English

Quantum Griffiths singularity in three-dimensional MoTiN superconducting films

Superconductivity 2024-07-02 v1 Disordered Systems and Neural Networks

Abstract

Quantum Griffiths singularity (QGS) has been experimentally observed in a range of two-dimensional (2D) superconducting systems. Although it is theoretically suggested that the QGS also exists in three-dimensional (3D) superconductors, there is almost no experimental support to the theoretical prediction. In the present paper, we observe the occurrence of QGS in a series of \sim80-nm-thick Mo0.8_{0.8}Ti0.2_{0.2}Nx_x (0.84x1.120.84 \lesssim x \lesssim 1.12) superconducting films near the field-driven superconductor-metal transition (SMT). These films have a NaCl structure and are 3D with respect to the superconductivity. For each film, the low-temperature magnetoresistance isotherms, measured at magnetic fields being perpendicular or parallel to the film plane, do not cross at a single point but at a clear wide region. The dynamical critical exponents zνz\nu_{\perp} (for perpendicular field) and zνz\nu_{\parallel} (for parallel field) obtained by analyzing the related magnetoresistance isotherms increase with decreasing temperature and tend to diverge as T0T\rightarrow 0 K. In addition, the effective resistivity data for the perpendicular and parallel field in the vicinity of the SMTs both obey an activated scaling based on the random transverse-field Ising model. We also fabricate a \sim80-nm-thick (Mo0.8_{0.8}Ti0.2_{0.2})2_2N1.06_{1.06} superconducting film with face-centered cubic structure at low nitrogen partial pressure. It is found that the low-temperature magnetoresistance isotherms for the perpendicular (parallel) field cross at a single point and the resistivity data for the perpendicular (parallel) field in the vicinity of the field-induced SMT obey the power-law scaling deduced from the dirty-boson model. Our results provide unambigous experimental evidence for the existence of QGS in 3D superconductors.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2402.01347,
  title  = {Quantum Griffiths singularity in three-dimensional MoTiN superconducting films},
  author = {Zi-Xiao Wang and Tian-Yu Jing and Zi-Yan Han and Kuang-Hong Gao and Song-Ci Li and Zhi-Qing Li},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2402.01347},
  year   = {2024}
}

Comments

11 pages and 9 Figures

R2 v1 2026-06-28T14:35:45.646Z