  We fabricated three-dimensional disordered Pb-Cu granular structures, with
various metal compositions. The typical grain size of both metals is smaller
than the superconductor and normal metal coherence lengths, thus satisfying the
Cooper limit. The critical temperature of the samples was measured and compared
with the critical temperature of bilayers. We show how the proximity effect
theories, developed for bilayers, can be modified for random mixtures and we
demonstrate that our experimental data fit well the de Gennes weak coupling
limit theory in the Cooper limit. Our results indicate that, in granular
structures, the Cooper limit can be satisfied over a wide range of
concentrations.

Superconductivity