Thin-film-like high temperature superconducting $\mathrm{Bi_2Sr_2CaCu_2O_{8+}}{_x}$ single crystal by mechanical exfoliation

TL;DR

This paper reports the production of thin, high-temperature superconducting Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x single crystals via mechanical exfoliation, demonstrating their excellent superconductivity and potential for device fabrication with artificial structures.

Contribution

It introduces a novel mechanical exfoliation method to produce thin superconducting crystals that can conform to substrate topology, enabling new device architectures.

Findings

Produced 20-200 nm thick superconducting crystals

Demonstrated intrinsic Josephson junctions in TSB

TSB can follow substrate topology for device fabrication

Abstract

Thin-film-like high temperature superconducting Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x single crystals (TSB) with a typical thickness of 20-200 nm is produced by mechanical exfoliation. The TSB, which shows excellent superconductivity, can adhere firmly to the substrate by van der Waals force. The TSB may find important applications in fabricating high temperature superconducting devices. Intrinsic Josephson junctions made of the TSB are demonstrated. A very interesting finding is that the TSB can follow exactly the topology of the substrate, making it possible to fabricate superconducting devices with artificial structures by using substrate template, for instance, step-edge Josephson junctions.