Symmetry properties of the order parameter are among the most fundamental characteristics of a superconductor. UTe2, which was found to feature an exceedingly large upper critical field and striking reentrant behavior at low temperatures, is widely believed to possess a spin-triplet pairing symmetry. However, unambiguous evidence for such a pairing symmetry is still lacking, especially at zero and low magnetic fields. The presence of an inversion crystalline symmetry in UTe2requires that, if it is indeed a spin-triplet superconductor, the order parameter must be of odd parity. We report here phase-sensitive measurements of the symmetry of the orbital part of the order parameter using the Josephson effect. The selection rule in the orientation dependence of the Josephson coupling between In, ans-wave superconductor, and UTe2suggests strongly that UTe2possesses the odd-parity pairing state of B1usymmetry near zero magnetic field, making it a spin-triplet superconductor. We also report the apparent formation of Andreev surface bound states on the (1−10) surface of UTe2. 
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                            Thermal conductivity of nonunitary triplet superconductors: application to UTe2
                        
                    
    
            Considerable evidence shows that the heavy fermion material UTe2is a spin-triplet superconductor, possibly manifesting time-reversal symmetry breaking, as measured by Kerr effect below the critical temperature, in some samples. Such signals can arise due to a chiral orbital state or possible nonunitary pairing. Although experiments at low temperatures appear to be consistent with point nodes in the spectral gap, the detailed form of the order parameter and even the nodal positions are not yet determined. Thermal conductivity measurements can extend to quite low temperatures, and varying the heat current direction should be able to provide information on the order parameter structure. Here, we derive a general expression for the thermal conductivity of a spin-triplet superconductor and use it to compare the low-temperature behavior of various states proposed for UTe2. 
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                            - Award ID(s):
- 2231821
- PAR ID:
- 10548555
- Publisher / Repository:
- ArXiv
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Frontiers in Physics
- Volume:
- 12
- ISSN:
- 2296-424X
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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