Enhanced Superconducting Transition Temperature in Electroplated Rhenium

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that electroplated rhenium films in multilayers with noble metals exhibit an enhanced superconducting transition temperature around 6 K, with promising properties for low-temperature electronic applications.

Contribution

It introduces a novel electroplating method to produce rhenium superconducting films with higher critical temperatures and improved electrical properties compared to previous techniques.

Findings

Critical temperature of ~6 K confirmed by resistance and susceptibility measurements.

Type-II superconductivity demonstrated with an upper critical field of ~2.5 T.

High critical current densities (>10^7 A/m^2) achieved above liquid-helium temperature.

Abstract

We show that electroplated Re films in multilayers with noble metals such as Cu, Au, and Pd have an enhanced superconducting critical temperature relative to previous methods of preparing Re. The dc resistance and magnetic susceptibility indicate a critical temperature of approximately 6 K. Magnetic response as a function of field at 1.8 K demonstrates type-II superconductivity, with an upper critical field on the order of 2.5 T. Critical current densities greater than 10^7 A/m^2 were measured above liquid-helium temperature. Low-loss at radio frequency was obtained below the critical temperature for multilayers deposited onto resonators made with Cu traces on commercial circuit boards. These electroplated superconducting films can be integrated into a wide range of standard components for low-temperature electronics.