Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

Emergent phenomena

Light-induced superconductivity

Nature Physics volume 12, pages 202–203 (2016)Cite this article

Subjects

Intense light pulses irradiating a sample of K3C60 result in dramatic changes of its high-frequency (terahertz) conductivity. Could these be signatures of fleeting superconductivity at 100 K and beyond?

Superconductivity is a phenomenon that occurs in certain materials below their (equilibrium) critical temperatures, Tc. Below Tc, the conduction electrons form a concerted state of electron pairs that propagate through the crystal without experiencing scattering — forming a state of zero electrical resistance. By stimulating the superconductor with excitations (photons and phonons) with energies exceeding the pair-binding energy, 2Δ, paired electrons can be split apart and superconductivity destroyed.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Relevant articles

Open Access articles citing this article.

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Get just this article for as long as you need it

$39.95

Learn more

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1: The proposed1 mechanism for light-induced superconductivity in K3C60.

References

  1. Mitrano, M. et al. Nature http://doi.org/bcjq (2016).

  2. Tinkham, M. Introduction to Superconductivity Ch. 11 (McGraw-Hill, 1996).

    Google Scholar 

  3. Gray, K. E. (ed.) Nonequilibrium Superconductivity, Phonons, and Kapitza Boundaries (Springer, 1981).

    Book  Google Scholar 

  4. Wyatt, A. F. G., Dmitriev, V. M., Moore, W. S. & Sheard, F. W. Phys. Rev. Lett. 16, 1166–1169 (1966).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  5. Eliashberg, G. M. JETP Lett. 11, 114–116 (1970).

    ADS  Google Scholar 

  6. Tredwell, T. J. & Jacobsen, E. H. Phys. Rev. Lett. 35, 244–247 (1975).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  7. Beck, M. et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 110, 267003 (2013).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  8. Gunnarsson, O. Rev. Mod. Phys. 69, 575–606 (1997).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  9. Zhang, F. C., Ogata, M. & Rice, T. M. Phys. Rev. Lett. 67, 3452–3455 (1991).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Jure Demsar is at the Institute of Physics, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, 55099 Mainz, Germany,

    Jure Demsar

Authors
  1. Jure Demsar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jure Demsar.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Demsar, J. Light-induced superconductivity. Nature Phys 12, 202–203 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1038/nphys3687

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nphys3687

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing