2010/02/07 by Françoise Kidwingira, Francoise Kidwingira, Joel Strand +8
Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Condensed Matter Physics #FOS: Physical sciences #Magnetic and transport properties of perovskites and related materials #Physics of Superconductivity and Magnetism #Superconductivity (cond-mat.supr-con) #cond-mat.supr-con
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1002.1430
5 pages, 5 figures
arxiv created 2010/02/07 · openalex publication_date 2010/02/07 · arxiv updated 2010/02/26 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Superconductivity in Sr2RuO4 is unconventional, believed to be of px± ipy pairing symmetry. These two degenerate order parameters allow the formation of chiral domains separated by domain walls. In a Josephson junction formed on the edge of a single crystal of Sr2RuO4, the chiral domains can create a variation of the phase in the tunneling direction causing interference effects which suppress and modulate the critical current of the junction. Cooling the junction in a magnetic field lifts the degeneracy between the order parameter states and induces a preferential chirality, significantly modifying the phase interference. We present experimental results on Sr2RuO4/Cu/Pb Josephson junctions cooled in a magnetic field showing a dramatic enhancement of their critical current, giving direct evidence for the presence of chiral domains and their alignment in a magnetic field.