Topology effects on the heat capacity of mesoscopic superconducting disks

Institut Néel, CNRS-UJF - 25 av. des Martyrs, BP 166, 38042 Grenoble Cedex 9, France

Corresponding authors: florian.ong@grenoble.cnrs.fr olivier.bourgeois@grenoble.cnrs.fr

Received: 29 June 2007
Accepted: 26 July 2007

Abstract

Phase transitions in superconducting mesoscopic disks have been studied over the H-T phase diagram through heat capacity measurement of an array of independent aluminium disks. These disks exhibit non-periodic modulations vs. H of the height of the heat capacity jump at the superconducting-to-normal transition. This behaviour is attributed to giant vortex states characterized by their vorticity L. A crossover from a bulk-like to a mesoscopic behaviour is demonstrated.  vs. H plots exhibit cascades of phase transitions as L increases or decreases by one unit, with a strong hysteresis. Phase diagrams of giant vortex states inside the superconducting region are drawn in the vortex penetration and expulsion regimes and phase transitions driven by temperature between vortex states are thus predicted in the zero-field–cooled regime before being experimentally evidenced.