Nanopattern-stimulated superconductor-insulator transition in thin TiN films

TL;DR

This study investigates how nanopatterning affects the superconductor-insulator transition in thin TiN films, revealing enhanced Coulomb interactions, shifted transition points, and collective oscillations due to phase slips in the network.

Contribution

It demonstrates that nanopatterning modifies the transition behavior and Coulomb interactions in TiN films, providing new insights into nanoscale superconducting systems.

Findings

Nanopatterning turns TiN films into arrays of superconducting weak links.

It shifts superconductor-insulator transitions to lower disorder levels.

Magnetoresistance oscillations are observed, caused by phase slips in the weak link network.

Abstract

We present the results of the comparative study of the influence of disorder on transport properties in continuous and nanoperforated TiN films. We show that nanopatterning turns a thin TiN film into an array of superconducting weak links and stimulates both, the disorder- and magnetic field-driven superconductor-to-insulator transitions, pushing them to lower degree of disorder. We find that nanopatterning enhances the role of the two-dimensional Coulomb interaction in the system transforming the originally insulating film into a more pronounced insulator. We observe magnetoresistance oscillations reflecting collective behaviour of the multiconnected nanopatterned superconducting film in the wide range of temperatures and uncover the physical mechanism of these oscillations as phase slips in superconducting weak link network.