The fate of the superfluid density near the SIT in amorphous superconductors

Superconducting films of amorphous Indium Oxide (a:InO) thin films undergo a transition to insulation upon increasing disorder. This quantum phase transition is driven by the localization of preformation of Cooper pairs, which has been evidenced through various unusual spectroscopic properties. The continuous decrease of the critical temperature as the critical disorder approaches indicates a similarly continuous suppression of the superfluid density. In this talk I discuss the fate of the superfluid density in the vicinity of the transition to insulation in a:InO films. To access the superfluid density we conducted a systematic study of the whole plasmon dispersion spectrum of high quality factor microwave resonators made of a:InO, combined with DC resistivity measurements, as a function of disorder. Our main observations are a breakdown of the Mattis-Bardeen theory and a record kinetic inductance of 17nH per square for critical, superconducting samples. Surprisingly, we find that the superfluid density remains finite up to the critical disorder. Besides providing new insights to understand the SIT in a:InO, these results may find applications in superconducting quantum circuits where very large inductances are highly desirable.