MRSEC researchers from Princeton University have discovered a surprising on-chip process for growing ultrathin superconductors on ultrathin layers of transitionmetal dichalcogenides (TMD). Palladium is fabricated in contact with exfoliated TMD that are encapsulated between boron nitrides. The results demonstrated an unexpected, previously unexplored region of 2D chemistry that is generalizable to other combinations of materials. The approach introduces a new route for fabricating high quality, submicron-sized superconducting devices based on topological chalcogenides and moiré materials. The MRSEC team has fabricated superconducting junctions on twisted bilayers of MoTe2. One of the goals is the proximitization of exotic quantum states, e.g. the Fractional Chern Insulator.
The research results (a collaboration of two IRG-A groups led by Professor of Chemistry Leslie Schoop and Assistant Professor of Physics Sanfeng Wu) were reported in the article "Surface-Confined Two Dimensional Mass Transport and Crystal Growth on a Monolayer," Nature Synthesis (2023) https://doi.org/10.1038/s44160-023-00442-z
