Magnetic field screening in hydrogen-rich high-temperature superconductors

• Published in: Nature communications Vol. 13; no. 1; pp. 3194 - 8
• Main Authors: Minkov, V. S., Bud’ko, S. L., Balakirev, F. F., Prakapenka, V. B., Chariton, S., Husband, R. J., Liermann, H. P., Eremets, M. I.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 09.06.2022; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 639/301/119; 639/766/119/1003; Atmospheric pressure; Chemical elements; CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY; Critical field (superconductivity); Fluids; Ginzburg-Landau parameter; high magnetic field science; High pressure; High temperature superconductors; Humanities and Social Sciences; Hydrides; Hydrogen; Laboratories; Lasers; Magnetic fields; Magnetic measurement; Magnetic properties; multidisciplinary; Penetration depth; Room temperature; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Superconducting quantum interference devices; Superconductivity; Superfluidity; Transition temperature; Transition temperatures
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-30782-x

In the last few years, the superconducting transition temperature, T c , of hydrogen-rich compounds has increased dramatically, and is now approaching room temperature. However, the pressures at which these materials are stable exceed one million atmospheres and limit the number of available experimental studies. Superconductivity in hydrides has been primarily explored by electrical transport measurements, whereas magnetic properties, one of the most important characteristic of a superconductor, have not been satisfactory defined. Here, we develop SQUID magnetometry under extreme high-pressure conditions and report characteristic superconducting parameters for Im-3m -H 3 S and Fm-3m -LaH 10 —the representative members of two families of high-temperature superconducting hydrides. We determine a lower critical field H c1 of ∼0.82 T and ∼0.55 T, and a London penetration depth λ L of ∼20 nm and ∼30 nm in H 3 S and LaH 10 , respectively. The small values of λ L indicate a high superfluid density in both hydrides. These compounds have the values of the Ginzburg-Landau parameter κ ∼12–20 and belong to the group of “moderate” type II superconductors, rather than being hard superconductors as would be intuitively expected from their high T c s. Superconductivity in hydrides has been primarily explored by electrical transport measurements. Here, the authors perform SQUID magnetometry under extreme high-pressure and report characteristic superconducting parameters for Im - 3m -H 3 S and Fm - 3m - LaH 10 —the representative members of two families of high-temperature superconducting hydrides.