First order transition in Pb$_{10-x}$Cu$_x$(PO$_4$)$_6$O ($0.9<x<1.1$) containing Cu$_2$S

Abstract

Lee et al. reported that the compound LK99, with a chemical formula of Pb$_{10-x}$Cu$_x$(PO$_4$)$_6$O ($0.9<x<1.1$), exhibits room-temperature superconductivity under ambient pressure. In this study, we investigated the transport and magnetic properties of pure Cu$_2$S and LK-99 containing Cu$_2$S. We observed a sharp superconducting-like transition and a thermal hysteresis behavior in the resistivity and magnetic susceptibility. However, we did not observe zero-resistivity below the transition temperature. We argue that the so-called superconducting behavior in LK-99 is most likely due to a reduction in resistivity caused by the first order structural phase transition of Cu$_2$S at around 385 K, from the $β$ phase at high temperature to the $γ$ phase at low temperature.