Anomalous proximity effect in an inhomogeneous disordered superconductor.
By combining very low temperature scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy on a TiN film we have observed a nonuniform state comprising of superconducting (S) and normal (N) areas. The local density of states displays a spatial dependence between S and N different from the usual proximity effect. We conclude that mesoscopic fluctuations might play a major role in accordance with recent theories describing superconductor-normal-metal quantum transition.
Escoffier
W
W
CEA-DSM-DRFMC-SPSMS, CEA Grenoble, 17 rue des Martyrs, 38054 Grenoble Cedex 9, France.
Chapelier
C
C
Hadacek
N
N
Villégier
J-C
JC