Proximity-induced equilibrium supercurrent and perfect superconducting diode effect due to band asymmetry

Pavan Hosur; Daniel Palacios

doi:10.1103/PhysRevB.108.094513

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Proximity-induced equilibrium supercurrent and perfect superconducting diode effect due to band asymmetry

Pavan Hosur, Daniel Palacios

DOI 10.1103/PhysRevB.108.094513 · Physical Review B

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Abstract

We theoretically investigate the consequences of proximity-induced conventional superconductivity in metals that break time-reversal and inversion symmetries through their energy dispersion. We discover behaviors impossible in an isolated superconductor such as an equilibrium supercurrent that apparently violates a no-go theorem and, at suitable topological defects, nonconservation of electric charge reminiscent of the chiral anomaly. The equilibrium supercurrent is expected to be trainable by a helical electromagnetic field in the normal state. Remarkably, if the band asymmetry exceeds the critical current of the parent superconductor in appropriate units, we predict a perfect superconducting diode effect with diode coefficient unity. We propose toroidal metals such as UNi4B and metals with directional scalar spin chiral order as potential platforms.