| Xiaoxiang Xi1*, Zefang Wang1*, Weiwei Zhao1, Ju-Hyun Park2, Kam Tuen Law3, Helmuth Berger4, László Forró4, Jie Shan16, and Kin Fai Mak16
This study reports the observation of superconducting monolayer NbSe₂ with an in-plane upper critical field exceeding six times the Pauli paramagnetic limit, indicating unconventional Ising pairing protected by spin-momentum locking. The research focuses on monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), which exhibit strong spin-orbit interactions and valley-dependent Berry curvature effects. The study demonstrates that spin-momentum locking in monolayer NbSe₂ leads to significant enhancements in superconducting properties, particularly in the in-plane direction. The electronic spin is locked to the out-of-plane direction, and this spin-momentum locking is absent in the bulk where inversion symmetry is restored. The study uses transport and magneto-transport measurements to investigate the superconducting properties of NbSe₂ monolayers, revealing a strong dependence of the upper critical field on the layer number. The results show that the in-plane upper critical field in monolayer NbSe₂ far exceeds the Pauli limit, suggesting the importance of spin-orbit interactions and spin-momentum locking in non-centrosymmetric superconductivity. The study also highlights the unique spin and valley degrees of freedom in the exact two-dimensional limit, opening new avenues for the study of interacting electrons with Ising spin. The findings provide strong evidence for unconventional Ising pairing in monolayer NbSe₂ and contribute to the understanding of superconductivity in two-dimensional materials.This study reports the observation of superconducting monolayer NbSe₂ with an in-plane upper critical field exceeding six times the Pauli paramagnetic limit, indicating unconventional Ising pairing protected by spin-momentum locking. The research focuses on monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), which exhibit strong spin-orbit interactions and valley-dependent Berry curvature effects. The study demonstrates that spin-momentum locking in monolayer NbSe₂ leads to significant enhancements in superconducting properties, particularly in the in-plane direction. The electronic spin is locked to the out-of-plane direction, and this spin-momentum locking is absent in the bulk where inversion symmetry is restored. The study uses transport and magneto-transport measurements to investigate the superconducting properties of NbSe₂ monolayers, revealing a strong dependence of the upper critical field on the layer number. The results show that the in-plane upper critical field in monolayer NbSe₂ far exceeds the Pauli limit, suggesting the importance of spin-orbit interactions and spin-momentum locking in non-centrosymmetric superconductivity. The study also highlights the unique spin and valley degrees of freedom in the exact two-dimensional limit, opening new avenues for the study of interacting electrons with Ising spin. The findings provide strong evidence for unconventional Ising pairing in monolayer NbSe₂ and contribute to the understanding of superconductivity in two-dimensional materials.