Overview
- Superconductivity is confined to the crystal’s top and bottom surfaces while the interior remains metallic, creating a natural superconductor sandwich.
- High-resolution measurements show electrons along six symmetric directions do not pair, marking the first observation of six-fold restricted pairing tied to the surface’s three-fold symmetry.
- Theoretical work indicates the surface state produces Majorana quasiparticles that localize along edges, with step edges proposed as a way to generate additional modes.
- Control strategies under study include thinning the crystal to tune the interior toward an insulator and applying magnetic fields to reposition the Majoranas, potentially to corners.
- The findings were published November 19 in Nature by IFW Dresden and the Würzburg–Dresden ct.qmat team, highlighting an intrinsic platform that avoids engineered heterostructures.