High-temperature Superconductivity in Hydrides at High Pressures

High-temperature Superconductivity in Hydrides at High Pressures 

Prof Sven Friedemann is based at the HH Wills Physics Laboratory, University of Bristol.

A new area of record superconductivity has been heralded by the discovery of superconductivity at 200 K in sulphur hydride SH3 in 2015 [1]. Since, further superconductors with transition temperatures up to 288 K have been reported in LaH10, YH9, and carbonaceous sulphur hydride [2–4]. Many of these discoveries were guided by theory. Experimental studies of the superconductivity in hydride superconductors have only been reported by a hand full of groups owing to the enormous challenges to conduct experiments at pressures above 100 GPa in diamond anvil pressures cells. Here, I will present our recent results on superconductivity in SH3, LaH4, and YH4. Our results provide the first independent confirmation of superconductivity in SH3. Our results on LaH4 reveal a novel form of the critical fields and suggest a very strong electron-phonon coupling constant. I will discuss our unique experimental approach using thin-film techniques [5] in the preparation of samples for high-pressure studies and how these might allow further studies and potentially applications of hydride superconductivity.

[1]  Drozdov, A. P. et al. Nature 525, 73 (2015).

[2]  Somayazulu, M. et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 122, 027001 (2019).

[3]  Snider, E. et al. Nature 586, 373–377 (2020).

[4]  Kong, P. et al. Nature Communications 12, 5075 (2021).

[5]  Buhot, J. et al. Phys. Rev. B 102, 104508 (2020). 

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