Superconductivity in the noncentrosymmetric half-Heusler compound LuPtBi: A candidate for topological superconductivity

Abstract

We report superconductivity in the ternary half-Heusler compound LuPtBi, with Tc = 1.0 K and Hc2 = 1.6 T. The crystal structure of LuPtBi lacks inversion symmetry, hence the material is a noncentrosymmetric superconductor. Magnetotransport data show semimetallic behavior in the normal state, which is evidence for the importance of spin-orbit interaction. Theoretical calculations indicate that the strong spin-orbit interaction in LuPtBi should cause strong band inversion, making this material a promising candidate for 3D topological superconductivity. 74.25.fc, 71.20.E, 71.30.+h I.

Magnetic and Transport Properties of Possibly Topologically Nontrivial Half-Heusler Bismuthides RMBi (R = Y, Gd, Dy, Ho, Lu; M = Pd, Pt)

“…Only LuPtBi shows a metallic-like conductivity in the whole temperature range inspected. The overall behaviors of ρ(T ) are similar to those reported for poly- [9] and single-crystalline [6,[10][11][12][13] samples.…”

Magnetic Order and SdH Effect in Half-Heusler Phase ErPdBi

“…Such unique combination of superconductivity and band inversion, seen e.g. in LaPtBi [8], YPtBi [9,10] and LuPtBi [11] makes these ternaries promising candidates for topological superconductors. Furthermore, a coexistence of superconductivity (T c = 1.22 K) and antiferromagnetic order (T N = 1.06 K) has recently been reported for a potentially topological compound ErPdBi [12].…”

Superconductivity by Sr intercalation in the layered topological insulatorBi2Se3

“…The standard criterion used for these estimations is described elsewhere. 20 17 The electronic anisotropy parameter = H c2,ab / H c2,c is about 1.5 and using the anisotropic Ginzburg-Landau formulas 18 To shed more light on the normal state transport properties of the compound in Figure 5 we present Hall and Thermoelectric Power data on single crystal of Sr 0.1 Bi 2 Se 3 . As shown in inset (a) of Figure 5, the Seebeck coefficient S remains negative at all temperatures, indicating electronic charge transport.…”