Spin-Dependent Josephson Current through Double Quantum Dots and Measurement of Entangled Electron States

We study a double quantum dot each dot of which is tunnel-coupled to superconducting leads. In the Coulomb blockade regime, a spin-dependent Josephson coupling between two superconductors is induced, as well as an antiferromagnetic Heisenberg exchange coupling between the spins on the double dot which can be tuned by the superconducting phase difference. We show that the correlated spin states-singlet or triplets-on the double dot can be probed via the Josephson current in a dc-SQUID setup.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figures; To appear in PRB; A few small changes including reference

Lower bound for electron spin entanglement from beamsplitter current correlations

We determine a lower bound for the entanglement of pairs of electron spins injected into a mesoscopic conductor. The bound can be expressed in terms of experimentally accessible quantities, the zero-frequency current correlators (shot noise power or cross-correlators) after transmission through an electronic beam splitter. The effect of spin relaxation (T_1 processes) and decoherence (T_2 processes) during the ballistic coherent transmission of the carriers in the wires is taken into account within Bloch theory. The presence of a variable inhomogeneous magnetic field allows the determination of a useful lower bound for the entanglement of arbitrary entangled states. The decrease in entanglement due to thermally mixed states is studied. Both the entanglement of the output of a source (entangler) and the relaxation (T_1) and decoherence (T_2) times can be determined.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Innovative composite steel-timber floors with prefabricated modular components

An innovative steel-timber composite floor for use in multi-storey residential buildings is presented. The research demonstrates the potential of these steel-timber composite systems in terms of bearing capacity, stiffness and method of construction. Such engineered solutions should prove to be sustainable since they combine recyclable materials in the most effective way. The floors consist of prefabricated ultralight modular components, with a Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) slab, joined together and to the main structural system using only bolts and screws. Two novel floor solutions are presented, along with the results of experimental tests on the flexural behavior of their modular components. Bending tests have been performed considering two different methods of loading and constraints. Each prefabricated modular component uses a special arrangement of steel-timber connections to join a CLT panel to two customized cold-formed steel beams. Specifically, the first proposed composite system is assembled using mechanical connectors whereas the second involves the use of epoxy-based resin. In the paper, a FEM model is provided in order to extend this study to other steel-timber composite floor solutions. In addition, the paper contains the design model to be used in dimensioning the developed systems according to the state of the art of composite structures

Direct Measurement of the Spin-Orbit Interaction in a Two-Electron InAs Nanowire Quantum Dot

We demonstrate control of the electron number down to the last electron in tunable few-electron quantum dots defined in catalytically grown InAs nanowires. Using low temperature transport spectroscopy in the Coulomb blockade regime we propose a simple method to directly determine the magnitude of the spin-orbit interaction in a two-electron artificial atom with strong spin-orbit coupling. Due to a large effective g-factor |g*|=8+/-1 the transition from singlet S to triplet T+ groundstate with increasing magnetic field is dominated by the Zeeman energy rather than by orbital effects. We find that the spin-orbit coupling mixes the T+ and S states and thus induces an avoided crossing with magnitude $\Delta_{SO}$=0.25+/-0.05 meV. This allows us to calculate the spin-orbit length $\lambda_{SO}\approx$127 nm in such systems using a simple model.Comment: 21 pages, 7 figures, including supplementary note