Impact of Correlated Disorder on Surface Superconductivity: Revealing the Robustness of the Surface Ordering Effect

J Phys Chem Lett. 2024 Mar 7;15(9):2573-2579. doi: 10.1021/acs.jpclett.3c03448. Epub 2024 Feb 28.

Abstract

Surface superconductivity, wherein electron pairing occurs at material surfaces or interfaces, has attracted a remarkable amount of attention since its discovery. Recent theoretical predictions have unveiled increased critical temperatures, especially at the surfaces of certain compounds and/or structures. The notion of "surface ordering" has been advanced to elucidate this phenomenon. Employing the framework of self-consistent Bogoliubov-de Gennes equations and a model incorporating correlated disorder, our study demonstrates the persistence of the surface ordering effect in the presence of weak to moderate bulk disorder. Intriguingly, our findings indicate that under moderate disorder conditions the surface critical temperature can be further increased, depending on the intensity and correlation of the disorder.