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  • Open Access

Perfect Superconducting Diode Effect in Altermagnets

Debmalya Chakraborty*

Annica M. Black-Schaffer†

  • Department of Physics and Astronomy, Uppsala University, Box 516, S-751 20 Uppsala, Sweden

  • *Contact author: debmalyaphys@gmail.com, debmalya@iisermohali.ac.in
  • †Contact author: annica.black-schaffer@physics.uu.se

Phys. Rev. Lett. 135, 026001 – Published 8 July, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/cv8s-tk4c

Abstract

We investigate intrinsic superconducting diode effect in the unconventional superconducting state of d-wave altermagnets. We find large diode efficiencies in the wide-reaching finite-momentum pairing regimes of the phase diagram. Remarkably, even perfect diode efficiency of 100% can be obtained in the presence of an external magnetic field. We attribute the largest efficiencies to competition between multiple zero-momentum (BCS) and finite-momentum superconducting states, which is connected to a topological nodal-to-nodeless transition in altermagnets with magnetic field, making our results applicable to a wide range of altermagnets.

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