Superconductivity and strong spin-orbit coupling in a new noncentrosymmetric compound ThIrP

A new noncentrosymmetric phosphide ThIrP has been synthesized and characterized. X-ray difraction analysis shows that this compound crystallizes in a LaPtSi-type tetragonal lattice(space group I41md, Z = 4), whose lattice parameters are a = b =4.0676(1) ?, c = 14.3354(2) ?, and V = 237.191(8) ?3. Moreover, ThIrP is discovered to be an intermediately coupled,type-Ⅱ superconductor with possibly multiple gaps below Tc= 5.07 K. The upper critical magnetic field, Sommerfield coefficient, and Ginzburg-Laudau parameter are determined based on physical property measurements, which are Bc2= 0.83 T, γ =7.5 mJ mol-1 K-2, and κGL= 7.5, respectively. The electronic band structure calculations point out nearly equal contributions of Ir and Th atoms on the density of states around the Fermi surface. In addition, the spin-orbit coupling induced band splitting reaches as large as 270 meV along the Γ-Z line. Our results suggest that ThIrP provides a platform to study the interplay between inversion-symmetry breaking, strong spin-orbit coupling, and superconductivity.