Evidence of anisotropic bulk superconductivity in disorder-induced ZrTe$_{3-x}$

TL;DR

This study demonstrates anisotropic bulk superconductivity in disordered ZrTe$_{3-x}$, revealing its quasi-two-dimensional nature with a transition temperature of 3.59 K, and highlights the effects of disorder and suppressed charge density wave.

Contribution

It provides the first comprehensive evidence of anisotropic bulk superconductivity in disordered ZrTe$_{3-x}$ with detailed characterization of its quasi-two-dimensional properties.

Findings

Superconductivity observed at $T_c$ = 3.59 K.

Anisotropic, type-II bulk superconductivity confirmed.

Inherent quasi-two-dimensional nature of superconductivity.

Abstract

Transition-metal trichalcogenides distinguish themselves from other two-dimensional materials in nanoscience and materials science due to their remarkable range of intrinsic properties, including various electronic, optical, and magnetic behaviors. Here, we report a comprehensive study of superconductivity in disordered ZrTe$_{3-x}$ ($x$ = 0.2) with suppressed charge density wave. We observe a type-II bulk anisotropic superconductivity with a superconducting transition at $T_c$ = 3.59(4) \si{K}. Angle-dependent upper critical field measurements and Berezinskii-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition confirm the inherent quasi-two-dimensional nature of superconductivity in this disordered system.