Superelastic Microstructures of Superconducting SrTi<sub>0.996</sub>Nb<sub>0.004</sub>O<sub>3</sub>
ORAL
Abstract
Strain tuning is a useful method for probing exotic correlated states of matter. In practice, strain engineering has not kept up with the high demand for large, tunable strains in a versatile range of materials. In this work, we report scanning SQUID measurements performed on superconducting niobium-doped strontium titanate superelastic pillar-shaped microstructures. We observed that the superfluid density responded nontrivially to increasing uniaxial stress and we interpret this as the result of an evolution in the domain structure within the micropillar, as well as strain-induced changes of the superconducting pairing. The method which we have developed is a novel combination of quantum materials research and superelasticity. The tunability and large magnitude of strain that is possible with these micropillars as well as their potential for usage in a wide variety of bulk materials makes them an exciting tool for future studies of strain-sensitive quantum materials.
*We gratefully acknowledge the Air Force Research Laboratory Materials and Manufacturing Directorate (AFRL/RXMS) for support via Contract No. FA8650–21–C5711. We also gratefully acknowledge NSF Award 2233149, the UCONN Quantum Region Partnership Investment, and UConn Quantum SEED Awards. The SEM/FIB work was done at UConn Thermo Fisher Scientific Center for Advanced Microscopy and Materials Analysis.Distribution A. Approved for public release: distribution unlimited. (AFRL-2024-5880) Date Approved 10-18-2024.
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Presenters
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Jacob D Franklin
- University of Connecticut