New Pyrochlore Oxide Superconductor RbOs2O6

TL;DR

This paper reports the discovery of a new pyrochlore oxide superconductor RbOs2O6 with a transition temperature of 6.3 K, expanding the family of pyrochlore superconductors and providing insights into their structure-property relationships.

Contribution

It introduces RbOs2O6 as a new superconductor with a pyrochlore structure, similar to KOs2O6, and characterizes its superconducting properties.

Findings

RbOs2O6 exhibits bulk superconductivity at 6.3 K.

The compound shares the same beta-pyrochlore structure as KOs2O6.

Resistivity, magnetic susceptibility, and specific heat confirm superconductivity.

Abstract

We report the discovery of a new pyrochlore oxide superconductor RbOs2O6. The compound crystallizes in the same beta-pyrochlore structure as the recently discovered superconductor KOs2O6, where Os atoms form a corner-sharing tetrahedral network called the pyrochlore lattice with Rb or K atoms in the cage. Resistivity, magnetic susceptibility and specific heat measurements on polycrystalline samples evidence a bulk superconductivity with Tc = 6.3 K.