A Boosted Critical Temperature of 166 K in Superconducting D<sub>3</sub>S Synthesized from Elemental Sulfur and Hydrogen
Vasily S. Minkov, Vitali B. Prakapenka, Eran Greenberg, M. I. Eremets
Abstract
Abstract The discovery of superconductivity in H 3 S at 203 K marked an advance towards room‐temperature superconductivity and demonstrated the potential of H‐dominated compounds to possess a high critical temperature (T c ). There have been numerous reports of the H‐S system over the last five years, but important questions remain unanswered. It is crucial to verify whether the T c was determined correctly for samples prepared from compressed H 2 S, since they are inevitably contaminated with H‐depleted byproducts. Here, we prepare stoichiometric H 3 S by direct in situ synthesis from elemental S and excess H 2 . The Im m phase of D 3 S samples exhibits a T c significantly higher than previously reported values (ca. 150 K), reaching a maximum T c of 166 K at 157 GPa. Furthermore, we confirm that the sharp decrease in T c below 150 GPa is accompanied by continuous rhombohedral structural distortions and demonstrate that the Cccm phase is non‐metallic, with molecular H 2 units in the crystal structure.