{
  "abstract": "Point-contact tunneling (PCT) spectroscopy was used to probe the local superconducting properties of cavity-grade niobium following surface treatments representative of superconducting radio-frequency (SRF) cavities. Electropolished (EP) samples were compared with samples baked at 120~$^\\circ$C for 48 h and subjected to a two-step bake at 75~$^\\circ$C for 2 h followed by 120~$^\\circ$C for 48 h. Although the superconducting gap $Δ$ is predominantly distributed around the bulk Nb value (~1.5 meV), regions exhibiting strongly suppressed gaps (minigaps) are observed in 15--29% of junctions on EP samples. Their occurrence decreases to 6% after the 120~$^\\circ$C bake and to only 1% after the two-step treatment. Spectra exhibiting minigaps are well described by the Usadel proximity-effect model, consistent with superconducting Nb coupled to normal regions that we attribute to hydride formation. These results provide direct microscopic evidence that low-temperature baking suppresses regions of degraded surface superconductivity in cavity-grade Nb. The pronounced reduction achieved by the two-step bake further supports a link between hydride-related proximity effects and the surface superconducting properties governing SRF cavity performance.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2609.21865",
  "author_total": 6,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Ivana Curci"
    },
    {
      "name": "Gregoire Jullien"
    },
    {
      "name": "Luc Maurice"
    },
    {
      "name": "Fabien Eozenou"
    },
    {
      "name": "Patrick Sahuquet"
    },
    {
      "name": "Thomas Proslier"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2533m8kk521v8.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2609.21865",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "2533m8kk521v8",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.21865",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "LicenseRef-arXiv-nonexclusive-1.0",
  "licence_label": "arXiv licence",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "cond-mat.supr-con"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2202|Particle accelerators and beam dynamics"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7213918086",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2609.21865",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-02",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2533m8kk521v8.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:26:45Z",
      "native_id": "2609.21865",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.21865"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "physics",
      "origin": "arxiv:cond-mat.supr-con",
      "subfield": "condensed-matter"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Tunneling Spectroscopy Study of Low Baked Bulk Niobium for Superconducting RF Cavity Applications",
  "title_text": "Tunneling Spectroscopy Study of Low Baked Bulk Niobium for Superconducting RF Cavity Applications",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:26:45Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2533m8kk521v8",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}