Symmetry of the superconducting order parameter of $\mathrm{UTe_2}$

In plain words

$\mathrm{UTe_2}$ is a heavy-fermion superconductor whose electron pairs probably have parallel spins (spin-triplet), but the exact pairing pattern is still argued over.

Precise statement

Determine the irreducible representation of the superconducting order parameter of orthorhombic $\mathrm{UTe_2}$ (point group D2h; candidates B3u, B2u, Au, or multicomponent combinations) at ambient pressure and zero field, including node positions and whether time-reversal symmetry is broken. An answer is a set of measurements (Knight shift along a, b, c; directional thermal conductivity; polar Kerr; quasiparticle interference of surface states) consistent with one representation.

What would settle it

Knight shift along all three axes in high-quality crystals plus a phase-sensitive surface probe that singles out one representation.

Status in the literature

Unverified note: it names recent work and was partly written without a live literature search; it awaits a check by an editor.

Odd-parity pairing is supported by several probes; resonant ultrasound (2024) indicates a single-component order parameter, thermal conductivity (2026) reports point-like gap minima that do not reach zero, and polar Kerr evidence for time-reversal breaking was not reproduced in cleaner crystals (2023).

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