Response of a Bloch oscillator to a THz-field

In this paper we report on the observation of response of a Bloch oscillator at room temperature to a THz-field of a frequency larger than the Bloch frequency. The oscillator consisted of a semiconductor superlattice structure, with an applied dc voltage giving rise to a dc electron drift current. Submitting the oscillator to a field at a frequency of 3.3 THz caused a sizeable reduction of the current; the THz-field was generated by use of intense THz-radiation pulses focused on an antenna coupled to the superlattice. We attribute the THz-field induced reduction of the current to a frequency modulation of the Bloch oscillations of electrons at the frequency of the THz-field, leading to reduction of the electron drift velocity and, consequently, of the current.     

Proposal of a Microwave-Driven Semiconductor Superlattice Oscillator for Generation of THz Radiation

We present the proposal of a microwave-driven semiconductor superlattice oscillator. We show that the interplay of a microwave pump field with a synchronous harmonic field can make a semiconductor superlattice to a gain medium for the harmonic field. Placing the superlattice in a resonator for the harmonic field allows the operation of an oscillator. The gain mechanism is based on Bloch oscillations of miniband electrons. The gain is mediated either by the interaction of the high-frequency field with the single electrons or with space charge domains or with both. The microwave-driven superlattice oscillator should be suitable for generation of coherent radiation up to several THz.     

Self-induced shapiro effect in semiconductor superlattices

We observe that the oscillatory motion of photoinjected electron-hole pairs in a biased semiconductor superlattice (Bloch oscillation) is accompanied by a coherent quasi-dc current that is generated by the interaction of the carriers with the self-induced oscillating field. It is shown that this novel macroscopic quantum effect, which is a coherent analog of the Shapiro effect observed in Josephson junctions, can be controlled by changing the spectral position of the exciting laser pulse, which in turn determines the amplitude and phase of the wave packet oscillations. It is thereby possible to coherently drive the electrons either downwards or upwards in the potential of the static field.     

Terahertz radiation of Bloch oscillators excited by an electromagnetic field in lateral semiconductor superlattices

The action of a strong high-frequency electromagnetic field on a lateral semiconductor superlattice is considered based on the quasi-classical electron transport theory in the self-consistent wave formulation. The theory predicts that a lateral superlattice can emit terahertz radiation wave trains, which are associated with periodic excitation of Bloch oscillations in the superlattice arising because of the development of transient processes in it in a variable self-consistent electric field. The conditions necessary for observing Bloch oscillator radiation were found. The spectral composition of radiation transmitted through the superlattice and the energy efficiency of frequency multiplication related to Bloch oscillator excitation were calculated.     

Current to frequency conversion in a Josephson circuit

The voltage oscillations which occur in an ideally current-biased Josephson junction were proposed to make a current standard for metrology. We demonstrate similar oscillations in a more complex Josephson circuit derived from the Cooper pair box: the quantronium. When a constant current I is injected in the gate capacitor of this device, oscillations develop at the frequency f(B)=I/2e, with e the electron charge. We detect these oscillations through the sidebands induced at multiples of f(B) in the spectrum of a microwave signal reflected on the circuit, up to currents I exceeding 100 pA. We discuss the potential interest of this current-to-frequency conversion experiment for metrology.     

Domain boundary instability in weakly coupled GaAs/AlGaAs superlattices

Self-sustained oscillations of the current with a frequency ranging from 0.7 to 3.6 MHz have been detected in weakly coupled GaAs/AlGaAs superlattice at 4.2 K. A study of the static and dynamic characteristics of the structure showed that the spontaneous oscillations arise in the local region of the superlattice, restricted by a size of the domain boundary expansion. The oscillations arise in the negative differential conductivity regions due to the periodic coupling and decoupling of subbands in adjacent quantum wells, forming the expanded domain boundary. We suggest that the spatio-temporal oscillations of the domain boundary should be considered as oscillations of an ensemble of several strongly phase-coupled oscillators. Each oscillator is a couple of two adjacent quantum wells, which operates as a single resonant tunneling diode.     

