No Arabic abstract
Superconductivity in topological materials has attracted a great deal of interest in both electron physics and material sciences since the theoretical predictions that Majorana fermions can be realized in topological superconductors [1-4]. Topological superconductivity could be realized in a type II, band-inverted, InAs/GaSb quantum well if it is in proximity to a conventional superconductor. Here we report observations of the proximity effect induced giant supercurrent states in an InAs/GaSb bilayer system that is sandwiched between two superconducting tantalum electrodes to form a superconductor-InAs/GaSb-superconductor junction. Electron transport results show that the supercurrent states can be preserved in a surprisingly large temperature-magnetic field (T-H) parameter space. In addition, the evolution of differential resistance in T and H reveals an interesting superconducting gap structure.
We investigate the Josephson radiation emitted by a junction made of a quantum dot coupled to two conventional superconductors. Close to resonance, the particle-hole symmetric Andreev states that form in the junction are detached from the continuum above the superconducting gap in the leads, while a gap between them opens near the Fermi level. Under voltage bias, we formulate a stochastic model that accounts for non-adiabatic processes, which change the occupations of the Andreev states. This model allows calculating the current noise spectrum and determining the Fano factor. Analyzing the finite-frequency noise, we find that the model may exhibit either an integer or a fractional AC Josephson effect, depending on the bias voltage and the size of the gaps in the Andreev spectrum. Our results assess the limitations in using the fractional Josephson radiation as a probe of topology.
Superconductor/normal conductor/superconductor (SNS) Josephson junctions with highly transparent interfaces are predicted to show significant deviations from sinusoidal supercurrent-phase relationships (CPR) at low temperatures. We investigate experimentally the CPR of a ballistic Nb/InAs(2DES)/Nb junction in the temperature range from 1.3 K to 9 K using a modified Rifkin-Deaver method. The CPR is obtained from the inductance of the phase-biased junction. Transport measurements complement the investigation. At low temperatures, substantial deviations of the CPR from conventional tunnel-junction behavior have been observed. A theoretical model yielding good agreement to the data is presented.
We study a novel type of coupling between spin and orbital degrees of freedom which appears at triplet superconductor-ferromagnet interfaces. Using a self-consistent spatially-dependent mean-field theory, we show that increasing the angle between the ferromagnetic moment and the triplet vector order parameter enhances or suppresses the p-wave gap close to the interface, according as the gap antinodes are parallel or perpendicular to the boundary, respectively. The associated change in condensation energy establishes an orbitally-dependent preferred orientation for the magnetization. When both gap components are present, as in a chiral superconductor, we observe a first-order transition between different moment orientations as a function of the exchange field strength.
Transport is called nonreciprocal when not only the sign, but also the absolute value of the current, depends on the polarity of the applied voltage. It requires simultaneously broken inversion and time-reversal symmetries, e.g., by the interplay of spin-orbit coupling and magnetic field. So far, observation of nonreciprocity was always tied to resistivity, and dissipationless nonreciprocal circuit elements were elusive. Here, we engineer fully superconducting nonreciprocal devices based on highly-transparent Josephson junctions fabricated on InAs quantum wells. We demonstrate supercurrent rectification far below the transition temperature. By measuring Josephson inductance, we can link nonreciprocal supercurrent to the asymmetry of the current-phase relation, and directly derive the supercurrent magnetochiral anisotropy coefficient for the first time. A semi-quantitative model well explains the main features of our experimental data. Nonreciprocal Josephson junctions have the potential to become for superconducting circuits what $pn$-junctions are for traditional electronics, opening the way to novel nondissipative circuit elements.
Transport properties of a superconductor-semiconductor-superconductor (S-Sm-S) junction with superlattice structure are investigated. Differential resistance as a function of voltage shows oscillatory behavior under the irradiation of radio-frequency (RF) waves with the specific frequency of 1.77 GHz regardless of the superconducting materials and the junction lengths. Experimental data are quantitatively explained in terms of the coupling of superconducting quasiparticles with long-wavelength acoustic phonons indirectly excited by the RF waves. We propose that the strong coupling causes the formation of novel composite particles, Andreev polarons.