Cavity-altered superconductivity

Keren, I; Webb, TA; Zhang, S; Xu, J; Sun, D; Kim, BSY; Shin, D; Zhang, SS; Zhang, J; Pereira, G; Yao, J; Okugawa, T; Michael, MH; Viñas Boström, E; Edgar, JH; Wolf, S; Julian, M; Prasankumar, RP; Miyagawa, K; Kanoda, K; Gu, G; Cothrine, M; Mandrus, D; Buzzi, M; Cavalleri, A

Journal article

Cavity-altered superconductivity

Abstract:: Is it feasible to alter the ground-state properties of a material by engineering its electromagnetic environment? Inspired by theoretical predictions1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11–12, experimental realizations of such cavity-controlled properties without optical excitation are beginning to emerge13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18–19. Here we devised and implemented a new platform to realize cavity-altered materials. Single crystals of hyperbolic van der Waals (vdW) compounds provide a resonant electromagnetic environment with enhanced density of photonic states and prominent mode confinement20, 21, 22, 23–24. We interfaced hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) with the molecular superconductor κ-(BEDT-TTF)2Cu[N(CN)2]Br (κ-ET). The frequencies of infrared hyperbolic modes (HMs) of hBN (refs. 25, 26) match the infrared-active carbon–carbon (C=C) stretching molecular resonance of κ-ET implicated in superconductivity27. Nano-optical data supported by first-principles molecular Langevin dynamics simulations confirm the presence of resonant coupling between the hBN hyperbolic cavity modes and the C=C stretching mode in κ-ET. Meissner-effect measurements using magnetic force microscopy (MFM) demonstrate a strong suppression of superfluid density near the hBN/κ-ET interface. Non-resonant control heterostructures, including RuCl3/κ-ET and hBN/Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x (BSCCO), do not show the pronounced superfluid suppression. These observations suggest that hBN/κ-ET realizes a cavity-altered superconducting ground state. Our work highlights the potential of dark cavities devoid of external photons for engineering electronic ground-state properties of complex quantum materials.

Publication status:: Published

Peer review status:: Peer reviewed

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APA Style

Keren, I., Webb, T. A., Zhang, S., Xu, J., Sun, D., Kim, B. S. Y., Shin, D., Zhang, S. S., Zhang, J., Pereira, G., Yao, J., Okugawa, T., Michael, M. H., Viñas Boström, E., Edgar, J. H., Wolf, S., Julian, M., Prasankumar, R. P., Miyagawa, K., … Cavalleri, A. (2026). Cavity-altered superconductivity. Nature, 650(8103), 864–868.

MLA Style

Keren, I, et al. “Cavity-Altered Superconductivity.” Nature, vol. 650, no. 8103, 2026, pp. 864–68.

Chicago Style

Keren, I, TA Webb, S Zhang, et al. 2026. “Cavity-Altered Superconductivity.” Nature 650 (8103): 864–68.
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