Superconductivity in Electrochemically Intercalated R/S-CTA–SnSe2 by Using Chiral Piezoelectric Precursors
Molecule intercalation has shown distinct advantages in modulating the superconducting properties of 2D materials. Chiral molecule intercalation provides a strategy for tuning electronic properties, while this approach has been limited to a few 2D materials such as TaS2 and TiS2. Although extensive research on 2D SnSe2 exists, chiral molecule intercalation in SnSe2 remains unexplored. Herein, we report the first successful electrochemical intercalation of chiral CTA cations (CTA = 3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyltrimethylammonium) into SnSe2 by using piezoelectric R/S-CTA-Cl with a large piezoelectric coefficient of approximately 24 pm/V as the precursors, leading to the formation of superconductors R/S-CTA–SnSe2. Characterization techniques, including powder X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and circular dichroism spectroscopy, confirm a significant lattice expansion in SnSe2 and the successful intercalation of chiral CTA cations, while polar R/S-CTA-Cl does not endow R/S-CTA–SnSe2 with piezoelectric/ferroelectric properties. Magnetic susceptibility and electrical transport measurements reveal that the intercalated R/S-CTA–SnSe2 materials exhibit a superconducting transition at around 5 K. Notably, the distinct out-of-plane and in-plane upper critical magnetic fields demonstrate the 2D nature of the intercalated compounds. This work highlights an approach for designing and tailoring superconducting materials through chiral cation intercalation and opens avenues for further exploration of chiral effects in superconductors.
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