Quantum Griffiths singularity of superconductor-metal transition in Ga thin films

Abstract

Cooling to see the effects of disorder: In sufficiently strong external magnetic fields, thin superconducting films typically become insulating. The presence of disorder can affect this phase transition. Theorists have proposed that disorder can cause the so-called Griffiths singularity, where the behavior of the system is determined by a small number of superconducting islands that form above the critical magnetic field. Xing et al. observed a signature of such a singularity in thin films of gallium by analyzing transport data taken at very low temperatures (see the Perspective by Markovic). In this regime, thermal fluctuations were not strong enough to homogenize the system, which allowed the rare islands to form. Science , this issue p. 542 ; see also p. 509