Related papers: Future optical detectors based on Al superconducti…
We report on the successful fabrication of low leakage aluminium superconducting tunnel junctions with very homogeneous and transparent insulating barriers. The junctions were tested in an adiabatic demagnetisation refrigerator with a base…
We have successfully fabricated Cu/AlOx-Al/Nb normal-metal/insulator/superconductor tunnel junction devices with a high value of the superconducting gap (up to $\sim 1$ mV), using electron-beam lithography and angle evaporation techniques…
We have developed a technique to fabricate sub-micron, 0.6 um x 0.6 um Al-AlOx-Nb tunnel junctions using a standard e-beam resist, angle evaporation and double oxidation of the tunneling barrier, resulting in high quality niobium, as…
This thesis describes the development of low-energy gap superconducting tunnel junctions (STJs) for use as photon detectors, with as a main goal the improvement of the energy resolution in both the optical and the x-ray energy domain. A new…
We demonstrate an original method -- based on controlled oxidation -- to create high-quality tunnel junctions between superconducting Al reservoirs and InAs semiconductor nanowires. We show clean tunnel characteristics with a current…
We experimentally demonstrated the optical responses of the switching currents in two types of Josephson tunnel junctions: Al/AlOx/Al and Nb/AlOx/Nb. The radiation-induced switching current shifts were measured at ultra-low bath temperature…
We have successfully fabricated micron-scale Cu-AlO$_{x} $-Al-NbN normal metal-insulator-superconductor (NIS) tunnel junction devices, using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) for NbN film growth, and electron-beam lithography and shadow…
We present radio-frequency thermometry based on a tunnel junction between a superconductor and proximitized normal metal. It allows operation in a wide range of biasing conditions. We demonstrate that the standard finite-bias quasiparticle…
We present a fabrication scheme and testing results for epitaxial sub-micrometer Josephson junctions. The junctions are made using a high-temperature (1170 K) "via process" yielding junctions as small as 0.8 mu m in diameter by use of…
We report a Nb/Al-AlN /Nb superconducting tunnel junction process in which the AlN barrier is formed by plasma nitridation using a compact microwave electron-cyclotron-resonance (ECR) nitrogen plasma source integrated into a standard…
We demonstrate shadow evaporation-based fabrication of high-quality ultrasmall normal metal -- insulator -- superconductor tunnel junctions where the thickness of the superconducting electrode is not limited by the requirement of small…
We have investigated metallic break junctions of the heavy-fermion compound UPd2Al3 at low temperatures between 0.1K and 9K and in magnetic fields up to 8T. Both the current-voltage I(V) characteristics and the dV/dI (V) spectra clearly…
We recently predicted the formation of a highly non-equilibrium quasiparticle (qp) distribution in low TC multiple tunnelling superconducting tunnel junctions (STJs) [1]. The situation arises through qp energy gain in cycles of successive…
Superconducting Tunnel Junctions (STJ's) are currently being developed as photon detectors for a wide range of applications. Interest comes from their ability to cumulate photon counting with chromaticity (i.e. energy resolution) from the…
We fabricate graphene-TiOx-Al tunnel junctions and characterize their radio frequency response. Below the superconducting critical temperature of Al and when biased within the superconducting gap, the devices show enhanced dynamic…
Bipolar thermoelectricity in tunnel junctions between superconductors of different energy gap has been recently predicted and experimentally demonstrated. This effect showed thermovoltages up to $\pm150\;\mu$V at milliKelvin temperatures.…
The point contact tunneling technique is used to examine quasiparticle and Josephson currents in overdoped Bi$_{2}$Sr$_{2}$CaCu$_{2}$O$_{8+\delta}$ (Bi-2212) single crystals with bulk T$_{c}$ values near 62 K. High quality…
We characterize niobium-based lateral Superconductor (S) - Normal metal (N) - Superconductor weak links through low-temperature switching current measurements and tunnel spectroscopy. We fabricate the SNS devices in two separate lithography…
A 6x6 array of symmetrical V/Al/AlOx/Al/V Superconducting Tunnel Junctions (STJs) was fabricated. The base electrode is a high quality epitaxial film with a residual resistance ratio (RRR) of ~30. The top film is polycrystalline with an RRR…
Niobium offers the benefit of increased operating temperatures and frequencies for Josephson junctions, which are the core component of superconducting devices. However existing niobium processes are limited by more complicated fabrication…