Electronic structure of superconducting VN(111) films
Rongjing Zhai,
Jiachang Bi,
Shun Zheng,
Wei Chen,
Yu Lin,
Shaozhu Xiao,
Yanwei Cao
Affiliations
Rongjing Zhai
Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Jiachang Bi
Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Shun Zheng
State Key Laboratory of Functional Materials for Informatics, Shanghai Institute of Microsystem and Information Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Wei Chen
Hefei Innovation Research Institute, Beihang University
Yu Lin
Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Shaozhu Xiao
Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Yanwei Cao
Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Abstract Vanadium nitride (VN) is a transition-metal nitride with remarkable properties that have prompted extensive experimental and theoretical investigations in recent years. However, there is a current paucity of experimental research investigating the temperature-dependent electronic structure of single-crystalline VN. In this study, high-quality VN(111) films were successfully synthesized on $$\alpha$$ α -Al $$_2$$ 2 O $$_3$$ 3 (0001) substrates using magnetron sputtering. The crystal and electronic structures of the VN films were characterized by a combination of high-resolution X-ray diffraction, low-energy electron diffraction, resonant soft X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy. The electrical transport measurements indicate that the superconducting critical temperature of the VN films is around 8.1 K. Intriguingly, the temperature-dependent photoelectron spectroscopy measurements demonstrate a weak temperature dependence in the electronic structure of the VN films, which is significant for understanding the ground state of VN compounds.
