Nickel-based oxyphosphide superconductor with a layered crystal structure, LaNiOP.

A layered oxyphosphide, LaNiOP, was synthesized by solid-state reactions. This crystal was confirmed to have a layered structure composed of an alternating stack of (La(3+)O(2-))(+) and (Ni(2+)P(3-))(-). We found that the resulting LaNiOP shows a superconducting transition at approximately 3 K. This material exhibited metallic conduction and Pauli paramagnetism in the temperature range of 4-300 K. The resistivity sharply dropped to zero and the magnetic susceptibility became negative at <4 K, indicating that a superconducting transition occurs. The volume fraction of the superconducting phase estimated from the diamagnetic susceptibility reached approximately 40 vol % at 1.8 K, substantiating that LaNiOP is a bulk superconductor.