Pressure-induced superconductivity in monoclinic RhBi2

RhBi2 is a polymorphic system that exhibits two distinct phases. RhBi2 in the triclinic phase has been identified as a weak topological insulator with a van Hove singularity point close to the Fermi energy. Thus, triclinic RhBi2 is expected to exhibit exotic quantum properties under strain or pressure. In this study, we report on the emergence of superconductivity in the monoclinic RhBi2 under external pressures. The electrical resistivity behavior of the monoclinic RhBi2 single crystal is studied at a wide range of applied external pressures up to 40 GPa. We observe a pressure-induced superconductivity with a dome-shaped dependence of the critical temperature on pressure at pressures above 10 GPa. A maximum critical temperature (Tc) value of Tc = 5.1 K is reached at the pressure of 16.1 GPa. Furthermore, we performed detailed ab initio calculations to understand the electronic band structures of monoclinic RhBi2 under varying pressures. The combination of topology and pressure-induced superconductivity in the RhBi2 polymorphic system may provide us with a new promising material platform to investigate topological superconductivity.

Read the whole article on arXiv.