Oxide superconducting spintronics: the age of the interface
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Materials Science & Metallurgy
Abstract
A few compounds show intrinsic triplet (p-wave) superconductivity, such as Sr2RuO4 (SRO) [Nature 372, 532 (1994)]. The triplet pairing in SRO is even-frequency and is conceptually different to the odd-frequency triplet pairing induced in ferromagnets on s-wave superconductors. However, there are theoretical predictions that alternative pairing states can be induced at surfaces, which raise the prospect of coupling different superconducting states via interface-engineered proximity effects. The aim of this PhD is to advance the understanding of superconducting oxide interfaces and proximity effects in order to investigate novel superconductivity and to apply it to control spin/charge conversion in the superconducting state. The research will involve atomic-controlled growth of oxide thin films and device fabrication as well as theory modelling.
Publications
Olde Olthof L
(2019)
Superconducting vortices generated via spin-orbit coupling at superconductor/ferromagnet interfaces
in Physical Review B
Olde Olthof L
(2021)
Tunable critical field in Rashba superconductor thin films
in Physical Review B
Ohnishi K
(2020)
Spin-transport in superconductors
in Applied Physics Letters
Anwar M
(2019)
Observation of superconducting gap spectra of long-range proximity effect in Au / SrTiO 3 / SrRuO 3 / Sr 2 RuO 4 tunnel junctions
in Physical Review B
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EP/N509620/1 | 01/10/2016 | 30/09/2022 | |||
| 2104704 | Studentship | EP/N509620/1 | 01/10/2018 | 31/07/2022 | Linde Anne Berdien Olde Olthof |
| EP/R513180/1 | 01/10/2018 | 30/09/2023 | |||
| 2104704 | Studentship | EP/R513180/1 | 01/10/2018 | 31/07/2022 | Linde Anne Berdien Olde Olthof |
| Description | I have researched ways to stabilise superconductors using thin layers of heavy metals, which has led to two first-author publications and several co-author publications. In my first work, I have shown that one can generate vortices in a superconductor/heavy metal/ferromagnet system, which can form the basis of a new memory or logic device. In my second work, I extend this to finite size superconductors (realistic for applications) and look at the use of heavy metals to control the thermodynamic properties of the superconductor. This stabilises the superconductivity. |
| Exploitation Route | My two publications are theoretical. They predict interesting and useful experiments. Others could use these ideas in their experiments, or build on the theory and extend it to include different materials. |
| Sectors | Electronics |
| Description | Theoretical study of superconducting vortices |
| Organisation | University of Bordeaux |
| Country | France |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | I did the calculations and wrote the publication. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Prof. A.I. Buzdin taught me particular theoretical skills and led the project. |
| Impact | We have written a paper together, which can be found in the link supplied. |
| Start Year | 2018 |