Our laboratory has developed a novel fabrication technique to create superconducting β-Sn nanostructures within topological Dirac semimetal (TDS) α-Sn thin films. Using focused ion beam irradiation, we can precisely position these nanostructures at any location and shape them on a nanoscale. In the resulting β-Sn superconducting nanowire structures embedded in TDS α-Sn, we observed a superconducting diode effect—a phenomenon where superconducting current flows only in one direction when a magnetic field is applied along the wire. This marks the world’s first observation of a superconducting diode effect induced by TDS α-Sn becoming superconducting through proximity to β-Sn. Our innovative method enables the flexible creation of high-quality nanostructures combining superconductor and topological materials. This breakthrough paves the way for various superconducting circuits and quantum circuits capable of topological quantum computation with enhanced error tolerance.
This groundbreaking research was published in Nature Communications on September 30, 2024.
Large superconducting diode effect in ion-beam patterned Sn-based superconductor nanowire/topological Dirac semimetal planar heterostructures
Authors: Le Duc Anh*, Keita Ishihara, Tomoki Hotta, Kohdai Inagaki, Hideki Maki, Takahiro Saeki, Masaki Kobayashi, and Masaaki Tanaka*
