A Josephson junction defect spectrometer for measuring two-level systems

We have fabricated and measured Josephson junction defect spectrometers (JJDSs), which are frequency-tunable, nearly-harmonic oscillators that probe strongly-coupled two-level systems (TLSs) in the barrier of a Josephson junction (JJ). The JJDSs accommodate a wide range of junction inductances, $L_{J}$, while maintaining a resonance frequency, $f_{0}$, in the range of 4-8 GHz. By applying a magnetic flux bias to tune $f_{0}$, we detect strongly-coupled TLSs in the junction barrier as splittings in the device spectrum. JJDSs fabricated with a via-style Al/thermal AlOx/Al junction and measured at 30 mK with single-photon excitation levels show a density of TLSs in the range $\sigma_{TLS}h = 0.4-0.5 /GHz {\mu}m^2$, and a junction loss tangent of $\tan \delta_{J} = 2.9x10^{-3}$.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

Evidence for hydrogen two-level systems in atomic layer deposition oxides

Two-level system (TLS) defects in dielectrics are known to limit the performance of electronic devices. We study TLS using millikelvin microwave loss measurements of three atomic layer deposited (ALD) oxide films--crystalline BeO ($\rm{c-BeO}$), amorphous $\rm{Al_2O_3}$ ($\rm{a-Al_2O_3}$), and amorphous $\rm{LaAlO_3}$ ($\rm{a-LaAlO_3}$)--and interpret them with room temperature characterization measurements. We find that the bulk loss tangent in the crystalline film is 6 times higher than in the amorphous films. In addition, its power saturation agrees with an amorphous distribution of TLS. Through a comparison of loss tangent data to secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) impurity analysis we find that the dominant loss in all film types is consistent with hydrogen-based TLS. In the amorphous films excess hydrogen is found at the ambient-exposed surface, and we extract the associated hydrogen-based surface loss tangent. Data from films with a factor of 40 difference in carbon impurities revealed that carbon is currently a negligible contributor to TLS loss.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures (preprint format

Imaging spontaneous currents in superconducting arrays of pi-junctions

Superconductors separated by a thin tunneling barrier exhibit the Josephson effect that allows charge transport at zero voltage, typically with no phase shift between the superconductors in the lowest energy state. Recently, Josephson junctions with ground state phase shifts of pi proposed by theory three decades ago have been demonstrated. In superconducting loops, pi-junctions cause spontaneous circulation of persistent currents in zero magnetic field, analogous to spin-1/2 systems. Here we image the spontaneous zero-field currents in superconducting networks of temperature-controlled pi-junctions with weakly ferromagnetic barriers using a scanning SQUID microscope. We find an onset of spontaneous supercurrents at the 0-pi transition temperature of the junctions Tpi = 3 K. We image the currents in non-uniformly frustrated arrays consisting of cells with even and odd numbers of pi-junctions. Such arrays are attractive model systems for studying the exotic phases of the 2D XY-model and achieving scalable adiabatic quantum computers.Comment: Pre-referee version. Accepted to Nature Physic

An analysis method for asymmetric resonator transmission applied to superconducting devices

We examine the transmission through nonideal microwave resonant circuits. The general analytical resonance line shape is derived for both inductive and capacitive coupling with mismatched input and output transmission impedances, and it is found that for certain non-ideal conditions the line shape is asymmetric. We describe an analysis method for extracting an accurate internal quality factor ($Q_i$), the Diameter Correction Method (DCM), and compare it to the conventional method used for millikelvin resonator measurements, the $\phi$ Rotation Method ($\phi$RM). We analytically find that the $\phi$RM deterministically overestimates $Q_i$ when the asymmetry of the resonance line shape is high, and that this error is eliminated with the DCM. A consistent discrepancy between the two methods is observed when they are used to analyze both simulations from a numerical linear solver and data from asymmetric coplanar superconducting thin-film resonators.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figures, Published J. Appl. Phys. 111, 054510 (2012

Pt and CoB trilayer Josephson π junctions with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

We report on the electrical transport properties of Nb based Josephson junctions with Pt/Co68B32/Pt ferromagnetic barriers. The barriers exhibit perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, which has the main advantage for potential applications over magnetisation in-plane systems of not affecting the Fraunhofer response of the junction. In addition, we report that there is no magnetic dead layer at the Pt/Co68B32 interfaces, allowing us to study barriers with ultra-thin Co68B32. In the junctions, we observe that the magnitude of the critical current oscillates with increasing thickness of the Co68B32 strong ferromagnetic alloy layer. The oscillations are attributed to the ground state phase difference across the junctions being modified from zero to π. The multiple oscillations in the thickness range 0.2 ⩽ dCoB ⩽ 1.4 nm suggests that we have access to the first zero-π and π-zero phase transitions. Our results fuel the development of low-temperature memory devices based on ferromagnetic Josephson junctions

Non-Sinusoidal Current -Phase Relations in Superconductor-Ferromagnet-Superconductor Josephson Junctions

84 p.Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2009.We have directly measured the current-phase relation (CPR) of a superconductor-ferromagnet-superconductor (SFS) Josephson junction, and determined that it contains a positive second-harmonic term proportional to sin(2&phis;). The second-harmonic term becomes dominant near Tpi, the temperature at which the first-order term switches between the 0-state and the pi-state. In SFS junctions, the interaction of the correlated electron states from the superconductor with the ferromagnet causes the superconducting order parameter to oscillate so that the ground state can have a phase difference of zero, as in a conventional Josephson junction, or a phase difference of pi, depending on the barrier thickness. The oscillation length is a function of the ferromagnetic exchange energy, Eex, and temperature, so SFS junctions with Eex ≈ Tc (the superconducting transition temperature) that are fabricated near a 0-to-pi crossover thickness can also be modulated between the 0-state and pi-state as a function of temperature. We use the weak ferromagnetic alloy Cu47Ni53 as the barrier material with a thickness of 7nm, which is near the first thickness dependent 0-to-pi crossover point. At this crossover point, it has been predicted that an intrinsic second-order term would dominate the CPR due to the suppression of the first-order component. Alternative theories predict that a negative second-order term could arise, in a narrow temperature regime at the 0-to-pi crossover point, from a competition between the 0-state and pi-state due to inhomogeneities. Our direct measurement indicates a positive second-harmonic that is constant over the temperature range where it is accessible. Additional transport measurements are consistent with the direct measurement and indicate that the second-harmonic term persists over a temperature range of at least 1.5K. These results indicate an intrinsic second-harmonic in the CPR of our junctions.U of I OnlyRestricted to the U of I community idenfinitely during batch ingest of legacy ETD