High-performance electronic cooling with superconducting tunnel junctions

When biased at a voltage just below a superconductor's energy gap, a tunnel junction between this superconductor and a normal metal cools the latter. While the study of such devices has long been focused to structures of submicron size and consequently cooling power in the picowatt range, we have led a thorough study of devices with a large cooling power up to the nanowatt range. Here we describe how their performance can be optimized by using a quasi-particle drain and tuning the cooling junctions' tunnel barrier.     

Subharmonic gap structures in asymmetric superconducting tunnel junctions

Tunneling in the asymmetric superconducting junctions of PbIn and PbTl shows sharp current steps at voltages eV = Δ₁ + Δ₂,$\text{2Δ}{}_2\text{2n}\text{and}\text{2Δ}{}_1\text{2n}$ (structures for n > 1 not readily observed); 2Δ₁ and 2Δ₂ are the energy gaps and n is an integer. We obtain new results for the relative magnitude of the structures, where the larger of the two structures is observed at the larger of the two voltages $\text{Δ}{}_1\text{ρ}\text{and}\text{Δ}{}_2\text{ρ}$. These results, in contrast to other available experimental results on different superconductors, seem to exclude self-coupling theory as the mechanism.     

Phonon emission spectra of superconducting tunnel junctions

Resonant scattering of phonons by the stress split acceptor ground state in Si:B has been used to investigate the phonon emission spectra of superconducting tunnel junctions. Symmetric Sn, Pb and PbBi alloy junctions have been studied in the single particle tunneling regime. The spectra show many features as expected from relaxation and recombination of quasiparticles via one-phonon emission. The results are compared with the steady state solutions of the kinetic equations for quasiparticles and phonons. Spatially homogeneous distribution functions are assumed. This approach describes the spectra of tin junctions fairly well. However, there are marked deviations for Pb and PbBi junctions which are attributed to a decay of transverse phonons within the junction.Dedicated to K. Dransfeld on the occasion of his 60th birthday     

Quasiparticle relaxation and phonon emission in superconducting tunnel junctions

Using SnISn tunnel junctions as generators and detectors of high frequency phonons, the temperature dependence (down to 0.3°K) of the derivative of the detected signal as a function of generator bias is reported. For T?1°K we have observed the expected BCS singularity in the signal at a generator bias of 4Δ. An additional singularity has been observed at a bias of 2Δ when the number of injected particles greatly exceeds the number thermally excited. Unlike the 4Δ peak, the temperature of occurrence of the 2Δ peak depends markedly on generator impedance, (injection rate) as expected. The data provide strong evidence that Tewordt's model (strictly valid for T = 0°K), in which an excited quasiparticle relaxes predominantly in a single step to the gap edge before recombination, is correct in the temperature range $\text{T}\text{T}{}_{\mathrm{c}}\text{< 0.3}$ and for low injection rates.     

Limitations in cooling electrons using normal-metal-superconductor tunnel junctions

We demonstrate both theoretically and experimentally two limiting factors in cooling electrons using biased tunnel junctions to extract heat from a normal metal into a superconductor. First, when the injection rate of electrons exceeds the internal relaxation rate in the metal to be cooled, the electrons do not obey the Fermi-Dirac distribution, and the concept of temperature cannot be applied as such. Second, at low bath temperatures, states within the gap induce anomalous heating and yield a theoretical limit of the achievable minimum temperature.     

Two-dimensional imaging of the current-density distribution in superconducting tunnel junctions

Using a scanning electron microscope equipped with a low-temperature stage, we show that under the electron irradiation a superconducting tunnel junction can operate regularly. The electron beam generates a voltage signal across the current-biased junction. By recording the small voltage change synchronously with the coordinate irradiated by the beam, a two-dimensional “voltage image” of the density distribution of the junction tunneling current can be obtained. The distributions are in agreement with the magnetic interference patterns of the dc-Josephson currents in the junctions.     

