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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Méndez, Cristóbal, Sitaraman, Nathan, Liepe, Matthias, Arias, Tomás
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
Subjects:
Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.02914
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Table of Contents:
  • Nanometer-scale surface chemistry limits the performance of SRF cavities and quantum circuits. We present an ab initio framework connecting DFT interfacial energetics with strong-coupling Eliashberg theory for capped Nb and Ta surfaces. This approach identifies Au and Au-based alloys (AuPd, AuPt) as effective passivation layers. Our model further predicts that combining a noble-metal capping layer with an appropriate wetting/adhesion layer (WAL) yields far more robust adhesion than a capping layer alone under realistic conditions, enabling thinner caps, and thereby addressing a central challenge in superconducting surface passivation.