From a wide band gap to the superconducting proximity effect: Fe on Pb(111)

M. Omidian, J. Brand, N. Néel, S. Crampin, J. Kröger

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Epitaxially grown Fe nanostructures on Pb(111) were studied by low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy. The deposited Fe assemblies are classified into two groups according to their electronic behavior close to the Fermi energy. One group exhibits a wide energy gap of 0.7 eV that is independent of the temperature ranging from 5 K to room temperature. These Fe islands indicate the absence of the superconductivity proximity effect in their interior. The other group shows a metallic behavior at the Fermi level. The substrate superconducting phase locally enters into these islands, which is evidenced by a sharp resonance at the Fermi energy presumably signaling Andreev reflection at the magnet-superconductor interface.

Original languageEnglish
Article number033036
Number of pages15
JournalNew Journal of Physics
Volume25
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 31 Mar 2023

Data Availability Statement

The data cannot be made publicly available upon publication because they are not available in a format that is sufficiently accessible or reusable by other researchers. The data that support the findings of this study are available upon reasonable request from the authors.

Keywords

  • electronic structure
  • scanning tunneling microscopy
  • scanning tunneling spectroscopy
  • superconductivity

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Physics and Astronomy

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