  Exploration for superconductivity is one of the research frontiers in
condensed matter physics. In strongly correlated electron systems, the
emergence of superconductivity is often inhibited by the formation of a
thermodynamically more stable magnetic/charge order. Thus, to develop the
superconductivity as the thermodynamically most stable state, the free-energy
balance between the superconductivity and the competing order has been
controlled mainly by changing thermodynamic parameters, such as the
physical/chemical pressure and carrier density. However, such a thermodynamic
approach may not be the only way to materialize the superconductivity. Here, we
present a new kinetic approach to avoiding the competing order and thereby
inducing persistent superconductivity. In the transition-metal dichalcogenide
IrTe2 as an example, by utilizing current-pulse-based rapid cooling up to 10^7
K/s, we successfully kinetically avoid a first-order phase transition to a
competing charge order and uncover metastable superconductivity hidden behind.
Because the electronic states at low temperatures depend on the history of
thermal quenching, electric pulse applications enable non-volatile and
reversible switching of the metastable superconductivity, a unique advantage of
the kinetic approach. Thus, our findings provide a new approach to developing
and manipulating superconductivity beyond the framework of thermodynamics.
