Abstract
The superconductor to normal metal transition driven by the in-plane magnetic field is investigated for Al nanofilms. Taking the Pauli breaking mechanism (with no orbital effect) into account, it is shown that the critical field oscillates as a function of the nanofilm thickness. This effect is discussed in terms of the quantization of electron energy caused by the confinement of its motion in the direction perpendicular to the film. The analysis of the critical field in the context of Clogston–Chandrasekhar limit is also included.
Highlights
The superconductivity in nanoscale systems strongly deviates form that observed in the bulk
We show that the critical field oscillates as a function of the nanofilm thickness and is higher than the Clogston–Chandrasekhar paramagnetic limit [5, 6]
In order to show which of the subbands participate in the Cooper pair condensation, in Fig. 2, we present the quasi-particle energy E as a function of the wave vector k|| = kx2 + ky2 for nanofilm thicknesses corresponding to the first two maxima of the critical field from Fig. 1a
Summary
The superconductivity in nanoscale systems strongly deviates form that observed in the bulk. [4] studied superconducting properties of metallic nanofilms and found that the energy gap oscillates as a function of the nanofilm thickness. Due to technological difficulties in the preparation of uniform metallic films Motivated by these experiments, in the present paper, we investigate the superconductor-normal metal transition driven by the in-plane magnetic field. We show that the critical field oscillates as a function of the nanofilm thickness and is higher than the Clogston–Chandrasekhar paramagnetic limit [5, 6]. We discuss the thermal effect on the superconductor-normal metal transition.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
