Crystal Growth and Physical Properties of the Noncentrosymmetric Superconductor PdBi

The recently discovered noncentrosymmetric superconductor, PdBi, has been prepared as single crystals. As expected from a close examination of its crystal structure, Bi-nonstoichiometry in addition to good crystalline cleavage is experimentally confirmed. It is found that the Bi-deficiency remarkably increases the residual resistivity ratio (RRR) and significantly degrades both the superconducting transition temperature and the upper critical field. The results clearly indicate that the superconductivity in PdBi is quite sensitive to the Bi-deficiency, and it should be taken into account for the examination of unconventional superconducting state, if any, in the PdBi compound.