Multiple Andreev Reflections in Weak Links of Superfluid 3He-B

We calculate the current-pressure characteristics of a ballistic pinhole aperture between two volumes of B-phase superfluid 3He. The most important mechanism contributing to dissipative currents in weak links of this type is the process of multiple Andreev reflections. At low biases this process is significantly affected by relaxation due to inelastic quasiparticle-quasiparticle collisions. In the numerical calculations, suppression of the superfluid order parameter at surfaces is taken into account self-consistently. When this effect is neglected, the theory may be developed analytically like in the case of s-wave superconductors. A comparison with experimental results is presented.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures, RevTeX

Proximity Effect Enhancement Induced by Roughness of SN Interface

Critical temperature reduction $\Delta T_c$ is considered for a thin film of a layered superconductor (S) with a rough surface covered by a thick layer of a normal metal (N). The roughness of the SN interface increases the penetration of electrons from the normal metal into the superconductor and leads to an enhancement of the proximity effect. The value of $\Delta T_c$ induced by the roughness of the SN interface can be much higher than $\Delta T_c$ for a film with a plain surface for an extremely anisotropic layered superconductor with the coherence lengths $\xi_a,\xi_b\gg\xi_c$.Comment: 2 page

Quasiparticle states of the Hubbard model near the Fermi level

The spectra of the t-U and t-t'-U Hubbard models are investigated in the one-loop approximation for different values of the electron filling. It is shown that the four-band structure which is inherent in the case of half-filling and low temperatures persists also for some excess or deficiency of electrons. Besides, with some departure from half-filling an additional narrow band of quasiparticle states arises near the Fermi level. The dispersion of the band, its bandwidth and the variation with filling are close to those of the spin-polaron band of the t-J model. For moderate doping spectral intensities in the new band and in one of the inner bands of the four-band structure decrease as the Fermi level is approached which leads to the appearance of a pseudogap in the spectrum.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figure

Semiclassical theory of weak antilocalization and spin relaxation in ballistic quantum dots

We develop a semiclassical theory for spin-dependent quantum transport in ballistic quantum dots. The theory is based on the semiclassical Landauer formula, that we generalize to include spin-orbit and Zeeman interaction. Within this approach, the orbital degrees of freedom are treated semiclassically, while the spin dynamics is computed quantum mechanically. Employing this method, we calculate the quantum correction to the conductance in quantum dots with Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit interaction. We find a strong sensitivity of the quantum correction to the underlying classical dynamics of the system. In particular, a suppression of weak antilocalization in integrable systems is observed. These results are attributed to the qualitatively different types of spin relaxation in integrable and chaotic quantum cavities.Comment: 20 page

Nonlinear resonance in a three-terminal carbon nanotube resonator

The RF-response of a three-terminal carbon nanotube resonator coupled to RF-transmission lines is studied by means of perturbation theory and direct numerical integration. We find three distinct oscillatory regimes, including one regime capable of exhibiting very large hysteresis loops in the frequency response. Considering a purely capacitive transduction, we derive a set of algebraic equations which can be used to find the output power (S-parameters) for a device connected to transmission lines with characteristic impedance $Z_0$.Comment: 16 pages, 8 figure

Josephson effect in superconducting constrictions with hybrid SF electrodes: peculiar properties determined by the misorientation of magnetizations

Josephson current in SFcFS junctions with arbitrary transparency of the constriction (c) is investigated. The emphasis is done on the analysis of the supercurrent dependencies on the misorientation angle $\theta$ between the in-plane magnetizations of diffusive ferromagnetic layers (F). It is found that the current-phase relation $I(\phi)$ may be radically modified with the $\theta$ variation: the harmonic $I_{1}\sin \phi$ vanishes for definite value of $\theta$ provided for identical orientation of the magnetizations ($\theta =0$) the junction is in the $"\pi"$ state. The Josephson current may exhibit a nonmonotonic dependence on the misorientation angle both for realization of $"0 "$ and $"\pi "$ state at $\theta =0$. We also analyze the effect of exchange field induced enhancement of the critical current which may occur in definite range of $\theta$.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figures, submitted to JETP Letter

Superradiance from an ultrathin film of three-level V-type atoms: Interplay between splitting, quantum coherence and local-field effects

We carry out a theoretical study of the collective spontaneous emission (superradiance) from an ultrathin film comprised of three-level atoms with $V$-configuration of the operating transitions. As the thickness of the system is small compared to the emission wavelength inside the film, the local-field correction to the averaged Maxwell field is relevant. We show that the interplay between the low-frequency quantum coherence within the subspace of the upper doublet states and the local-field correction may drastically affect the branching ratio of the operating transitions. This effect may be used for controlling the emission process by varying the doublet splitting and the amount of low-frequency coherence.Comment: 15 pages, 5 figure

Anatomy of point-contact Andreev reflection spectroscopy from the experimental point of view (review)

We review application of point-contact Andreev-reflection spectroscopy to study elemental superconductors, where theoretical conditions for the smallness of the point-contact size with respect to the characteristic lengths in the superconductor can be satisfied. We discuss existing theoretical models and identify new issues that have to be solved, especially when applying this method to investigate more complex superconductors. We will also demonstrate that some aspects of point-contact Andreev-reflection spectroscopy still need to be addressed even when investigating ordinary metals.Comment: 20 pages, 18 figs. V2: Ref.60 and footnote 3 are added, a number of minor fixe

Non-equilibrium effects in a Josephson junction coupled to a precessing spin

We present a theoretical study of a Josephson junction consisting of two s-wave superconducting leads coupled over a classical spin. When an external magnetic field is applied, the classical spin will precess with the Larmor frequency. This magnetically active interface results in a time-dependent boundary condition with different tunneling amplitudes for spin-up and spin-down quasiparticles and where the precession produces spin-flip scattering processes. We show that as a result, the Andreev states develop sidebands and a non-equilibrium population which depend on the precession frequency and the angle between the classical spin and the external magnetic field. The Andreev states lead to a steady-state Josephson current whose current-phase relation could be used for characterizing the precessing spin. In addition to the charge transport, a magnetization current is also generated.This spin current is time-dependent and its polarization axis rotates with the same precession frequency as the classical spin.Comment: 20 pages, 26 figure