2023/10/27 by Rémy Pawlak, Jung‐Ching Liu, Pawlak, Rémy +29
Physics and Astronomy · #FOS: Physical sciences #Quantum and electron transport phenomena #Rare-earth and actinide compounds #Superconductivity (cond-mat.supr-con) #Topological Materials and Phenomena
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.2310.18134
openalex publication_date 2023/10/27 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/03
Topological superconductivity emerges in chains or arrays of magnetic atoms coupled to a superconductor. However, the external controllability of such systems with gate voltages is detrimental for their future implementation in a topological quantum computer. Here we showcase the supramolecular assembly of radical molecules on Pb(111), whose discharge is controlled by the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope. Charged molecules carry a spin-1/2 state, as confirmed by observing Yu-Shiba-Rusinov in-gap states by tunneling spectroscopy at millikelvin temperature. Low energy modes are localized at island boundaries with a long decay towards the interior, whose spectral signature is consistent with Majorana zero modes protected by mirror symmetry. Our results open up a vast playground for the synthesis of gate-tunable organic topological superconductors.