High-temperature multigap superconductivity in two-dimensional metal borides

Cem Sevik, Jonas Bekaert, Mikhail Petrov, and Milorad V. Milošević

Phys. Rev. Materials 6, 024803 – Published 28 February 2022

Abstract

Using first-principles calculations in combination with the Eliashberg formalism, we systematically investigated phonon-mediated superconductivity in two-dimensional (2D) metal-boride crystals, consisting of a boron honeycomb network doped by diverse metal elements. Such 2D metal-boride compounds, named MBenes, are chemically exfoliable from single-crystalline layered ternary borides. First we identified the MBene layers with potential for superconductivity via isotropic Eliashberg calculations, considering a wide range of metal elements, with a focus on alkaline earth and transition metals. Subsequently, we performed a detailed analysis of the prominent superconducting MBenes by solving the anisotropic Eliashberg equations. The obtained high critical temperatures (up to 72 K), as well as the rich multigap superconducting behavior, recommend these crystals for further use in multifunctional 2D heterostructures and superconducting device applications.

Received 5 December 2021
Revised 31 January 2022
Accepted 14 February 2022

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.6.024803

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Electron-phonon coupling Superconductivity

2-dimensional systems

Density functional theory

Condensed Matter, Materials & Applied Physics

Authors & Affiliations

Cem Sevik ^1,2,*,†, Jonas Bekaert ^1,*,‡, Mikhail Petrov ¹, and Milorad V. Milošević ^1,§

¹Department of Physics & NANOlab Center of Excellence, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, B-2020 Antwerp, Belgium
²Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Eskisehir Technical University, 26555 Eskisehir, Turkey