Quantum coherent effects and Zener tunneling in superconducting tunnel junctions

We calculate the current-voltage characteristics of a small capacitance underdamped superconducting tunnel junction and find the value of the critical current which corresponds to switching between coherent voltage oscillations and uncorrelated single electron tunneling. Both Zener tunneling and dissipative relaxation are important in this context.     

Direct detection at submillimetre wavelengths using superconducting tunnel junctions

Superconducting tunnel-junction direct detectors are considered in some detail. For frequencies below twice that of the gap there is some bias voltage for which the input impedance is real, the responsivity quantum limited, and the dynamic range high. A susperconducting detector saturates for two reasons: intrinsic saturation due to the relative increase in two-photon tunnelling processes, and extrinsic saturation due to the input match changing with bias voltage. The responsivity of a detector with a resistive RF source is least sensitive to bias-voltage changes and has the greatest dynamic range when operating with a sloping load line. In the case of an inductive source, the dynamic range can be higher than the intrinsic saturation rate would suggest. Ideally, superconducting tunnel-junction detectors should be biased in a constant-voltage mode. If the responsivity is to be depressed by no more than a few percent, the photon step should have a height which is no more than one quarter of the total current turn-on at the gap. Superconducting direct detectors can be used to make precise and well-calibrated optical measurements at submillimetre wavelengths.     

Imaging of spatial structures in superconducting tunnel junctions by electron-beam scanning

The voltage change caused in a current-biased superconducting tunnel junction by scanning the junction surface with an electron beam can serve to generate a two-dimensional image of spatial structures within the specimen. Depending upon the bias point during the scanning process, an image of local variations in the tunneling current density due to variations of the tunnel barrier resistance or in the energy gaps of the electrodes is obtained. PbAuIn/PbBi cross-line and SiO-window junctions have been used to demonstrate this imaging technique.     

Nb/Al-AlO_x/Nb超导隧道结的制备

在高阻硅衬底上采用光刻、直流磁控溅射、反应离子刻蚀(RIE)、等离子体增强化学气相沉积法(PECVD)等方法研究制备了高质量的Nb/Al-Al Ox/Nb超导隧道结。在4.2K下,测量了直径8μm的圆形结样品,得到临界电流密度约为1.6k A/cm2,漏电流约为50μA。制结工艺流程的重复性较好。     

Energy resolution of strip superconducting detectors with two tunnel junctions

A mathematical model of a strip X-ray detector has been developed. The detector consists of a long superconducting strip with two tunnel junctions at both ends. The model developed takes into account the diffusion of nonequilibrium quasiparticles, their capture to the region of the tunnel junctions, and quasiparticle losses in the bulk and at the boundaries of the superconducting strip. Analytical solutions have been obtained for the boundary conditions of the third kind. It is shown that the quasiparticle losses at the strip boundaries lead to a dependence of the detector signal amplitude on the transverse coordinate of the photon absorption point and deteriorate the energy and spatial resolution. The spectral line has been calculated with allowance for the contribution of electronic noise.     

Nonequilibrium Josephson effect in systems of tunnel superconducting junctions and in layered superconductors

This paper examines the time-dependent Josephson effect in systems of tunnel superconducting junctions and in layered superconductors (the intrinsic Josephson effect) with allowance for nonequilibrium superconductivity effects. Kinetic and quasihydrodynamic equations are derived that describe self-consistently the dynamics of Josephson phases and nonequilibrium quasiparticles. It is found that the state of nonequilibrium between the layers leads to an effective mechanism of the interaction between interlayer Josephson junctions, which can be used to synchronize the junctions. Current-voltage characteristics of chains of intrinsic junctions are obtained for different values of the parameters. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 116, 1798–1816 (November 1999)     

Nonequilibrium gap instability under tunnel injection of quasiparticles utilizing superconducting junctions with negative tunnel resistance

Nonequilibrium superconductivity under tunnel injection of quasiparticles in the low-voltage injection regime is investigated utilizing Sn double-tunnel junctions, particularly when the injector tunnel resistance is so low that the negative resistance behavior may be observed in the I–V characteristic. The experiments are performed under the condition that the sample is immersed in superfluid helium in order to avoid simple heating effect. No sharp transition to the inhomogeneous gap state is observed in the injector characteristic. A new interesting feature in the detector characteristics is observed for the transition to the inhomogeneous state, which may be compared with the previous works utilizing Al double-tunnel junctions.     

