Superconducting quantum point contacts

We review our experiments on the electronic transport properties of atomic contacts between metallic electrodes, in particular superconducting ones. Despite ignorance of the exact atomic configuration, these ultimate quantum point contacts can be manipulated and well characterized in-situ. They allow performing fundamental tests of the scattering theory of quantum transport. In particular, we discuss the case of the Josephson effect.     

Graphene-based superconducting quantum point contacts

We investigate the Josephson effect in the graphene nanoribbons of length L smaller than the superconducting coherence length and an arbitrary width W. We find that in contrast to an ordinary superconducting quantum point contact (SQPC), the critical supercurrent I_c is not quantized for the nanoribbons with smooth and armchair edges. For a low concentration of the carriers, I_c decreases monotonically with lowering W/L and tends to a constant minimum for a narrow nanoribbon with . The minimum I_c is zero for the smooth edges but for the armchair edges. At higher concentrations of the carriers this monotonic variation acquires a series of peaks. Further analysis of the current-phase relation and the Josephson coupling strength I_cR_N in terms of W/L and the concentration of carriers revels significant differences with those of an ordinary SQPC. On the other hand for a zigzag nanoribbon, we find that, similar to an ordinary SQPC, I_c is quantized but to the half-integer values . PACS 74.45.+c; 74.50.+r; 73.63.-b; 74.78.Na     

Electron-phonon scattering in quantum point contacts

We study the negative correction to the quantized value 2e(2)/h of the conductance of a quantum point contact due to the backscattering of electrons by acoustic phonons. The correction shows activated temperature dependence and also gives rise to a zero-bias anomaly in conductance. Our results are in qualitative agreement with recent experiments studying the 0.7 feature in the conductance of quantum point contacts.     

Spontaneous spin polarization in quantum point contacts

We use spatial spin separation by a magnetic focusing technique to probe the polarization of quantum point contacts. The point contacts are fabricated from p-type GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructures. A finite polarization is measured in the low-density regime, when the conductance of a point contact is tuned to < 2e2/h. Polarization is stronger in samples with a well-defined "0.7 structure."     

Critical current in superconducting quantum point contacts

The quantization of the critical current I _c in a quantum point contact is studied on varying the number of free channels (varying the constriction width d ₀ in 2DEG). It is shown that the shape of the quantum I _c is not universal and depends on the parameters of the contact, in particular, on the properties of the 2DEG-S boundaries. Because of the effect of normal reflection from the S-2DEG boundaries, the quantum critical current nonmonotonically depends on d ₀ and may have a resonance structure. If E _F coincides with a quasi-stationary level of the square potential well formed by the contact walls, the critical current has a local maximum (resonance) equal (in the first channel) to the ratio of the electron charge to its time of travel through the contact. The critical current at the maximum is determined by the lowest positive Andreev level (for the phase difference π).     

Boundary-mediated electron-electron interactions in quantum point contacts

An unusual increase of the conductance with temperature is observed in clean quantum point contacts for conductances larger than 2(e2/h). At the same time, a positive magnetoresistance arises at high temperatures. A model accounting for electron-electron interactions mediated by boundaries (scattering on Friedel oscillations) qualitatively describes the observation. It is supported by a numerical simulation at zero magnetic field.     

Local moment formation in quantum point contacts

Spin-density-functional theory of quantum point contacts (QPCs) reveals the formation of a local moment with a net of one electron spin in the vicinity of the point contact-supporting the recent report of a Kondo effect in a QPC. The hybridization of the local moment to the leads decreases as the QPC becomes longer, while the on site Coulomb-interaction energy remains almost constant.     

Thermal conductance of ballistic point contacts

We study the thermal conductance of ballistic point contacts. These contacts are realized as few nanometer long pillars in so-called air-gap heterostructures (AGHs). The pillar length is orders of magnitude smaller than the mean free path of the phonons up to room temperature. Because of the small dimension and the low density of the pillars, the thermal conductance of the AGHs is several orders of magnitude reduced in comparison to bulk structures. The measurement results are in quantitative agreement with a simple model that is based on the Boltzmann transport equation.     

Counterflow of electrons in two isolated quantum point contacts

We study the interaction between two adjacent but electrically isolated quantum point contacts (QPCs). At high enough source-drain bias on one QPC, the drive QPC, we detect a finite electric current in the second, unbiased, detector QPC. The current generated at the detector QPC always flows in the opposite direction than the current of the drive QPC. The generated current is maximal, if the detector QPC is tuned to a transition region between its quantized conductance plateaus and the drive QPC is almost pinched-off. We interpret this counterflow phenomenon in terms of an asymmetric phonon-induced excitation of electrons in the leads of the detector QPC.     

Dynamical effects of the four-wave mixing enhancement induced by constructive quantum interference

In a four-level system of ultracold ⁸⁷Rb atoms, through analytical and numerical calculations we propose an efficient scheme to achieve the enhanced four-wave mixing process and demonstrate its dynamical control by various parameters such as the travel distance z, probe detuning $\delta$ and the probe pulse width $\tau$. In particular, we find that the maximal intensity of the nonlinearly generated signal pulse can be about 80% of the initial input probe under the optimal condition. This greatly enhanced conversion efficiency occurs due to the constructive quantum interference between two different components of the generated signal pulse.     

Phonon relaxation of subgap levels in superconducting quantum point contacts

Superconducting quantum point contacts are known to possess two subgap states per propagating mode. In this note we compute the low-temperature relaxation rate of the upper subgap state into the lower one with the emission of an acoustic phonon. If the reflection at the contact is small, the relaxation time may become much longer than the characteristic lifetime of a bulk quasiparticle. Pis’ma Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 68, No. 11, 847–851 (10 December 1998) Published in English in the original Russian journal. Edited by Steve Torstveit.     

Counting statistics and detector properties of quantum point contacts

Quantum detector properties of the quantum point contact (QPC) are analyzed for an arbitrary electron transparency and coupling strength to the measured system and are shown to be determined by the electron counting statistics. Conditions of the quantum-limited operation of the QPC detector, which prevent information loss through the scattering time and scattering phases, are found for arbitrary coupling. We show that the phase information can be restored and used for the quantum-limited detection by inclusion of the QPC detector in the electronic Mach-Zehnder interferometer.     

Stabilization of Au quantum point contacts by self-assembled monolayers

We examine conductance phenomenon for Au quantum point contacts (QPC) formed using a crossed-wire geometry experimental set-up. When one of the wires is coated with a self-assembled monolayer of an alkanethiol, we find that a conductance plateau indicative of a QPC can be stable for tens of seconds, exceeding typical periods of stability by several orders of magnitude. This extended stability is attributed to the inhibition of the diffusion of Au atoms away from the contact area by the presence of the self-assembled monolayer.