Absence of a Zero Temperature Vortex Solid Phase in Strongly Disordered Superconducting Bi Films
Abstract
We present low temperature measurements of the resistance in magnetic field of superconducting ultrathin amorphous Bi films with normal state sheet resistances, RN, near the resistance quantum, RQ= e2. For RN<RQ, the tails of the resistive transitions show the thermally activated flux flow signature characteristic of defect motion in a vortex solid with a finite correlation length. When RN exceeds RQ, the tails become non-activated. We conclude that in films where RN>RQ there is no vortex solid and, hence, no zero resistance state in magnetic field. We describe how disorder induced quantum and/or mesoscopic fluctuations can eliminate the vortex solid and also discuss implications for the magnetic-field-tuned superconductor-insulator transition.
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