Observation of a superconducting gap in boron-doped diamond by laser-excited photoemission spectroscopy

We investigate the temperature (T)-dependent low-energy electronic structure of a boron-doped diamond thin film using ultrahigh resolution laser-excited photoemission spectroscopy. We observe a clear shift of the leading edge below T=11 K, indicative of a superconducting gap opening (Delta similar to 0.78 meV at T=4.5 K). The gap feature is significantly broad and a well-defined quasiparticle peak is lacking even at the lowest temperature of measurement (=4.5 K). We discuss our results in terms of disorder effects on the normal state transport and superconductivity in this system.