Topological nodal i-wave superconductivity in PtBi2

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Susmita Changdar - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden, TUD Dresden University of Technology, S N Bose National Centre for Basic Science (Author)
  • Oleksandr Suvorov - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden, Kyiv Academic University (Author)
  • Andrii Kuibarov - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden (Author)
  • Setti Thirupathaiah - , S N Bose National Centre for Basic Science (Author)
  • Grigory Shipunov - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden (Author)
  • Saicharan Aswartham - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden (Author)
  • Sabine Wurmehl - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden (Author)
  • Iryna Kovalchuk - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden, Kyiv Academic University (Author)
  • Klaus Koepernik - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden (Author)
  • Carsten Timm - , Clusters of Excellence ctd.qmat: Complexity, Topology and Dynamics in Quantum Matter, Chair of Theory of Condensed Matter (Author)
  • Bernd Büchner - , Clusters of Excellence ctd.qmat: Complexity, Topology and Dynamics in Quantum Matter, Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden (Author)
  • Ion Cosma Fulga - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden, TUD Dresden University of Technology (Author)
  • Sergey Borisenko - , Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden, TUD Dresden University of Technology (Author)
  • Jeroen van den Brink - , Clusters of Excellence ctd.qmat: Complexity, Topology and Dynamics in Quantum Matter, Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research Dresden (Author)

Abstract

Most superconducting materials are well understood and conventional—that is, the pairs of electrons that cause the superconductivity by their condensation have the highest possible symmetry. Famous exceptions are the enigmatic high-temperature (high-Tc) cuprate superconductors1. Nodes in their superconducting gap are the fingerprint of their unconventional character and imply superconducting pairing of d-wave symmetry. Here, by using angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy, we observe that the Weyl semimetal PtBi2 harbours nodes in its superconducting gap, implying unconventional i-wave pairing symmetry. At temperatures below 10 K, the superconductivity in PtBi2 gaps out its topological surface states, the Fermi arcs, whereas its bulk states remain normal2. The nodes in the superconducting gap that we observe are located exactly at the centre of the Fermi arcs and imply the presence of topologically protected Majorana cones around this locus in momentum space. From this, we infer theoretically that robust zero-energy Majorana flat bands emerge at surface step edges. This establishes PtBi2 surfaces not only as unconventional, topological i-wave superconductors but also as a promising material platform in the ongoing effort to generate and manipulate Majorana bound states.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)613-618
Number of pages6
JournalNature
Volume647
Issue number8090
Publication statusPublished - 20 Nov 2025
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

PubMed 41261156

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas