Monoclinic LaSb$_2$ Superconducting Thin Films

Kavli Affiliate: Joseph Falson

| First 5 Authors: Adrian Llanos, Giovanna Campisi, Veronica Show, Jinwoong Kim, Reiley Dorrian

| Summary:

Rare-earth diantimondes exhibit coupling between structural and electronic
orders which are tunable under pressure and temperature. Here we present the
discovery of a new polymorph of LaSb$_2$ stabilized in thin films synthesized
using molecular beam epitaxy. Using diffraction, electron microscopy, and first
principles calculations we identify a YbSb$_2$-type monoclinic lattice as a
yet-uncharacterized stacking configuration. The material hosts
superconductivity with a $T_mathrm{c}$ = 2 K, which is enhanced relative to
the bulk ambient phase, and a long superconducting coherence length of 140 nm.
This result highlights the potential thin film growth has in stabilizing novel
stacking configurations in quasi-two dimensional compounds with competing
layered structures.

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