High pressure superconducting phase diagram of 6Li: anomalous isotope effects in dense lithium

Abstract

We report the superconducting transition temperature of 6Li between 16-26 GPa, the lightest system to exhibit superconductivity to date. The superconducting phase diagram of 6Li is compared to that of 7Li through simultaneous measurement in a diamond anvil cell (DAC) 1, 2. Below 21.5 GPa, Li exhibits a direct, but unusually large isotope effect, while between 21.5-26 GPa, lithium shows an inverse superconducting isotope effect. The unusual dependence of the superconducting phase diagram of lithium on its atomic mass provides evidence that quantum solid effects dominate the low temperature properties of dense lithium leading to anomalous differences in the structures and/or in electronic properties of the isotopes through zero point effects.