
• Hard or superhard materials are proposed as promising candidates for achieving this goal.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the potential of hydrogen (H) and lithium (Li) doped cubic boron nitride (c-BN) for ambient-pressure superconductivity.
• To explore the electronic structures and superconducting properties of these doped materials.

Main Methods:

• First-principles calculations were employed to study the electronic structures.
• Superconducting properties of H and Li doped c-BN were analyzed.

Main Results:

• Doped c-BN compounds exhibit metallic behavior after a phase transition from insulating states.
• Li-doped c-BN is predicted to have a superconducting transition temperature (Tc) of approximately 58 K.
• H-doped c-BN shows stronger electron-phonon interactions, predicting a higher Tc of 122 K.

Conclusions:

• Doped c-BN materials are identified as potential ambient-pressure superconductors.
• This research opens new avenues for exploring higher-temperature superconductivity in hard materials.