of Microstructure Physics in Halle , presented a possible solution. The researchers made the required materials themselves – one atom at a time.
They are focusing on novel types of superconductors, which are particularly interesting because they offer zero electrical resistance at low temperatures. Sometimes referred to as “ideal diamagnets”, superconductors are used in many quantum computers due to their extraordinary interactions with magnetic fields. Theoretical physicists have spent years researching and predicting various superconducting states.
The same method was also used to measure the system’s magnetic and superconductive properties. By depositing chromium atoms on the surface of superconducting niobium, the researchers were able to create two new types of superconductivity. Similar methods had previously been used to manipulate metal atoms and molecules, but until now it has never been possible to make two-dimensional superconductors with this approach.
The results not only confirm the physicists’ theoretical predictions, but also give them reason to speculate about what other new states of matter might be created in this way, and how they could be used in the quantum computers of the future. Reference: “Two-dimensional Shiba lattices as a possible platform for crystalline topological superconductivity” by Martina O. Soldini, Felix Küster, Glenn Wagner, Souvik Das, Amal Aldarawsheh, Ronny Thomale, Samir Lounis, Stuart S. P. Parkin, Paolo Sessi and Titus Neupert, 10 July 2023,