Asymmetric Fraunhofer pattern in Josephson junctions from heterodimensional superlattice V5S8

Introduction of spin-orbit coupling (SOC) in a Josephson junction (JJ) gives rise to unusual Josephson effects. We investigate JJs based on a newly discovered heterodimensional superlattice V₅S₈ with a special form of SOC. The unique homointerface of our JJs enables elimination of extrinsic effects due to interfaces and disorder. We observe asymmetric Fraunhofer patterns with respect to both the perpendicular magnetic field and the current. The asymmetry is influenced by an in-plane magnetic field. Analysis of the pattern points to a nontrivial spatial distribution of the Josephson current that is intrinsic to the SOC in V₅S₈.     

Tunneling spectroscopy of two-level systems inside a Josephson junction

We consider a two-level system (TLS) with energy level separation plankvOmega0 inside a Josephson junction. The junction is shunted by a resistor R and is voltage V biased. If the TLS modulates the Josephson energy and/or is optically active, it is Rabi driven by the Josephson oscillations in the running phase regime near the resonance 2eV=plankvOmega0. The Rabi oscillations, in turn, translate into oscillations of current and voltage that can be detected in noise measurements. This effect provides an option to fully characterize the TLS inside Josephson junction and to find the TLS's contribution to the decoherence when the junction is used as a qubit.     

The effect of temperature on the nonlinear dynamics of charge in a semiconductor superlattice in the presence of a magnetic field

The space-time dynamics of electron domains in a semiconductor superlattice is studied in a tilted magnetic field with regard to the effect of temperature. It is shown that an increase in temperature substantially changes the space-time dynamics of the system. This leads to a decrease in the frequency and amplitude of oscillations of a current flowing through the semiconductor superlattice. The quenching of oscillations is observed, which is attributed to the change in the drift velocity as a function of electric-field strength under the variation of temperature.     

Dynamical electron localization and self-induced transparency in semiconductor superlattices

The mechanisms of the occurrence of self-induced and selective transparencies of semiconductor superlattices in a strong time-dependent electric field are investigated. The association of these mechanisms with Bloch oscillations, dynamical localization, and collapse of electron quasi-energy minibands is analyzed, and a comparison with the properties of Josephson junctions is made. It is shown that the self-induced transparency is due to the fact that the current-contributing component of the electron distribution function is destroyed by collisions at discrete values of the amplitude of the time-harmonic field, while the selective transparency is associated with the nonmonotonic dependence of the spectrum of nonlinear electron oscillations in the electric field on the amplitude of the field. The dynamical localization and collapse of quasi-energy minibands lead to the field energy dissipation and are favorable to destruction of the transparency states of the superlattice.     

Generation of direct current in a semiconductor superlattice under the action of a bichromatic field as a parametric effect

Generation of direct current in a semiconductor superlattice under the action of an ac bichromatic field is considered in the most general case of an arbitrary ratio of the frequencies of the fields being mixed. It is shown that this effect is of parametric origin associated with oscillations of the electron effective mass in the miniband of the superlattice.     

THz-field induced nonlinear transport and dc voltage generation in a semiconductor superlattice due to Bloch oscillations

We report on a theoretical analysis of terahertz (THz-) field induced nonlinear dynamics of electrons in a semiconductor superlattice that are capable to perform Bloch oscillations. Our results suggest that for a strong THz-field a dc voltage should be generated. We have analyzed the real-time dynamics using a balance equation approach to describe the electron transport in a superlattice miniband. Taking account of both Bloch oscillations of electrons in a superlattice miniband and dissipation, we studied the influence of a strong THz-field on currently available superlattices at room temperature. We found that a THz-field can lead to a negative conductance resulting in turn in a THz-field induced dc voltage, and that the voltage per superlattice period should show, for varying amplitue of the THz-field, a form of wisted plateaus with the middle points being with high precision equal to the photon energy divided by the electron charge. We show voltage to the finite voltage state, and that in the finite voltage state dynamic localization of the electrons in a miniband occurs.     

Correlated quantum transport of density wave electrons

Recently observed Aharonov-Bohm quantum interference of the period h/2e in charge density wave rings strongly suggests that correlated density wave electron transport is a cooperative quantum phenomenon. The picture discussed here posits that quantum solitons nucleate and transport current above a Coulomb blockade threshold field. We propose a field-dependent tunneling matrix element and use the Schr?dinger equation, viewed as an emergent classical equation as in Feynman's treatment of Josephson tunneling, to compute the evolving macrostate amplitudes, finding excellent quantitative agreement with voltage oscillations and current-voltage characteristics in NbSe(3). A proposed phase diagram shows the conditions favoring soliton nucleation versus classical depinning.     

