Identification of Spin-Triplet Superconductivity through a Helical-Chiral Phase Transition in Sr${}_2$RuO${}_4$ Thin-Films

Abstract

Despite much effort for over the two decades, the paring symmetry of a Sr${}_2$RuO${}_4$ superconductor has been still unclear. In this Rapid Communication, motivated by the recent rapid progress in fabrication techniques for Sr${}_2$RuO${}_4$ thin-films, we propose a promising strategy for identifying the spin-triplet superconductivity in the thin-film geometry by employing an antisymmetric spin-orbit coupling potential and a Zeeman potential due to an external magnetic field. We demonstrate that a spin-triplet superconducting thin-film undergoes a phase transition from a helical state to a chiral state by increasing the applied magnetic field. This phase transition is accompanied by a drastic change in the property of surface Andreev bound states. As a consequence, the helical-chiral phase transition, which is unique to the spin-triplet superconductors, can be detected through a sudden change in a tunneling conductance spectrum of a normal-metal/superconductor junction. Importantly, our proposal is constructed by combining fundamental and rigid concepts regarding physics of spin-triplet superconductivity.

arXiv comment12 pages, 5 figures

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Cited by in corpus (5)

• Unsplit superconducting and time reversal symmetry breaking transitions in Sr${}_2$RuO${}_4$ under hydrostatic pressure and disorder
• Spin-triplet superconductor$-$quantum anomalous Hall insulator$-$spin-triplet superconductor Josephson junctions: $0$-$\pi$ transition, ${\varphi }_0$ phase and switch effects
• Multipole-fluctuation pairing mechanism of $d_{x^2-y^2}+ig$ superconductivity in Sr${}_2$RuO${}_4$
• Observation of Persistent Zero Modes and Superconducting Vortex Doublets in UTe${}_2$
• Polar Kerr Effect in Multiband Spin-Orbit Coupled Superconductors