In the context of a high technology research lab, explain step by step how to fabricate a topological superconductor using the process of proximity-induced superconductivity.
user
Here is a general outline of the process of fabricating a topological superconductor:

1. Preparation of the substrate: The first step is to prepare a suitable substrate on which the superconductor will be fabricated. This substrate could be a thin film of a conventional superconductor, such as aluminum (Al), deposited on a suitable material, such as a sapphire substrate.

2.Deposition of a normal metal: Next, a normal metal, such as gold (Au), is deposited on top of the substrate to form a bilayer structure. The normal metal acts as a "proximity effect" material, which can induce superconductivity in the adjacent layer.

3. Deposition of a magnetic material: A magnetic material, such as ferromagnetic iron (Fe), is then deposited on top of the normal metal. This magnetic material will be used to create a magnetic field that can be used to control the topological superconducting phase.

4. Patterning of the magnetic material: The magnetic material is then patterned into the desired shape using a process such as photolithography. This will allow the magnetic field to be applied in a controlled way to the superconducting layer.

5. Deposition of the topological insulator: A topological insulator, such as bismuth selenide (Bi2Se3), is then deposited on top of the magnetic material. This material acts as a "spin-polarized" material, which can strongly interact with the magnetic field and induce superconductivity in the normal metal.

6. Annealing: The entire structure is then subjected to an annealing process, which allows the normal metal and topological insulator to come into close proximity, thereby inducing superconductivity in the normal metal.

7. Characterization: Finally, the topological superconductor is characterized using techniques such as transport measurements, scanning tunneling microscopy, and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) to confirm the presence of topological superconductivity and to measure its properties.
assistant
Could Bi2Te3 be used as a topological insulator instead of Bi2Se3?
user
Yes.

A research team from the Nanotechnology Research Centre at Sun-Yat Sen University in Guangzhou, have demonstrated the anisotropic photocurrent for photodetectors based on the polycrystalline TI Bi2Te3 film under the polarized light irradiation under the bias voltage condition. 
They claim that this "opens a door to applications of polycrystalline TI films as a multifunctional photodetector which can not only detect the light intensity, but also measure the polarization state of the incident light, which is remarkably different from conventional photodetectors that usually only detect the light intensity."

https://www.nature.com/articles/srep14184#auth-J__D_-Yao
assistant