Intrinsic Josephson effects in the magnetic superconductor RuSr2GdCu2O8

We have measured interlayer current transport in small-sized RuSr2GdCu2O8 single crystals. We find a clear intrinsic Josephson effect showing that the material acts as a natural superconductor-insulator-ferromagnet-insulator-superconductor superlattice. Thus far, we detected no unconventional behavior due to the magnetism of the RuO2 layers.     

Subharmonic gap structure in superconducting scanning tunneling microscope junctions

We observe a subharmonic gap structure (SGS) and the Josephson effect in superconducting scanning tunneling microscope junctions with resistances below 100 kΩ. The magnitude of the n=2 SGS is shown to scale with the square of the junction normal state conductance, in agreement with theory. We show by analyzing the Josephson effect in these junctions that the superconducting phase dynamics are strongly affected by thermal fluctuations. We estimate the linewidth of the Josephson oscillations due to phase fluctuations, a quantity that may be important in modern theories of the subgap structure. While phase fluctuations may smear the SGS current onsets, we conclude that the sharpness of these onsets in our data is not limited by fluctuations.     

dc Josephson effect in metallic single-walled carbon nanotubes

The dc Josephson effect is investigated in a single-walled metallic carbon nanotube connected to two superconducting leads. In particular, by using the Luttinger liquid theory, we analyze the effects of the electron-electron interaction on the supercurrent. We find that in the long junction limit the strong electronic correlations of the nanotube, together with its peculiar band structure, induce oscillations in the critical current as a function of the junction length and/or the nanotube electron filling. These oscillations represent a signature of the Luttinger liquid physics of the nanotube, for they are absent if the interaction is vanishing. We show that this effect can be exploited to reverse the sign of the supercurrent, realizing a tunable π-junction.     

Excitation of Bloch oscillations in a lateral semiconductor superlattice under the influence of electromagnetic pulses

The conversion of the carrier frequency of electromagnetic pulses in lateral semiconductor superlattices, associated with the excitation of Bloch oscillations in the superlattice, is studied theoretically. Conditions are found that are necessary for the observation of the radiation of a Bloch oscillator. The energy characteristics of the efficiency of frequency multiplication and the spectral distribution of the radiation transmitted through the superlattice are calculated. It is shown that low-frequency collisions of electrons do not suppress the excitation of Bloch oscillations, which can be observed under the interaction of the superlattice not only with a pulsed, but also with a continuous-wave signal.     

Novel 0–π transitions in Josephson junctions between noncentrosymmetric superconductors

We study the Josephson effect between two noncentrosymmetric superconductors(NCSs) with opposite polarization vectors of Rashba spin–orbit coupling(RSOC).We find a 0–π transition driven by the triplet–singlet ratio of NCSs.Different from conventional 0–π transitions,the Andreev bound states change their energy range instead of phase shift in the 0–π transition found here.This novel property results in a feature that the critical current becomes almost zero at the transition point,not only a minimum.Furthermore,when the directions of RSOC polarization vectors are the same in two NCSs,the similar effect can also be found in the presence of a perpendicular exchange field or a Dresselhause spin–orbit coupling in the interlayer.We find novel oscillations of critical current without 0–π transition.These novel 0–π transitions or oscillations of critical current present new understanding of the Josephson effect and can also serve as a tool to determine the unknown triplet–singlet ratio of NCSs.     

Quantum oscillations of the nonequilibrium chemical potential in Josephson junctions

The problem of electron injection in Josephson junctions is considered theoretically. The effect of quantum oscillations of the chemical potential in a nonequilibrium Josephson junction is predicted. The oscillation spectrum is presented by a single Josephson mode if the transparency of the oxide barrier is not too high.     

Enhancement of Resonant Activation by Constant Bias Current for Superconducting Junction

We consider a superconducting(Josephson) junction driven by the thermal noise with an ac drive current and a dc constant bias current in the overdamped case and in the underdamped case,respectively,and investigate the effect of the constant bias current on the evolution of the net voltage versus the driving frequency.It is shown that,with some suitably selected values of the system's parameters,suitably increasing the absolute value of the constant bias current can lead to the enhancement of resonant activation of the net voltage versus the driving frequency.This result can benefit the investigation for the Josephson junction subjected to the constant bias current(or voltage).