Superconducting Altermagnets

Altermagnetism is a newly discovered state of matter that features antiferromagnetic moments and momentum-dependent spin-split band structures. There are currently several known altermagnetic materials and several predictions for new compounds. There are hints that some altermagnetic metals may be superconducting. This opens a unique opportunity: the particular spin-split Fermi surface of altermagnets should produce very characteristic superconducting states if the electronic pairing is mediated by spin fluctuations. The latter is a very reasonable assumption in magnetic metals. Thus, superconducting altermagnets offer a remarkable opportunity to probe the fundamental paring mechanism of unconventional superconductivity. Progress along these lines would be a breakthrough in the field. In this project, we set up a theoretical framework for studying superconducting altermagnets and producing predictions for unconventional superconductivity that can be tested experimentally.