Anisotropic superconducting property studies of single crystal PbTaSe₂

The anisotropic superconducting properties of PbTaSe₂ single crystal is reported. Superconductivity with T_c  =  3.83  ±  0.02 K has been characterized fully with electrical resistivity ρ (T), magnetic susceptibility χ (T), and specific heat C_p (T) measurements using single crystal samples. The superconductivity is type-II with lower critical field H_c1 and upper critical field H_c2 of 65 and 450 Oe (H ⊥  to the ab -plane), 140 and 1500 Oe (H || to the ab -plane), respectively. These results indicate that the superconductivity of PbTaSe₂ is anisotropic. The superconducting anisotropy, electron–phonon coupling λ_ep, superconducting energy gap Δ₀, and the specific heat jump Δ C / γT_c at T_c confirms that PbTaSe₂ can be categorized as a bulk superconductor. (paper)