On the passive electrode signal in X-ray detectors based on superconducting tunnel junctions

X-ray detectors based on superconducting tunnel junctions with the multilayer electrode structure described by the formula Ti/Nb/Al, AlO _x /Al/Nb/NbN were studied. The main signal arose during X-ray absorption in the top electrode and had an energy resolution of ∼90 eV at the 5.9-keV line. The bottom passive Ti/Nb electrode provided rapid absorption of excess quasiparticles. The residual signal of the passive electrode was from 7 to 17% of the main signal amplitude. The dependences of the amplitude of this signal on the voltage and the absorbed X-ray energy were measured for detectors with different thicknesses of the top and bottom electrodes. The rate of quasiparticle trapping by the energy trap in the Ti/Nb bilayer was estimated. The main mechanisms of the formation of the passive electrode signal formation were considered and methods for its suppression were proposed.     

Determination of the quasiparticle energy distribution in superconducting tunnel junctions under microwave irradiation

The influence of microwave irradiation on the quasiparticle energy distribution in a superconductor is determined by unfolding the change of the current-voltage characteristics of small tunnel junctions. The results are in good agreement with the theoretical predictions by Chang and Scalapino.     

Fabrication of superconducting tunnel junctions for soft X‐ray spectroscopy

Superconducting tunnel junction (STJ) array detectors with a new design, which has a minimum junction edge coverage of an SiO₂ insulation, passivation layer and an asymmetric tunnel junction layer structure, have been fabricated for a soft X‐ray region between 100 eV and 1 keV. The sensitive area was patterned by removing the SiO₂ deposition layer by a lift‐off technique that ensured no contamination layer on the top Nb electrode surface. The width of the passivation rim was as narrow as 0.5 µm at the junction edge. The clean Nb surface and the narrow SiO₂ rim resulted in almost no artifact photon events in a low‐energy region. The asymmetric layer design is effective in solving a problem of double peak response to monochromatic X‐rays, which is commonly observed in STJ detectors. The performance of a 100 pixel array detector was investigated by the fluorescent X‐ray analysis of oxides and nitrides: an energy resolution of about 30 eV for the total absorption of the Kα lines of oxygen and nitrogen. We plan to realize an energy resolution of better than 20 eV and a counting rate of over 1 Mcps for fluorescence‐yield X‐ray absorption spectroscopy for light trace elements. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Characteristics of Nb/Al superconducting tunnel junctions fabricated using ozone gas

To improve the energy resolution(?E) of Nb/Al superconducting tunnel junctions(STJs), an ozone(O3) oxidation process has been developed to fabricate a thin defect-free tunnel barrier that simultaneously shows high critical current JC 1000 A/cm2 and high normalized dynamic resistance RDA 100 M?·μm2, where A is the size of the STJ. The 50-μm2 STJs produced by O3 exposure of 0.26 Pa·min with an indirect spray of O3 gas, which is a much lower level of exposure than the O2 exposure used in a conventional O2 oxidation process, exhibit a maximum JC= 800 A/cm2 and a high RDA = 372 M? ·μm2. The 100-pixel array of the 100-μm2STJs produced using the same O3 oxidation conditions exhibits a constant leak current I leak= 14.9 ± 3.2 n A at a bias point around ? /e(where e is half the energy gap of an STJ),and a high fabrication yield of 87%. Although the I leak values are slightly larger than those of STJs produced using the conventional O2 oxidation process, the STJ produced using O3 oxidation shows a ?E = 10 eV for the C-Kα line, which is the best value of our Nb/Al STJ x-ray detectors.