Effect of non-homogeneous non-magnetic Impurities in Superconductors: A comparison between Microscopic and Macroscopic theories

Abstract

Non-homogeneous, non-magnetic impurities in superconductivity have recently gained traction as a promising approach to reduce surface resistance and increase the superheating field. We aim to deepen the understanding of impurities' role from a theoretical perspective by utilizing Eilenberger's equation, and to investigate the validity of a more phenomenological approach based on London's equation for determining the magnetic field profile within the superconductor. We show that the microscopic and macroscopic theories produce identical electromagnetic field distributions for any spatial distributions of impurities inside the superconductors. However, the two approaches provide different magnetic field-related quantities. The macroscopic model only gives the Bean-Livingston barrier, while the microscopic theory provides the experimentally-relevant superheating field. Based on the microscopic formalism, we determine a family of impurity profiles that make the superheating field $H_{\rm{sh}}$ equal to the critical field $H_c$, which is the maximum achievable.