Superconductivity in the transition metal silicide Zr 2 Ru 3 Si 4 single crystals

Single crystals of the ternary transition metal silicide Zr₂Ru₃Si₄ were successfully grown using flux method, and their superconducting properties were systematically investigated. Zr₂Ru₃Si₄ crystallizes in a monoclinic structure featuring a quasi-one-dimensional structural framework. Electrical resistivity, magnetic susceptibility, and specific-heat measurements reveal bulk superconductivity with a transition temperature Tc of 5.0 K. The temperature dependence of the upper critical field exhibits nearly isotropic behavior for different field orientations, indicating weak anisotropy in the superconducting state. Analysis of specific-heat data suggests a fully gapped s-wave superconducting order parameter. The electron-phonon coupling constant estimated from the McMillan equation indicates moderately strong coupling. Additional superconducting parameters, including the coherence length, penetration depth, and Ginzburg-Landau parameter, confirm that Zr₂Ru₃Si₄ is a type-II superconductor in the dirty limit. These results provide detailed experimental insight into the superconducting behavior of single-crystalline Zr₂Ru₃Si₄ and offer a valuable experimental basis for future studies of its electronic band structure and the potential interplay between superconductivity and the predicted nontrivial topological electronic states.