Thermal Conductivity Measurements of Caged Structural Superconductors

Thermal conductivity of Ca3Rh4Sn13 and Sr3Ir4Sn13 were measured in magnetic fields to reveal superconducting state. From magnetic susceptibility χ(T) and electrical resistivity ρ(T) measurements, superconducting transition temperature Tc of Ca3Rh4Sn13 and Sr3Ir4Sn13 is determined to be 8 and 5 K, respectively. Thermal conductivity κ(T) of Ca3Rh4Sn13 indicates that superconducting state is nodeless s-wave, because residual thermal conductivity κ0/T in zero magnetic field is very small. On the other hand, κ(T) of Sr3Ir4Sn13 in zero magnetic field suggests that superconductivity possesses nodal gap rather than full gap. Whether nodal superconducting gap exists or not still remains to be clarified, because there is a possibility that the achieving temperature is insufficient to discuss superconducting state.