Abstract
We have studied the evolution of the superconducting energy gap of indium oxide through the disorder-driven superconductor-to-insulator transition (SIT) using two distinct experimental methods that allow us to test the influence of metallic screening: tunneling spectroscopy in which a metallic electrode is adjacent to the studied sample, thus screening Coulomb interactions, and contactless terahertz spectroscopy which probes the unperturbed sample. The tunneling measurements reveal a similar superconducting gap on both sides of the SIT and at temperatures above and below . Terahertz measurements detect the superconducting gap below but not above the critical temperature nor in the insulating state. This difference between the two spectroscopy methods is attributed to the effect of Coulomb interactions which are screened in the tunneling experiments. Our study reveals the importance of Coulomb interactions on the energy gap of disordered superconductors.
- Received 25 August 2013
- Revised 13 January 2014
- Corrected 26 November 2014
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.89.035149
©2014 American Physical Society
Corrections
26 November 2014