BaNi
As
and SrNi
P
undergo a structural phase transition at 130 K and 325 K, respectively, and bulk SC was observed at
0.68 K and 1.4 K [
8]. As shown in
Figure 4a, the heat capacity data of these two compounds can be well fitted by a BCS
s-wave expression [
40,
42,
52]. Moreover, the concave field responses of residual linear term
, determined from the thermal conductivity measurements, give clear evidence that both BaNi
As
and SrNi
P
are fully gapped single gap superconductors [
52]. Theories from first principle calculations also give consistent results for BaNi
As
, which shows a FS distinct from BaFe
As
[
53]. Through partial substitution of P for As in BaNi
As
, the triclinic phase transition is strongly suppressed, accompanying a stepwise enhancement of
from 0.6 K to 3.3 K [
54]. By detailed investigation of specific heat results, the authors argue that the chemical pressure effect induced by phosphorous doping results in the softening of phonon, which could enhance the electron–phonon coupling, and thus SC. A recent ARPES study (
Figure 5b,c) exhibits a good agreement with the theoretical calculations (
Figure 5a), which indicates a rather weak electronic correlation in SrNi
As
compared to that in iron-based pnictides [
55]. The FS topology of
0 plane (
Figure 6b) shows very similar behavior with that of
plane (
Figure 5c), except for an additional hole pocket observed around
Z point. This means a strong 3D character of FS in SrNi
As
, which is further proved by the transport property measurements for BaNi
P
[
41]. The apparent different size between electronic and hole pockets (for instance, the small hole pocket at
point and the nearly hexagonal electron pocket around
M point in
Figure 5b) infers the absence of good Fermi nesting conditions; thus, it is difficult to form a SDW in this compound, which strongly contrasts the results obtained in iron-based superconductors. This issue is also discussed from theory [
56,
57]. As is well known, the FS of the iron-based supercondutors is formed by cylindrical hole sheets near the
point and electron sheets at the corners of the Brillouin zone (see
Figure 5d–f) [
58]. This kind of electronic structure makes the system unstable and tends to form charge/spin ordering, which is often caused by structure distortions. In addition, compared with the FS of SrNi
As
, the FS sheets in iron-based superconductors is more like quasi-2D in shape.
Compared to the quasi-2D FSs of iron-based superconductors, the FSs of nickel-based superconductors are more complicated and 3D in nature, which may account for the differences between these two systems [
43,
53,
59,
60,
61]. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES) study performed on the end member-BaNi
P
shows that both hole and electron FS pockets are observed, and the shapes of the hole FSs dramatically change with photon energy, which means a strong three-dimensionality [
62]. This observation is also consistent with band-structure calculations and de Haas–van Alphen (dHvA) measurements, which further confirms the 3D nature of the FSs in BaNi
P
[
59]. Note that dHvA studies on BaIr
P
give similar results of FS topology [
63]. By comparing the parameters for different Ni-containing 122-IFPSs, as shown in
Figure 6, Ideta et al. also propose that not only the 3D FSs but also the interlayer Pn-Pn bond distance (
) or the pnictogen height (
) may be important parameters to determine
in the
ANi
Pn
family [
62].