Competitive 0 and {\pi} states in S/F multilayers: multimode approach

We have investigated the critical temperature behavior in periodic superconductor/ ferromagnet (S/F) multilayers as a function of the ferromagnetic layer thickness $d_f$ and the interface transparency. The critical temperature $T_c(d_f)$ exhibits a damped oscillatory behavior in these systems due to an exchange field in the ferromagnetic material. In this work we have performed $T_c$ calculations using the self-consistent multimode approach, which is considered to be exact solving method. Using this approach we have derived the conditions of 0 or $\pi$ state realization in periodic S/F multilayers. Moreover, we have presented the comparison between the single-mode and multimode approaches and established the limits of applicability of the single-mode approximation, frequently used by experimentalists

Antiferromagnetic resonances in superconductor-ferromagnet multilayers

In this work, we study magnetization dynamics in superconductor-ferromagnet (S-F) thin-film multilayer. Theoretical considerations supported by the broad-band ferromagnetic resonance spectroscopy reveal development of acoustic and optic resonance modes in S-F multilayers at significantly higher frequencies in comparison to the Kittel mode of individual F-layers. These modes are formed due to antiferromagnetic-like interaction between F-layers via shared circulating superconducting currents in S-layers. The gap between resonance modes is determined by the thickness and superconducting penetration depth in S-layers. Overall, rich spectrum of S-F multilayers and its tunability opens wide prospects for application of these multialyers in magnonics as well as in various superconducting hybrid systems.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures, 34 reference

Double Fe-impurity charge state in the topological insulator Bi2_2Se3_3

The influence of individual impurities of Fe on the electronic properties of topological insulator Bi$_2$Se$_3$ is studied by Scanning Tunneling Microscopy. The microscope tip is used in order to remotely charge/discharge Fe impurities. The charging process is shown to depend on the impurity location in the crystallographic unit cell, on the presence of other Fe impurities in the close vicinity, as well as on the overall doping level of the crystal. We present a qualitative explanation of the observed phenomena in terms of tip-induced local band bending. Our observations evidence that the specific impurity neighborhood and the position of the Fermi energy with respect to the Dirac point and bulk bands have both to be taken into account when considering the electron scattering on the disorder in topological insulators.Comment: 10 pages, accepted for publication in Applied Physics Letters, minor bugs were correcte

Tight inequalities for nonclassicality of measurement statistics

In quantum optics, measurement statistics -- for example, photocounting statistics -- are considered nonclassical if they cannot be reproduced with statistical mixtures of classical radiation fields. We have formulated a necessary and sufficient condition for such nonclassicality. This condition is given by a set of inequalities that tightly bound the convex set of probabilities associated with classical electromagnetic radiation. Analytical forms for full sets and subsets of these inequalities are obtained for important cases of realistic photocounting measurements and unbalanced homodyne detection. As an example, we consider photocounting statistics of phase-squeezed coherent states. Contrary to a common intuition, the analysis developed here reveals distinct nonclassical properties of these statistics that can be experimentally corroborated with minimal resources.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figure

Reentrant superconductivity in proximity to a topological insulator

In the following paper we investigate the critical temperature $T_c$ behavior in the two-dimensional S/TI (S denotes superconductor and TI - topological insulator) junction with a proximity induced in-plane helical magnetization in the TI surface. The calculations of $T_c$ are performed using the general self-consistent approach based on the Usadel equations in Matsubara Green's functions technique. We show that the presence of the helical magnetization leads to the nonmonotonic behavior of the critical temperature as a function of the topological insulator layer thickness.Comment: submitted to Physical Review

Spectroscopic evidence for strong correlations between local superconducting gap and local Altshuler-Aronov density-of-states suppression in ultrathin NbN films

Disorder has different profound effects on superconducting thin films. For a large variety of materials, increasing disorder reduces electronic screening which enhances electron-electron repulsion. These fermionic effects lead to a mechanism described by Finkelstein: when disorder combined to electron-electron interactions increases, there is a global decrease of the superconducting energy gap $\Delta$ and of the critical temperature $T_c$, the ratio $\Delta$/$k_BT_c$ remaining roughly constant. In addition, in most films an emergent granularity develops with increasing disorder and results in the formation of inhomogeneous superconducting puddles. These gap inhomogeneities are usually accompanied by the development of bosonic features: a pseudogap develops above the critical temperature $T_c$ and the energy gap $\Delta$ starts decoupling from $T_c$. Thus the mechanism(s) driving the appearance of these gap inhomogeneities could result from a complicated interplay between fermionic and bosonic effects. By studying the local electronic properties of a NbN film with scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS) we show that the inhomogeneous spatial distribution of $\Delta$ is locally strongly correlated to a large depletion in the local density of states (LDOS) around the Fermi level, associated to the Altshuler-Aronov effect induced by strong electronic interactions. By modelling quantitatively the measured LDOS suppression, we show that the latter can be interpreted as local variations of the film resistivity. This local change in resistivity leads to a local variation of $\Delta$ through a local Finkelstein mechanism. Our analysis furnishes a purely fermionic scenario explaining quantitatively the emergent superconducting inhomogeneities, while the precise origin of the latter remained unclear up to now.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figure