The quantum spin Hall insulator is characterized by a bandgap in the two-dimensional (2D) interior and helical 1D edge states^1,2,3. Inducing superconductivity in the helical edge state results in a 1D topological superconductor, a highly sought-after state of matter at the core of many proposals for topological quantum computing⁴. In the present study, we report the coexistence of superconductivity and the quantum spin Hall edge state in a van der Waals heterostructure, by placing a monolayer of 1T′-WTe₂, a quantum spin Hall insulator^1,2,3, on a van der Waals superconductor, NbSe₂. Using scanning tunnelling microscopy and spectroscopy (STM/STS), we demonstrate that the WTe₂ monolayer exhibits a proximity-induced superconducting gap due to the underlying superconductor and that the spectroscopic features of the quantum spin Hall edge state remain intact. Taken together, these observations provide conclusive evidence for proximity-induced superconductivity in the quantum spin Hall edge state in WTe₂, a crucial step towards realizing 1D topological superconductivity and Majorana bound states in this van der Waals material platform.

量子自旋霍尔绝缘体的特征在于二维 (2D) 内部的带隙和螺旋 1D 边缘状态^1,2,3。在螺旋边缘状态中诱导超导性会产生一维拓扑超导体，这是一种备受追捧的物质状态，是许多拓扑量子计算提案的核心⁴。_{在本研究中，我们通过将单层 1T'-WTe 2}（量子自旋霍尔绝缘体^1,2,3）放置在面包车上，报告了范德华异质结构中超导性和量子自旋霍尔边缘态的共存。德华超导体，NbSe ₂。使用扫描隧道显微镜和光谱学 (STM/STS)，我们证明了 WTe ₂由于底层超导体，单层表现出接近诱导的超导间隙，并且量子自旋霍尔边缘状态的光谱特征保持完整。总之，这些观察结果为WTe ₂中量子自旋霍尔边缘态的邻近诱导超导性提供了确凿的证据，这是在该范德华材料平台中实现一维拓扑超导性和马约拉纳束缚态的关键一步。