Nanoscale devices with superconducting electrodes to locally channel current in 3D Weyl semimetals

Abstract

We report on the fabrication of nano-devices on the surface of a Weyl semimetal, a macroscopic crystal of TaAs, and low-temperature transport measurements. We can implement electron beam lithography by peeling off and transferring the resist for nanofabrication onto the irregular crystal. We fabricate the device electrodes with superconducting Niobium nitride (NbN) to control the current flow through the intended active area of the devices. Our device structure enables the reduction in the current jetting effect, and we demonstrate the negative magnetoresistance measurement as a function of angle. The high field magnetotransport shows three distinct oscillation frequencies corresponding to the three bands at the Fermi level. Resistance measured in the low magnetic field shows the usual weak anti-localization dip near the zero-field—a signature of a Weyl material. Our method of fabricating devices with superconducting electrodes provides a way to probe the electrical properties of macroscopic single crystals at the nanoscale. As we use conventional lithographic techniques for patterning, this method can be extended to a wide gamut of electrode materials and a large class of 3D quantum materials.